Yogendra Anand

Illustrator, Art & Design, Centre for Science and Environment, New Delhi.
The Wonder Weeds in the Sea

The Wonder Weeds in the Sea

A fascinating account by a passionate marine environmentalist explaining why seaweeds are environmentally the most sustainable foods on our planet.

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Hi! Do you guys know what a seaweed is? It’s like the spinach of the sea. You might have eaten it in a roll of sushi or a bowl of green salad or a soup. But most likely, you wouldn’t have tasted it at all. That’s because in India, we don't have a popular tradition of seaweeds. But that's about to change—I believe as the founder of a seaweed food company called The Good Ocean...

The Green Sheen in Advertising

The Green Sheen in Advertising

Some ads are starting to do more than just sell products. They're also trying to raise awareness about environmental issues. Have you ever watched a TV commercial and felt good about a product or company? Maybe it made you laugh, or maybe it made you think. But did you ever think about how a commercial might also make you care about the environment?

That's what we're talking about here – ads that are not just about selling stuff but also about caring for our planet. It's called environmental consciousness in advertising.

Joni, Dida, and the Unforgiving Seasons

Joni, Dida, and the Unforgiving Seasons

How much can one season bring? From scorching heatwaves to raging floods, discover how extreme weather events shape our lives.

It was hot every year, but this year they had to close Joni’s school for an extra two months because of the heat. Mr Gokhale, the principal of City Public School, had looked particularly sweaty during the last morning assembly. As all the students stood in rows, Mr. Gokhale wiped his large forehead with his hanky and took the mic on the podium.

“Children, we have a special announcement. As you know, we are experiencing a difficult heatwave this year. That’s why the government has issued an order; all schools will remain closed until further notice. Your parents have been informed and your teachers will tell you about online classes. Don’t get too excited, you will still have your exams. So study hard and don’t think of this as an extended summer vacation, okay?”

Pythons, a ‘Magic’ Mound, and the Mullukurumba

Pythons, a ‘Magic’ Mound, and the Mullukurumba

The Mullukurumba tribe lives in the lower forest ranges of Wayanad and Kerala. They were originally hunters, but they never hunted for sport; only for food. Gradually, over the years as hunting came to be banned, the Mullukurumbas shifted to practising agriculture.

Veliyamuthan is the elder or head of Karikunnu village which is nestled in the forest. As a young man, he had led most of the hunts of the Mullukurumbas. He, like many of his tribe, knows everything there is to know about the animals in the surrounding jungle. He no longer hunts, but is a storehouse of knowledge about the forest and the animals that live in them. One day, when he was resting under a jackfruit tree, some children came running excitedly...

Bee-lieve It or Not

Bee-lieve It or Not

Check out some amazing honeybee facts about these nature's tiny engineers and their sweet secrets.

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How many eyes do honeybees have? Bees have FIVE EYES and SIX LEGS.

How do honeybees share information with each other? By DANCING. They do a figure of 8 dance called the ‘waggle dance’. Through this dance, they tell the other bees where pollen, water, etc. is available. 

How many flowers do honeybees have to visit to get a kilo of honey? About 40 LAKH flowers. But one bee makes only about 1/12th of a teaspoon of honey in her lifetime. So, you need thousands of bees to make a kilo of honey...

The Bees, the Bears, and the Kattunayakans

The Bees, the Bears, and the Kattunayakans

A fascinating narrative by Grandpa Marigan to a curious child, discovering the sacred traditions of the Kattunayakan tribe and how it honours the bees, the bears, and trees for honey.

This is the rallying call of the village elder when he invites his companions to join him in going to the forest to collect honey among other things. Marigan, the wise old Kattunayakan elder from Chembakolli village in the Gudalur Valley of the Nilgiris, has been collecting wild honey from the time he was a child.

Bio… whaaa? Fuels?

Bio… whaaa? Fuels?

A future fuelled by biofuels is far better than that fired on fossil fuels. Read why biofuels are a panacea for reducing air pollution caused through automobiles and farm fields, how they help manage farm waste, and enhance soil health.

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Rahul: Hey Anu! You look disgusted. Not knowing what to do about these monumental, stinking garbage bins?

Anu: Yeah, dude! Why don’t people deliberate upon solution-seeking rather than piling their sins right outside their homes!? Household waste has a lot of organic waste and am sure there are ways of dealing with it!...

GSP Carnival 2024: The Bout

GSP Carnival 2024: The Bout

All about cracking the climate code with the Annual Climate Change Quiz in the Carnival’24.

