CATEGORIES

Deny, Distract And Delay

The developed world has so far derailed all discussions on loss and damage. Will this change at COP27?

‘AFTER FANI, WE FOCUSED ON DISASTER-RESILIENT INFRASTRUCTURE’

Odisha, one of the most climate-vulnerable states in India, is hit by numerous extreme weather events every year. Cyclone Fani, which devastated the state in 2019, is one such event that forced Odisha to mount a post-disaster needs assessment. This multi-sector assessment on loss and damage provided new insights on building back better, GYANARANJAN DAS, executive director, Odisha State Disaster Management Authority (OSDMA), tells SEEMA PRASAD. Excerpts:

‘SOCIAL STUDIES ARE NEEDED TO INCREASE THE SCOPE OF ATTRIBUTION?’

Researchers have established that the Pakistan deluge was made worse by global warming. But fixing responsibility of such events on historical polluters is not easy, KRISHNA ACHUTARAO, climate scientist at the Centre for Atmospheric Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi, tells AKSHIT SANGOMLA. Excerpts:

'TRANSLATION BETWEEN CHANGE IN WEATHER AND DAMAGES IS NOT LINEAR’

Attribution science has grown leaps and bounds to trace the link between climate change and weather events. But this link does not extend to estimating loss and damages, FRIEDERIKE OTTO, climate scientist at Grantham Institute of Climate Change and the Environment, Imperial College London, tells AKSHIT SANGOMLA. Excerpts:

HIDDEN COSTS

Estimations of loss and damage after weather events do not account for non-economic consequences

‘JOHN KERRY IS SCARED OF FLOODGATES OF LITIGATIONS ON ACCEPTING LOSS AND DAMAGE’

Loss and damage financing has seen little progress since the signing of the 2015 Paris Agreement,according to FARHANA YAMIN, adviser to the Climate Vulnerable Forum, a partnership of 55 countries highly threatened by climate change. In an interview with AVANTIKA GOSWAMI, Yamin, who was also one of the key architects of the Paris deal, explains why rich countries are attempting to linger negotiations on loss and damage. Excerpts:

POWER OF EVIDENCE

India is transitioning to a robust tool to assess the loss and damage caused by extreme weather events

ONLY TOGETHER CAN WE WIN

At COP27, loss and damage must not to be pushed away with another puny promise of a fund that never materialises but be accepted as a legitimate demand of countries that need climate reparations

WE ARE NO LONGER MEASURING THIS EMERGENCY ONLY IN TONNES OF CARBON EMISSIONS OR THE GLOBAL WARMING BY DEGREES OF CELSIUS

Here in the Pacific Islands, climate change is an existential threat. It is the single greatest threat to our livelihoods, security and well-being. Our economies routinely suffer damages of more than 50 per cent of GDP from climate extremes, taking us back decades in our goals for sustainable development.

‘We need to put down oroblem animals for wildlife conservation’

A VETERINARIAN WHO COMES OUT FROM THE COLLEGE DOES NOT KNOW HOW TO SHOOT. HOW IS HE GOING TO TRANQUILISE A TIGER? WE HAVE HAD WORKSHOPS TO TEACH PERSONNEL HOW TO HANDLE A WEAPON, EVEN HOW TO WALK IN THE FOREST. THIS IS TRADITIONAL KNOWLEDGE AND CANNOT BE GLEANED FROM INTERNET OR FROM READING A BOOK

Organic reinforcement

Direct procurement and cold storages are key to promote organic farming of fruits, vegetables

A timely fix

India’s lone home-grown crop simulation model can now forecast climate impact on farm yield in real time

Accelerated breeding

Bisohenol A, a chemical used for softening plastics, shortens the mosquito life cycle and leads to population explosion

India patently way behind on 5G

Policy blocks and poor vision have held up 5G in India, while China’s breakthroughs are helping to set global standards

Evolutionary Thrust

HUMAN EVOLUTION

PANDEMIC CONTINUUM

Two livestock viruses have spread across India in an unprecedented manner this year—lumpy skin disease and African swine fever. With changing climate, new infectious diseases will emerge, while existing ones will Ne spread to new areas and sirike with greater severity, like these two have. Such outbreaks have harsh economic and food security implications, and can pose a major threat to human health. The world has not recovered from the previous virus that jumped from animals to humans. A report by SHAGUN from the worst-hit state of Rajasthan and SNIGDHA DAS in Delhi

Cultivated idea

The potential of urban agriculture in alleviating food insecurity in cities requires holistic policy support from governments

Collateral casualty

Rise in cardiac ailments in India hints at the role of COVID-19, but in absence of long-term studies there are no definitive trends

Chronic floods threaten Niger delta

THE COMMUNITIES living in the oil-rich Niger Delta have been devastated by recurring floods. The lack of effort to safeguard these communities or help them adapt to the changing weather conditions has left people vulnerable and helpless.

Africa's clarion call for climate justice

IT WAS highly symbolic that Gabon, which commits to remain carbon neutral up to and beyond 2050, hosted the Africa Climate Week, the last major talks before the 27th Conference of the Parties (COP27) to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change is held in Egypt this November to implement the Paris Agreement.

Strong start

With free tuition and access to sanitary pads, a non-profit in Prayagraj provides children in low-income areas a chance to complete their education

Crowdfunding - Fund At Your Own Risk

Crowdfunding has emerged as a popular option in India to help people avail expensive medical treatments. But in the absence of regulation, donors are vulnerable to fraudulent campaigns

Millet might

Odisha's mission to bring millets back to its fields and plates can succeed with greater marketing support and promotion beyond tribal areas

Invisibilisation of Dalit scholars

A PERSON READING CASTE AND PARTITION IN BENGAL: THE STORY OF DALIT REFUGEES, 1946-1961 WOULD THINK THAT DALITS HAVE NEVER DONE A CASTE ANALYSIS OF PARTITION, WHICH IS ABSOLUTELY UNTRUE

OZONE ON FIRE

Frequent, widespread forest fires in a warming world are the new threats to the ozone layer

Moderna strikes with a new lawsuit

Moderna is trying to be gatekeeper for the mRNA platform for future drug development, raising monopolistic fears

PERILS IN A DEFINITION

The country's Supreme Court is tasked with deciding whether political parties should be restricted from promising freebies in election campaigns and manifestos. But the debate is not so simple

Planetary summer

Prolonged droughts and heat waves are wreaking havoc across continents. Europe may have reached the point of no return

Cost of credit

Information accessed by Down To Earth under the Right To Information Act belies the government's claim that banks give farm loans without any service charge or mortgaging farmer's land

HIDDEN IN PLAIN SIGHT

The plastic problem needs to be reframed. The issue is not just how plastic waste is disposed of, but also how the material enters the supply chain and for whose benefit. India cannot end plastic pollution until it holds the petrochemical behemoths and the plastic industry accountable for manufacturing the menace