"The North has not kept its commitments on technology transfer"
Economist Klaus W Lippold is the chairperson of the Commission for Protection of the Earth's Atmosphere. As a member of the German Parliament …
"We need to think about all of us as being citizens of the same world"
Joseph E Stiglitz helped create a new branch of economics - the Economics of Information. This earned him the Nobel Prize for economics in 2001. …
Debate: Has economic liberalisation threatened India’s environment and natural resources?
The inaugural issue of Down To Earth (May 31, 1992) coincided with India opening up its economy. We carried a debate on how economic …
The politics of globalisation
POLITICIAN, economist and teacher all rolled into one --Johannes Pieter Pronk, better known as Jan Pronk, is in his second term as Netherlands …
Whither liberalisation
The post-GATT liberalisation era has come to India not only with its enchanting platter of economic efficiency, technological treasure trough …
"Industry must invest in clean projects "
Brian Robinson , chairperson, Australian Environment Protection Authority (epa) has enabled the Australian environmental enforcement system to …
After Copenhagen: What's on the Agenda? (II)
The Centre for Science and Environment recently held a climate change media workshop to brief South Asian journalists on the politics of …
Will liberalisation destroy the environment?
Get eight economists to discuss an issue and you'll get nine opinions. Down to Earth did precisely that. Eight noted economists were invited, …
Locating the State
In September 2004, Down To Earth carried a two-part editorial on the failure of the State to deliver basic services. In the September 15, 2004 …
The house that Digvijay built
Governments and the masses have very rarely worked together successfully in modern India. In Madhya Pradesh, chief minister Digvijay Singh has …
Software freedom
On Richard Stallman's personal homepage it says, "America means civil liberties. Patriotism is protecting them." Words that sum up the …
Why are we all falling ill
The pursuit of unsustainable economic growth, bad development policy, lack of good science, and poverty are a prescription for ill-health. These …
When wealth is not health
India's economic growth has come at a terrible price. In two decades, while the GDP more than doubled, vehicular pollution increased eight times …
Former militant Bijoy Hrankhal on Tripura's tribal needs
Bijoy Kumar Hrankhal was the founder member and vice-president of the Tripura National Volunteer, the first militant group in Tripura. He laid …
Meltdown
Till a couple of decades ago Bangalore was a sleepy city -- running to the rhythm of old trading networks and retired people taking their evening …
Impotent plan?
In August 2005, the Indian Parliament passed the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (nrega). The latest avatar of state-financed employment …
SEZ, how special?
Despite having burned its fingers with export processing zones, which mainly involved a number of substantial fiscal benefits, the government has …
On privatising water
What about privatising water? Should India move to do it? What tips the scales in its favour, and what doesn't? In 2003, two editorials in Down …
1,620.361 ha of discontent
Special economic zones and sit-ins. Mega-projects and marches. Public-private partnerships and pitched battles. Precociously, because they are …
30,000 farmers demand Hirakud dam water
Western Orissa is witnessing an upheaval. In the eye of the storm is the Hirakud dam. Over 300,000 farmers dependent on its water for irrigation …
Treasure in troubled land
International aid has supported the economy of Afghanistan for 12 years. With aid flow gradually declining, the war-torn country will now have to …
Soon, an early warning system for cyclones and floods
Regional Integrated Multi-Hazard Early Warning System (RIMES) for Africa and Asia was put in place soon after the 2004 tsunami hit the Indian …
Let solar shine
Census 2011 throws light on the darkness across India. Of the 246 million households, 67 per cent get electricity from the grid, while 31 per …
Trivial truisms
ECONOMYWIDE POLICIES AND THE ENVIRONMENT - EMERGING LESSONS FROM EXPERIENCE Mohan Munasinghe and Wilfrido Cruz World Bank
Debate: Is GDP a true and accurate measurement of growth?
A new book, The Great Invention by Ehsan Masood, unveils the genesis of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and how it shaped the modern economic …