Cool roofs: episode 3 New Vastu with Ashok B Lall

Top floors can be excruciating during the Indian summers. But there are ways to stay comfortable on top floor houses. Ashok B Lall gives his tips on how to beat the heat

Watch: Who will miss India's five-year-plans?

Former member of the planning commission N C Saxena explains what the end of five year planning means and if Niti Aayog can fill the gap

Right design for windows for green homes: Episode 2 New Vaastu with Ashok B Lall

A good window design can do wonders to the climate inside a house. The material that is used to make windows also plays an important part in how much heat it lets in from the outside. In this episode, Ashok B Lall describes the different window designs and the material that will optimally help to keep the house cool.

First Food: Celebrating India's Food Biodiversity

Down to Earth collaborated with Chor Bizarre, an Indian restaurant chain, to celebrate an evening of traditional Indian food. Chef Rajiv Malhotra and his team cooked 20 recipes from 10 states. All these recipes were picked up from the book called First Food—Culture of Taste

Geomorphologist Robert James Wasson discusses flood risk reduction in India

In this video, Robert James Wasson from National University of Singapore points out that India is the second most flood-prone country in the world after Bangladesh. He says that communities should be prepared to handle disasters better

Trawlers push small fisherfolk out of business

Bottom trawling has spelt doom for small-scale fishermen in Bengal's East Midnapore district. Faced with a bleak future due to reduced fish catch, traditional fisherfolk is experimenting with alternate livelihood options

Sunita Narain talks about good food

Food is becoming sterile and processed, says Sunita Narain at the launch of the First Food: Culture of Taste, a Down To Earth publication

India's forgotten Africans

Down To Earth speaks to Beheroze Shroff, Lecturer at the Department of Asian American Studies, University of California, Irvine about the current-day condition of the Siddis, the unique African tribe of India

Recipe from First Food: Goolar Ka Chokha

Goolar or country fig is a super food. It is known to cure stomach ailments such as diarrhoea, is rich in fibre, and modern research shows that it can help to reduce cholesterol in the body

Green Schools Award 2017

Green Schools award is given by Centre for Science and Environment to the top eco-friendly schools in India. The award ceremony was held on February 15, 2017 at India Habitat Centre

Watch: an atlas for the visually impaired

National Atlas and Thematic Mapping Organisation (NATMO) released an atlas for the visually impaired earlier this month. Down To Earth enquires how effective and useful are they?  

Piu & Pom give you some thought for food

Piu & Pom—with their gifts of inquiry and insight—come to life from the pages of our kids’ supplement Gobar Times

Food safari in deserts of Rajasthan

Down To Earth travels to Rajasthan to find out about the traditional food habits of desert people. On this journey, we discovered that not-so-familiar wild food nurtures people in a harsh environment. Sadly, traditional food is slowly losing its relevance with farmers turning to groundnut cultivation

Anumita Roy Chowdhury reacts to Global burden of Health Study

The Centre for Science and Environment demands urgent intervention and action in view of the results from the new analysis of global burden of disease (GBD) estimates. While air pollution causes more than 4.2 million early deaths globally, of these 1.1 million deaths occur in India alone. This is more than a quarter of global deaths.

Down To Earth speaks to conservation icon George Schaller

George Schaller on his life, accomplishments and the road ahead for world wildlife conservation

The waste-to-energy plant violates emission norms by not using environment-friendly technologies

Since 2009, the residents of Sukhdev Vihar, a residential colony in Delhi, have been fighting against a waste-to-energy plant operated by Jindal Urban Infrastructure Ltd. The plant uses dirty incineration technology to produce power and releases toxic dioxins and furans which affect residents of nearby colonies. The residents have approached courts, but have not got any relief. The NGT, on …

Delhi's emergency action plan to tackle air pollution

The Supreme Court recently passed a graded action plan to tackle Delhi's air pollution woes. Down To Earth explains how it works

Under the Sal Tree—theatre of nature

Under the Sal Tree theatre festival is a unique concept where plays are organised inside a Sal forest in Assam's Goalpara district. This is an eco-friendly idea, where artistes work in harmony with nature

Budget 2017 Analysis with Sunita Narain

Centre for Science and Environment and Down to Earth analysed the 2017 Budget by Arun Jaitley. The major takeaway is that there is very little for environment and climate change.

Sunita Narain at Jaipur Literature Festival 2017

Sunita Narain at Jaipur Literature Festival 2017 sheds some light on degloablalisation in the age of climate change and finding new pathways for sustainable development.

Along the Kosi: through a narrow path

As part of Down To Earth's travelogue series, we travel to north-east Bihar, where the tempestuous Kosi flows. The Kosi river is infamous for floods in these parts. The government, as a solution, embanked a major part of the river. Has it solved any of the problems of the people, or created some more for them to deal with?