CSE's Outreach in South Asia

Bhutan The Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) collaborated with the National Environment Commission (NEC), Bhutan, by signing a MoU on May 7, 2012 in Paro, Bhutan.

Workshop on a Framework for Various Approaches

On May 19, a workshop organised by the UNFCCC under the AWG-LCA track was held at Bonn. The workshop was mandated by the UNFCCC at Durban last year in order to better understand the multiple approaches countries took towards achieving their mitigation targets. The purpose of this was to explore the concept of a framework through which these approaches could be recognized by the UNFCCC and counted towards national pledges.

Regulation on antibiotics use for animals

In a first of its kind, an amendment in the Drugs and Cosmetics Rules 1945 sets a timeframe for which animals treated with antibiotics should be kept out of human food chain. The Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare issued the notification to regulate the use of antibiotics for livestock and aquaculture meant for food production.

Living with changing climate: CSE Study

Impact, vulnerability and adaptation challenges in Indian Sundarbans For residents of Indian Sundarbans, climate change is now a part of their daily survival battles. While the global negotiations towards mitigation of climate change have remained inconclusive over the years, sea level rise, cyclones, rainfall patterns have kept changing for the worse. Life is much more difficult now and development of the area more expensive.

BONN - What is on the agenda?

The upcoming climate change inter-sessional at Bonn will take place from May 14-25. Following the decisions agreed to at CoP-17 in Durban, one more track, Ad hoc working group on the Durban Platform for enhanced action (ADP) will be added to the four existing tracks – Ad hoc working groups on Kyoto Protocol (AWG-KP) and Long-term cooperative Action (AWG-LCA) and the subsidiary bodies (SBSTA, SBI). Under this new track, deliberations for the work plan on a future protocol post-2020 and the means to increase ambition will be carried out.

Message from Bonn: Drop Bali agenda

Disagreements begin; parties to discuss informally to adopt long-term cooperation agenda By Uthra Radhakrishnan Two days into the ongoing negotiations at Bonn and the all too familiar rifts are visible. The primary disagreement is over how to move forward—whether to begin discussions from what was agreed to in the meeting of the Conference of Parties (CoP) in Bali in 2007 or the Durban CoP in 2011. Read more  

LDCs ring the alarm bell before Bonn

Demand higher ambition; will EU still take the lead? By Uthra Radhakrishnan Just ahead of the mid-year climate change session at Bonn, starting on May 14, the least developed countries (LDCs) have issued a call for efforts to be directed towards raising ambition on mitigation for the pre-2020 period, calling it the sine qua non of a successful outcome on the new Durban Platform negotiations. Read more

EU warns Indian, Chinese airlines

Developing countries say no to unilateral trade measures to curb carbon emissions at Bonn meet By Hemant Nair The European Union (EU) recently issued a warning to two airlines from India and eight airlines from China for not providing their 2011 baseline emission data to it. The EU expected them to provide this data to set a benchmark for emissions from the aviation sector under its emissions trading scheme, commonly called the EU ETS. Read more

Role of honey in ayurvedic treatment

"The fruit of bees is desired by all, and is equally sweet to kings and beggars and it is not only pleasing but profitable and healthful; it sweetens their mouths, cures their wounds, and conveys remedies to inward ulcers." - Saint Ambrose This quote conveys the all encompassing properties of honey. In India, honey has a special status in Ayurveda. D Ramanathan, director of the Sitaram Ayurveda Pharmacy Limited & Specialty Hospital, Thrissur on the role honey plays in ayurvedic treatment. The interview: