Investing in Nature: Exploring the Benefits and Potential of Payments for Ecosystem Services (PES)

Recognising and compensating individuals and organisations that ethically obtain raw materials and products for urban dwellers while protecting our complex ecosystems is crucial.
We take our natural ecosystems for granted: they sequester carbon, clean our air and water, generate materials for our sustenance, safeguard wildlife habitats, provide a livelihood for indigenous communities and preserve the most bio-complex ecological processes that support life on Earth and maintain its functioning homeostasis.
Find out how Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES) is the only proactive and effective way to protect the environment and ensure a sustainable future.

Can Animal Products be Sustainable?

Can we consume animal-based products and still be sustainable? What happens when we boycott silk, wool or honey? Namrata has interviewed some small business owners who directly work with grassroots — so we analyse the questions through a rural Indian lens.

Fiery Fields and the Smothering Smog: Are Farmers to Blame?

The classic air pollution case in north India (allegedly caused by farm fires/stubble burning) is signalling a dystopian future for us unless we stop playing the blame game every year and actively take part in climate action.
Talk is cheap, and it is easy to point fingers at a group, especially a marginalised one shouldering intersectional burdens. So what can different stakeholders holding various forms of power/responsibility do to stop this crisis?
In Marshall McLuhan’s words, one can find the answer to this: ‘There are no passengers on spaceship earth. We are all crew’.

How Sustainable is Ecotourism in the Indian Himalayas?

If you love mountains, then NOW is the time to take action and save them. The once pristine and delicately balanced – Himalayan Mountain regions face a disturbed ecosystem caused by human-caused hazards.

Get to know how the Himalayan regions are being exploited and what we can do to address these emerging challenges and improve conditions for local communities.

Safe Motherhood: A Study on Institutional Deliveries in Tamil Nadu

Is safe motherhood a reality in India? Or are we still struggling to preserve Maternal and Child Health?
Here’s a detailed study into Safe Motherhood in Tamil Nadu, conducted with vigorous research on the topic, in conversation with experts in the field.

The Micro-level Factors Affecting Disabilities in the Bangalore Slums

A commonly ignored pillar of sustainability is—People.
True conscious behaviour can only be achieved when there’s equitable distribution of resources. But reality rarely lives up to expectations.
With this write-up, take a peek into the problems faced by Persons with Disability.

Throwing the Spotlight on NGOs in Rural India

Small NGOs, that are helping India inch closer to her sustainability goals, rarely get their due.
In this article, we throw light on one such small NGO in the heart of India which continues to change the sustainability landscape.

Cultural Preservation or Social Evil?

Ritualistic Sex Slavery – a tradition prohibiting women from having a normal marriage and life. Instead, these women have to indulge in rather bizarre activities.
Is this a preservation of culture? Or simply a social evil?
To find out, read the story of the Bedinis from Madhya Pradesh.

My Experiences with the Rural Healthcare System in India

Mental and physical health are topics largely ignored in the vulnerable communities of the country. In 2018, India ranked 154th out of 195 nations for healthcare quality and accessibility.
The sad part? Not much has changed since 2007.
The article discusses my experiences between 2007 and 2011 with the rural healthcare system in India
Read the article to know how community health measures up in India now

Urea Deep Placement: a Step Forward in Agriculture. But a Step Backward in Mindset?

Millennials and Gen Z have contributed to many sustainable innovations for a decade now. But, do we have the right mindset to adopt such solutions? How ready is our Indian market? Are we even open to evaluating them yet? Sustainable development can happen only if we are cognizant of what we are doing and willing to unlearn and evaluate the solutions available to us and choose wisely instead of being rigid and sticking to our old habits.
Today, on World Soil Day, we would like to discuss about Urea Deep Placement and how this sustainable innovation was received by our farmers in Tamil Nadu.