Review of Johannes Urpelainen’s Energy and Environment in India: Fossil-free future
1 year ago

Review of Johannes Urpelainen’s Energy and Environment in India: Fossil-free future

The Hindu  

India’s environmental crisis remains unaddressed partly because the expanding middle class settles for private solutions that come at a cost to the environment, and the poor, argues Johaness Urpelainen in his new book, Energy and Environment in India. For a majority of consumers, diesel generators provide reliable source of energy; groundwater pumps ensure water supply; air purifiers counter air pollution, and air conditioners work against summer heat. But India’s energy consumption pattern is no longer a domestic issue; there are global repercussions on how the world’s most populous country tackles environmental concerns. Urpelainen, a Professor of Energy, Resources, and Environment at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, draws a comprehensive picture of the country’s complicated environmental situation to assert that only by reinforcing current policies can sizeable gains be reaped by 2030.

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History of this topic

The global warming fight has a challenge for India
1 day ago

The global warming fight has a challenge for India

The Hindu  

The outcome of the climate conference in Azerbaijan has been disappointing. Developed countries have accepted 2050, China 2060, and India 2070 as the deadline for energy transition to net zero emissions by 2070. We need to rapidly ramp up electricity generation to establish our claim to an energy level that is sufficient to sustain future growth before we are constrained …

CCPI 2025: Teaching students about India's climate policies and challenges
3 days, 18 hours ago

CCPI 2025: Teaching students about India's climate policies and challenges

India Today  

India's climate change progress has earned it the 10th position on the Climate Change Performance Index 2025, a tool widely used by researchers and educators to evaluate nations' environmental efforts. Here's how to approach it: INDIA'S ACHIEVEMENTS: A CASE STUDY FOR STUDENTS India's strong performance in greenhouse gas emissions and energy use categories highlights its dedication to sustainable practices, particularly …

Echoes of nature: Frontline’s top 12 environment stories of 2024
6 days, 6 hours ago

Echoes of nature: Frontline’s top 12 environment stories of 2024

The Hindu  

Published : Dec 17, 2024 18:01 IST - 1 MIN READ Arguably one of the most disturbing headlines from the world of environment came when we rang in the New Year. In January 2024, from a pristine little island in the Indian Ocean, the Great Nicobar Island, author Pankaj Sekhsaria reported on the unimaginable havoc a proposed Rs.72,000 crore infrastructure …

2024 in review: India’s race for sustainable survival as climate crisis deepens
1 week, 1 day ago

2024 in review: India’s race for sustainable survival as climate crisis deepens

Live Mint  

The year is set to end as the hottest on record, marking the second consecutive year of unprecedented warming after 2023 claimed the same title. Data from the European Union's Copernicus Climate Change Service shows that that average global temperature in nine out of the first 11 months in 2024 was already 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels. The report said 2024 …

COP29 and reducing climate leadership: What India can do
1 month ago

COP29 and reducing climate leadership: What India can do

Hindustan Times  

The Conference of Parties 29 has seen a lacklustre attendance with heads of State from major emitters including China, United States, South Africa, Germany and Canada not in attendance. India must take a nuanced stance advocating for continued resource transfers from the North to bolster India’s domestic capacity to become a crucial partner in achieving global climate goals. India would …

The Enduring Legacy of Gandhi's Environmental Philosophy: A Journey Through India's Enduring Environmentalism
Trending News
1 month, 2 weeks ago

The Enduring Legacy of Gandhi's Environmental Philosophy: A Journey Through India's Enduring Environmentalism

ABP News  

Ramachandra Guha's 'Speaking with Nature: The Origins of Indian Environmentalism' is a nuanced exploration of India's environmental consciousness and its evolution. Guha examines 10 influential thinkers who predated global environmental movements and argues that India's environmentalism has developed its own trajectory shaped by sublime ecological, social, and cultural contexts. The book highlights the importance of livelihood environmentalism, a matter of …

US Election Results: Implications for India's Energy Security
1 month, 3 weeks ago

US Election Results: Implications for India's Energy Security

Hindustan Times  

The 2024 US presidential elections will have significant implications for India's energy security. If a pro-fossil fuel candidate like Donald Trump wins, India could face a potential trade war with the US and a diminished supply of oil and gas, impacting its economic growth. However, if a clean-energy focused candidate like Kamala Harris wins, India could benefit from strategic partnerships …

Climate debate: Criticism of the Economic Survey misses the forest for the trees
4 months, 1 week ago

Climate debate: Criticism of the Economic Survey misses the forest for the trees

Live Mint  

Edward Said recounted how, when he critiqued Western scholars for biased depictions of the East, a prominent scholar dismissed his arguments by attacking his credibility rather than engaging with their substance. On 6 August, an oped in Mint argued that India’s Economic Survey “has wide gaps and odd arguments" on climate change. First, the charge that the survey adopts a …

Earth Overshoot Day to focus on sustainable life
4 months, 3 weeks ago

Earth Overshoot Day to focus on sustainable life

Deccan Chronicle  

India, with over 1.4 billion people, faces significant challenges due to population growth and increased consumption. The Global Footprint Network reports that India’s ecological footprint has grown exponentially. “Currently, India needs 2.6 times its resources to sustain its population, leading to depleted forests, reduced biodiversity, and climate change. A NITI Aayog report warns that by 2030, India’s water demand could …

