-The Hindu India must recapture its capacity to proactively provide both intellectual and political leadership on climate change The United Nations Climate Summit just concluded in New York. Such a conclave was taking place after a gap of five years. Expectations were low even though public rallies took place before the summit. The usual brave speeches were made but there were no dramatic announcements. U.S. President Barack Obama outlined the country's plans...

-IANS Leh: For Tsetan Punchok, a 50-something farmer from the distant village of Partapur in Ladakh in Jammu and Kashmir, life was difficult in the 3,000-metre highlands where summer lasts barely four months and for long, he could only grow potatoes and turnips. His life, however, changed in the last few years when he came in touch with scientists of the Defence Institute of High Altitude Research (DIHAR). DIHAR, a laboratory of premier...

-The Economic Times NEW DELHI: The monsoon that set in on India late this year is making a delayed retreat as well. Rains towards the fag end of the season are good for standing crops and will hold soil moisture for winter crops, but may hurt crops which are ready for harvest, particularly paddy and cotton in some areas. According to the government's meteorology department officials, there are no signs of...

-The Hindustan Times Before climate change became the most important global environmental concern, the depletion of the ozone layer dominated the discourse. This depletion was being caused by the use of CFCs (chlorofluorocarbons) primarily in refrigerators and of HCFCs (hydrochlorofluorocarbons) largely in air-conditioners. To deal with this threat, following the Vienna Convention in 1985, the Montreal Protocol came into existence in 1987 with a Multilateral Fund following in 1991. This has...

-Deccan Chronicle We are faced with two crises on a planetary scale - climate change and species extinction. Our current modes of production and consumption, starting with the Industrial Revolution and aggravated by the advent of industrial agriculture, have contributed to both. If no action is taken to reduce greenhouse gases, we could experience a catastrophic 4°C increase in Temperatures by the end of the century. But climate change is not just...