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. ******************************* 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...
Showcasing how visionary projects can nurture future leaders who are not only academically adept but also environmentally conscious and aware. ***************************** In an era of urbanization and technological advancements, the importance of connecting the youngsters with nature cannot be overstated. My school, the Sacred Heart in Kalyan, Maharashtra, stands as a beacon of inspiration in this regard. Their authorities had given me the mandate to set up a butterfly garden and provided all the required finance and manpower. And as our pioneering effort flourished with time, I was duly absorbed as a Nature educator...
The triple planetary crisis refers to three interconnected environmental crises that pose a threat to humanity—climate change, pollution, and biodiversity loss. We need to address this crisis by adapting to nature-based solutions that can leverage the inherent resilience of our ecosystem. One such solution is the conservation of mangroves. Mangroves are the kind of trees that are found in intertidal zones, between high tide and low tide, in tropical and subtropical regions...
Set to introduce young readers to a terrain that is largely believed to be elusive and mysterious, Andaman Adventure—The Jarawa is a work of fiction by children’s author Deepak Dalal, known for his conservation-themed books and particularly his Vikram-Aditya series. The Jarawa, the first of a two part story set in the Andaman, also focuses on the young, adventure-loving duo Vikram and Aditya as they navigate a dangerous situation across the islands...
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. ***************************** 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...
Sharing fond memories from 25 years back—of ice creams, rookies, cow dung, and some cool environment stuff for kids. ************************************ In the summer of 1992, late at night in the basement of the then rented office space of the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), the editorial team of the Down To Earth (DTE) magazine had a very long hot and tiring day putting together their very first issue. Anil Agarwal, the founder editor,...
In spite of all the brickbats and rebukes, a tabloid matures into a magazine as it finds its 'beginners' audience and speaks through quirky cartoons. ********************************************************************************* Gobar Times (GT) already had a successful 10-year run before I got on-board. It was always resplendent in a spectacular tabloid avatar, grabbing eyeballs everywhere. But as if this was not intimidating enough, here we were staging the arrival of a new GT. It’s looks? A standard news magazine format. Were we taking a risk?...
Narrating the tale and trajectory of Gobar Times—of how it evolved into a new avatar and gained new characters. ************************************* My association with the Gobar Times will be incomplete without Piu & Pom. We were once working on a comic strip for the magazine. Piu is the name of my daughter so it was easy to decide the name of one of the characters. But for Pom, there’s an interesting story.
A thoughtful reflection on the value of Gobar Times with an understanding of what it is about, why so, how...and a little bit more.
Many of us love pets, especially dogs. But do you know that over the last five years, they have killed more than 300 people, mostly poor and rural children? Over 20,000 rabies deaths have been caused by homeless dogs and more than 30 endangered species have been hunted by them in the wild. The human-animal conflict between people and stray dogs in India has reached an alarming level. So, the next time you venture outdoors, please take care of yourself!
Dusting off our archives to showcase some of the best stuff we’d published so far.