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Young climate warriors from different parts of the country battled it out for the coveted title of the ultimate Climate Champions in The Bout — Green School’s Programme (GSP) annual climate quiz for schools. Organised as a signature event of the Green Schools Programme Carnival & Awards Ceremony at the India Habitat Centre on 30 January 2024, the second edition of The Bout was double the fun and double the adrenaline!

Over 35 school teams, consisting students from Grades 6 to 10, participated in the inter-school quiz competition. The event opened with a brief address by CSE's climate change experts. The quiz comprised two rounds — an elimination round and a main round. Top eight school teams cleared the elimination round and progressed to the...

GSP Carnival 2024: And the Award goes to…

GSP Carnival 2024: And the Award goes to…

Recapitulating the prestigious Green Schools Awards and felicitating the inspiring contribution of all the awardees.

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The much awaited and eagerly anticipated Green Schools Carnival of the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), New Delhi was back on 30th January 2024. Against the backdrop of climate change and environmental degradation, the Carnival underscored the vital role of children and educators in championing sustainability-based initiatives...

Past Paradox and Future Judgement

Past Paradox and Future Judgement

Pensive thoughts by a Gen Z on the human civilization, and its past, present, future. As the human civilization has advanced, it has undergone a trial of conscience at every successive step. Simply put, it has been in a court of paradoxes where there were problems, debates, and choices to be made. The Homo Sapiens—modern humans—appeared around 20,00,000 years ago. Gradually, these creatures chose to migrate and sail across the seas to make their own way. In the Neolithic Age, they opted to settle down at different places and brought new civilizations into existence. They invented a language, began keeping records, practiced division of labour, evolved social hierarchies, started trading, set up an administration, and thus developed an economy.

Little Green Warriors

Little Green Warriors

Child waste pickers in India need our help and compassion. Imagine waking up really early, when the sun is just starting to peek through. Imagine putting on a pair of your most ragged, worn-out clothes, picking up your work-gear – a large, equally tattered bag, maybe. And then, trudging out to begin another day, not for school, but for doing what you do every day of the week: pick up waste. Thousands of children in our country do this every day. You can see them scurrying along streets and footpaths with their oversized bags slung on their thin shoulders, rummaging through garbage dumps. They are the unsung ‘green warriors’ of our times – waste pickers who help keep our cities and towns clean.

पर्यावरण की पाठशाला में पत्रकार

पर्यावरण की पाठशाला में पत्रकार

धरती का हर मुद्दा जलवायु परिवर्तन से जुड़ा

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बॉन कान्फ्रेंस 2017 की बात है। एलायंस आॅफ स्मॉल आईलैंड स्टेट्स (एओसिस) से जुड़े एक देश के बड़े नेता फूट-फूटकर रो रहे थे। एओसिस मतलब छोटे समुद्र द्वीपीय देशों का समूह। आसानी से समझने के लिए मालदीव जैसे देशों का समूह कहा जा सकता है। वहां विकसित और विकासशील देशों के प्रतिनिधियों के बीच बहस छिड़ी हुई थी। यूरोपीय समूह और अमेरिका जैसे देशों के प्रतिनिधियों का दबाव था कि चीन और भारत जैसे देश अपनी जिम्मेदारी समझें जो बहुत ज्यादा कार्बन का उत्सर्जन कर रहे हैं। दूसरी तरफ भारत-चीन जैसे देशों के कूटनीतिज्ञ विकसित मुल्कों को अपनी ऐतिहासिक जिम्मेदारी याद दिला रहे थे।...

Mobility Whiz-kids
Standing Tall and Green

Standing Tall and Green

An inspiring story of a school teacher, transforming a barren hilltop into an evergreen haven with sheer grit, indefatigable passion, and true love for nature.

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My name is Jeevan Singh. I was duly appointed in government service by my state’s education department in 2010. But I got properly initiated as a teacher only when I was posted at the Government Primary School, Sidhot, based in Salooni Educational Block of Chamba district in Himachal...

 

 

Umm… Is this Organic?

Umm… Is this Organic?

Become a smart consumer by learning how to pick out the truly ‘Organic’ stuff from amongst a host of food packets carrying various complicated labels.

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Hello, friends! The other day, I went grocery shopping with my niece, Prisha, for buying some chemical-free and safe food. She’s just like you, always eager to learn new things. As we walked through the store, Prisha explored all kinds of fruits, spices, chocolates, and whatnot!

But something really confused her—lots of description on the products she’d picked up...