-The Economic Times Indian officials say the agreement that will be ratified by government Leaders at the Rio 20+ conference on sustainable development on Friday addresses their major concerns even as NGOs stepped up their opposition to the final text, saying it contained no specific commitments and no timetables.  Government officials say the outcome document, called the "The Future We Want'', retains the principle of Common But Differentiated Responsibility (CBDR), which creates...

In just over a week, world Leaders will gather in Brazil for the Rio +20 Summit to decide what kind of future we want. Twenty years after the original earth summit, the theme is the green economy in the context of sustainable development and poverty eradication.  Why is the conference important and why the aspirations for a 'green economy'? A green economy is one that results in improved human well-being and...

-The Hindu Differences galore over the commitments made at the Earth Summit As the Leaders met in a mountain-girdled Brazilian town for the crucial official round of discussions on the Rio+20 text, what was most noticeably missing was the kind of excitement that was witnessed two decades ago, when more than 172 governments, as many as 108 of them sending their heads of state, participated for the first-of-its-kind global awakening event. The...

-The Hindu Arrest of former MPP Botcha Vasunaidu demanded One more person died on Wednesday in the Lakshmipet incident in which four Dalits were killed while fighting for their rights over leftover lands originally alienated for the construction of Madduvalasa reservoir. Papayya, 55, succumbed to injuries in King George Hospita, Visakhapatnam. With the death of Papayya, the toll went up to five in the attack that occurred on June 12. Meanwhile, several Dalit associations...

-The Guardian  The Earth summit has to ensure sustainability is at the heart of growth models – the swelling global population depends on it Growth in itself is neither our enemy nor our problem. But what kind of economic growth do we need? And do we want growth at any cost? A child born today is one of seven billion people on Earth, and during its lifetime will see the world's population grow...