Monthly Archives: April 2014
Sustainable water use: Profligate will perish
Fifteen years ago in the arid western state of Rajasthan, India, I was visiting a city Bikaner. Home to some magnificent forts and delicious sweets, it also had an agricultural university. It is here that I met a professor Dr … Continue reading
Sustainable water supply: Time for synthesis between old and new
Legend has it that in late 1950s the first Prime Minister of India, Jawaharlal Nehru, visited a freedom fighter and social activist, Vinoba Bhave, in the central Indian town of Wardha, near Nagpur. Sitting in Vinoba’s Paunar ashram, the then … Continue reading
Sustainability finance should focus on creating low carbon economy
At the international forums and especially during the climate change negotiations climate finance keeps occurring as a bone of contention. It is one of the most intractable issues and threatens to derail a global deal due to be thrashed out … Continue reading
Sustainability: Let architectural diversity thrive
As a class V student I was enamoured by a small text book with line drawings filled with water colours. The subject of the book was houses around the world. It was written by a very kind man who wanted … Continue reading
Celebrate Earth Day by doing away with pompous campaigns
The penchant for assigning a day for everything and everyone is a very 20th century phenomenon. A sure fire way to become an instant media celebrity. A lot of events can be organised around it. There is always a possibility … Continue reading
For sustainability and healthy living, revive diversity in your plate
I am a potato freak. I can have it 365 days a year, two times a day. My father once quipped that I must have been a product of potato famine in Ireland in my last lifetime. He would admonish … Continue reading
Sustainable water usage: Agriculture & irrigation hold the key
Water the elixir of life is under stress. The world reserves of this precious resource are feeling the heat of humans thirst. The callous mismanagement has created an unnecessary and avoidable crisis. Globally even today 92 percent of the water … Continue reading
Sustainability has to deal with the challenge of “rebound effect”
Professors Tom Theis and Jonathan Tomkins in their brilliantly edited open book – “Sustainability: A Comprehensive Guide”, talk of human proclivity to over consume as the main challenge to sustainable future. Discussing the issues related to consumption, the argument begins … Continue reading
SMART cities: Challenges and opportunities for Delhi
Indian cities, even for the diehard India lovers, are notoriously ill managed. An overwhelming majority of them are collapsing under their own weight. Sanitation is absent in many parts of most of the cities. Public transport is non-existent and electricity … Continue reading
Drop in ‘13 RE investments is just a blip
A new report presented by Frankfurt School-UNEP Collaborating Centre for Climate & Sustainable Energy Finance, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and Bloomberg New Energy Finance says there has been a 14 percent drop in renewable energy investments globally. The … Continue reading
Keshav Chaturvedi 