Nigeria’s sacred Osun River supports millions of people — but pollution is making it unsafe

The river has immense environmental value and is crucial for livelihoods of local residents 

Water’s value cannot be pegged to its price alone: UN report

The tremendous value of water cannot be confused with the concepts of ‘price’ and ‘cost’, the report said

Education for tribals: Bottlenecks and the way forward

Recognising tribal culture, language, cognitive strength, curriculum and inherent learning ability of children can revamp tribal education system

Oil spill in Bangladesh’s Sela river threatens dolphin sanctuary

Nearly 350,000 litres of furnace oil spilled in the river on December 9

Green Tribunal cancels environmental clearance of Aranmula Airport

Verdict seen as a major victory for local residents and activists who strongly oppose the proposed airport as it involves large-scale illegal …

Half the national curricula worldwide don’t mention climate change, most teachers unsure of explaining subject: UNESCO

Thirty six per cent of the respondents did not include environmental themes in any teachers' training 

Sub-Saharan Africa shows high growth in student enrollment, but remains 'most illiterate'

The region needs 63 per cent additional teachers to achieve universal education by 2015, says UNESCO report

For tradition's sake

CONSERVING THE SACRED FOR BIODIVERSITY MANAGEMENT· Edited by P S Ramakrishnan, K G Saxena and U M Chandrashekara·UNESCO publication&…

'Ministries play the blame game'

Jagdish Bahadur, an expert on glaciers and former joint advisor, department of science and technology, and Syed Iqbal Hasnain, who heads the …

Eleven sites and extensions get UNESCO Global Geopark Label

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) on April 18, 2019 — the World Heritage Day — conferred the …

'All these sites have multiple stresses affecting them. Climate change only adds to that'

Adam Markham, Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) Deputy Director for Climate and Energy and lead author of UNESCO’s recent report on World …

Great Barrier Reef may be put in World Heritage in Danger list

‘English wiped out local languages elsewhere, not in India’

Eighty-Five years after George A Grierson, a British administrator, conducted the first survey of languages in India, another such exercise has …

Local citrus goes global

A trashed valley: Kashmir needs to segregate its waste at source

Despite clear regulations and court interventions, local governments continue to ignore Kashmir’s municipal solid waste crisis

World Heritage Committee defers decision on Great Barrier Reef

Australian government given time to improve reef’s health; not to be included in list of ‘in danger’ sites yet

News Snippets

Thermal plants using old technology adding to India’s water stress: UN report

Country's per capita water availability has declined threefold over the past six decades

Remodelling will destroy Mumbai's Crawford market

Only puddles left in Keoladeo

National Park runs the risk of losing UNESCO heritage status  

UNESCO bats for more AI in Indian education; Will it work?

UN body recommends ethical, responsible use of artificial intelligence for quality education, experts point to digtal divide

Still unprotected: COVID-19, underfunding plagues child protection aid

African countries among the worst affected: Funding for child protection dropped to 38% in 2019 from 88% in 2018 in South Sudan 

31 iconic sites at risk from climate change, warns UNESCO report

The report gives a miss to the Great Barrier Reef in Australia and the Sundarbans in India

El Nino threatens Great Barrier Reef

The warm current may kill a rugged coral variety that would have otherwise lived for centuries

Short-circuiting discrimination or perpetuating them?

Nutrition programmes for Dalits need institutions to deliver and a vigilant citizenry to monitor implementation