What Building a Circular Material Taught Us About Waste, Trust and Design
It began with a question. As architects, we’re trained to notice what’s built, not what’s discarded. We admire the finished building, the polished stone floor and the carefully crafted detail. We rarely pay attention to the thin layer of dust left behind after the cutting and polishing are done. Yet wherever we went – construction […]
climate communicationclimate evidenceclimate journalismclimate storytellingscience communication
New Delhi
Five Uncomfortable Truths about Making Climate Evidence Count
In November 2022, at the American University in Cairo’s pavilion at COP27, a film I co-directed had its premiere. Emissions Market India: Surat Leading the Way told the story of the world’s first emissions trading scheme for particulate matter in seven minutes, through the lens of the researchers and regulators who built it. The story […]
What Is The Sustainability Mafia? Inside India’s Founder-Led Climate Startup Network
India’s climate startup ecosystem has no shortage of incubators, investors and accelerators. So why did a group of founders decide to create yet another network? The answer, says The Sustainability Mafia co-founder Ganesh Shankar, was that founders were still building largely in isolation. Today, the Bengaluru-based network brings together founders working across sectors including clean […]
How I Transitioned Into Climate Work Without a Traditional Sustainability Background
Looking back, I do not think my journey into climate work began with one defining moment. Instead, it was shaped by a series of experiences that stayed with me over the years, long before I understood what a “climate career” even meant. Some of my earliest memories of engaging with environmental themes come from school. […]
How I Built ReRooted.Films: Creating a Sustainable Production Studio in India
When was the last time you felt rooted? Really rooted. With a sense of belonging to something larger than yourself. A place, a person, a community, maybe even a kind of food. Our roots may begin in one place, but we spend our lives finding ways to grow them elsewhere. We keep searching for ways […]
What I Learned About Eco-Anxiety by Redirecting My Work
I didn’t enter the climate space with a big pivot or a bold decision. It began with an uneasy feeling – an anxiety I couldn’t explain. I was living in Delhi, where, as AQI meters spiked higher every day, I felt a little more trapped indoors, a little more on edge. I began wondering if […]
“I Buy Nothing but Salt”: Inside a Himachal Farmer’s Experiment in Natural Farming
Just after sunrise, before traffic thickens on the four-lane highway skirting his house, Tajender Thakur walks into his field with a hoe resting on his shoulder. Beyond the boundary wall, trucks and buses will soon gather speed. Inside, across eight bighas, the morning is quieter. His wife, Poonam, follows him between rows of crops, stopping […]
In India and around the world, methane is leaking into the atmosphere from rice paddies, cattle farms and decomposing waste, accelerating global warming. While carbon dioxide is the most talked-about greenhouse gas, methane is significantly more potent. To understand why, imagine greenhouse gases as blankets covering the Earth. Carbon dioxide adds many thin blankets, while […]
