Climate change is impacting the world. It is the poorest who suffer the most. Yet often rural Indians are leading the way in sustainable advances and trialling schemes that – if rolled out on a macro scale – can create real change in the environment.
Environment
Devastating floods the latest woes for Odisha’s farmers
Already battered by cyclones, Odisha farmland is now hit by floods with its farmers facing massive financial losses and hoping for government compensation.
Futuristic luxury in a water-scarce Himachal village
A savvy, innovative villa in Fagu, Shimla, is reimagining aesthetics and utility. In a water scarce region, it is offering practical insights into how a looming water crisis can be tackled.
Odisha villagers fight fire ant invasion
Swamped by red fire ants that stung their way through an Odisha village - causing rashes and swellings, residents are forced to fight the “enemy” with chemical sprays.
Sparking ideas for India’s next 75 years
The recent Indian Rural Colloquy brought together India's sharpest minds - from doyens of the development world to industry leaders, government secretaries and activists - all at the front of India's march to progress.
No longer walking 2km to fetch dirty water
When government water schemes do not reach two tribal villages of Rajasthan, the women of Chittorgarh take matters into their own hands and install a treatment plant and a piped water supply system.
Ambitious plans to reintroduce cheetahs to India
The world's fastest land animal is coming back to India as an ambitious plan is underway to reintroduce the cheetah back to the subcontinent. Village Square speaks with the man behind the mission.
Where the water monitor lizards have a free run
When man-animal conflict is on the rise, people in a West Bengal village co-exist with water monitor lizards. Thanks to their belief that the creatures’ pond is haunted, which besides other reasons has contributed to their conservation.
“India is the guru of tiger conservation”
India’s effort to save tigers, the national animal, has been a tremendous success in recent years. India’s current tiger population stands at 3,000. To understand how this feat was achieved and what this means for other threatened wildlife species in India, we spoke to Dr Samir Kumar Sinha, Chief Ecologist at Wildlife Trust of India.
Sustainable roofs make houses in informal settlements cooler during summer
In informal settlements where houses are built without considering atmospheric factors, and people have no means of regulating the extreme heat within, there are attempts to provide sustainable heat-proof solutions.