In defence of shifting agriculture
IT HAS taken almost two decades of consistent research into the northeastern tribal practice of shifting agriculture for P S Ramakrishna, …
Desertification control lacks efficiency
PERHAPS no environmental problem affects the poor of the world as much as desertification. The UN Environmental Programme (UNEP) says this has …
Sustainable development is an oxymoron
WOLFGANG Sachs, born in 1946 in Munich, studied theology, sociology and history and taught at the University of Berlin for several years. At the …
"Developmental aid is part of neocolonialism"
Although RAY WIJEWARDENE, 71, holds degrees in engineering and aeronautics from Cambridge, is a Doctor of Science (Honorls causa) from Sri Lanka'…
'Coal will dominate at least for the coming 200 years'
ALEX C TOOHEY, a chemical engineer, is the chief executive of the World Coal Institute (WCI), London. The WCI is a non-profit, non-governmental …
The World Bank sees money in emissions trading
Daphne Wysham is the co-author of a recent report, The World Bank and the G-7: Changing the Earth's Climate for Business . She is also the …
'I was surprised at the sweep of the judgment'
T N GODAVARMAN THIRUMULPAD filed a writ petition in 1995, which led the Supreme Court to ban all kinds of felling in any state without prior …
Science cannot be a minion to wealth
A journalist without the pretensions of a scientist -- that's how JOHN MADDOX, editor of Nature for 15 years, would like to see himself. On his …
The revolutionary who transformed health care
ZAFRULLAH Chowdhury draws inspiration as much from Hippocrates as from Mao Zedong. To the first, he owes his medical ideals and to the second, …
A reluctant candidate for Chile's presidency
Meet Manfred Max-Neef. Pianist, economist, eco-humanist and politician from Chile, all rolled into one. Internationally acclaimed for his concept …
Research is not magic solutions take a long time
S K SINHA, former director of the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), is currently a National Professor at the Water Technology …
"At what cost to the environment"
"The country's forest cover will be raised by five per cent during the Ninth Plan," said Suresh P Prabhu , the Union minister for …
'Bioenergy is being taken quite seriously'
Gerald Leach is a senior research fellow at the Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI) in London. He has written extensively on rural energy …
Patkar unperturbed by exodus of villagers
Medha Patkar, doyenne of the Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA), which opposes the Sardar Sarovar Project (SSP) on the Narmada river, has won a major …
Indian science must stop merely aping West
Cynicism is perhaps the natural fallout of a long career within the government machinery. But when Yash Pal, one of the country's leading …
India will soon play a major role
SIRPA Pietikainen, Finland's environment minister, says the world has quite a few things to learn from India, especially when it comes to …
The great experimenter
For ages, Indian farmers have practised ecofriendly farming by using local resources to improve soil fertility and control pests and diseases. …
Copyright issues impinge on democracy
Siva Vaidhyanathan says he holds a debt to copyright regimes. Studying these systems, allowed him to explore cultural interactions in Afro-…
Keeper of the nation's water kitty
MADHAV Chitale, former secretary in the ministry of water resources, is a recipient of The Stockholm Water Award, given by the Stockholm Water …
India needs the science of the common people
It's a paradox that while the government is busy opening up the telecom sector to multinational companies, technocrat Sam Pitroda, perhaps the …
'Community rights must figure in the Forest Bill'
The raging controversy over the regressive draft Forest Bill has dumped the onus of defending it on minister of state for environment and forests …
Solar power is the only viable alternative
K R DATYE has been associated for years with grassroots organisations such as the Pani Panchayat and the Mukti Sangharsh, which has spearheaded …
Blending green concerns into market economy
GERMAN environment minister Klaus Topfer has come under fire for his tough green laws such as the one against packaging. Environmental ministries,…
"Biodiversity treaty is misleading the Third World"
A known a crusader for traditional Indian medicine. P Pushpangadan, who completed his Ph.D from Aligarh University, is currently the director of …
'I don't think future generations will be very happy with our performance'
Michael Jefferson is vice-president of the London-based World Energy Council (WEC), an international association covering all energy forms. …