Unheeded priorities of climate action
5 months, 1 week ago

Unheeded priorities of climate action

New Indian Express  

The rising accumulation of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere is threatening a potentially catastrophic change in the living and working conditions of humanity. Controlling the addition of carbon dioxide, methane and other greenhouse gases into the layer requires cooperation at the global level and a fair distribution of mitigation actions. At present, what we have is the Paris agreement in …

World is shifting – India will need a green vision
6 months, 1 week ago

World is shifting – India will need a green vision

Hindustan Times  

As India’s new government settles down to work, there is a buzz around the agenda for the first 100 days. While growth rates might fluctuate, given the scale of the economy, India’s growth now structurally impacts resource demand, investment flows, and global trade and supply chains. These power markets can also help India integrate with regional economies by leveraging the …

Climate litigation gets shot in the arm, climate justice is not far behind in India
8 months, 1 week ago

Climate litigation gets shot in the arm, climate justice is not far behind in India

Hindustan Times  

The seeds of climate justice that were sown a few years ago in several milestone judgments by the apex court, have now perhaps given rise to its first significant shoot in the form of the judgment delivered earlier this week in the now famous Great Indian Bustard case. While the apex court has to be lauded for fortifying and expanding …

From crisis to opportunity: India's role in global renewable energy discourses
8 months, 2 weeks ago

From crisis to opportunity: India's role in global renewable energy discourses

Firstpost  

The existing crisis in the international energy market is also providing an opportunity for the renewable energy sector The two recent wars — the Russia-Ukraine War as well as the Israel-Hamas War — as well as sanctions on Iran and Russia have had much impact on global energy geopolitics. Three important issues need to be addressed while discussing India’s role …

Rethinking Global Clean Energy Transition: Empowering Grassroots for A Sustainable Future - News18
8 months, 3 weeks ago

Rethinking Global Clean Energy Transition: Empowering Grassroots for A Sustainable Future - News18

News 18  

As the urgency of addressing climate change grows, it is increasingly apparent that we are not headed in the right direction. Need to Empower Grassroots and Women If 47% of the global population live below the poverty line of $6.85 per day, and nearly half of this demographic being females, it is clear that achieving Net Zero without an inclusive …

Near-term agenda needed to phase out dirty fossil fuels
10 months, 2 weeks ago

Near-term agenda needed to phase out dirty fossil fuels

New Indian Express  

The second edition of the India Energy Week, which kicked off on Tuesday, is bringing together 17 energy ministers from oil producing countries as well as OPEC functionaries and executives from oil and gas companies. Sustainable energy received a major boost when, after much haggling, the UN summit adopted a resolution to ‘transition away from fossil fuels’ for the first …

Water resource inadequacy is a challenge India must take head on
11 months ago

Water resource inadequacy is a challenge India must take head on

Live Mint  

The notion of a ‘triple planetary’ crisis encompassing climate change, pollution and biodiversity loss has become outdated in the face of complexities captured by the relatively new term ‘polycrisis.’ This modern challenge involves the intertwining of climate change, environmental disruptions, widening social inequalities, pandemic effects and geopolitical polarization. India can tap the climate-development nexus by conserving and using its water …

COP28: India’s urban population is exploding. That could have huge consequences for the planet
1 year ago

COP28: India’s urban population is exploding. That could have huge consequences for the planet

CNN  

New Delhi CNN — Over half a century ago, India’s then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi talked about the staggering challenge for developing nations: to industrialize without harming the environment. Addressing the opening session of the COP28 climate talks in Dubai on Friday, India’s current prime minister, Narendra Modi, said all developing countries must be given “a fair share in the …

India’s Energy Endgame in an Era of Peak Fossil Fuels
1 year, 1 month ago

India’s Energy Endgame in an Era of Peak Fossil Fuels

The Quint  

Here, we would need to be time-wise granular, differentiating between short to medium and long terms, In the first phase, the global consumption of fossil energy sources may keep growing, albeit, at a slowing velocity and geopolitical risks may disrupt. In a decade, hopefully, these trends will settle down and fossil energy consumption may peak and start declining concomitantly bringing …

The shape of climate justice in a warming India
1 year, 2 months ago

The shape of climate justice in a warming India

The Hindu  

The G-20 summit that was held in Delhi agreed on tripling renewable energy capacity and a voluntary doubling of the rate of energy efficiency improvement by 2030. Such an approach evades concerns of climate justice within India, particularly its effect on inequality across levels class, caste and region. Inequality matrix It is now well documented across the world that climate …

How India’s climate leadership is building a better future for all
1 year, 3 months ago

How India’s climate leadership is building a better future for all

Hindustan Times  

India is poised to be a global leader when it comes to economy, technology and trade. This is why both India’s commitment to climate action and its current role as a global convener in its capacity as the president of the G20 are so vital for moving climate action forward. Indeed, India’s theme for this year’s G20, “One Earth, One …

India Today Roundtable discusses India's efforts to reduce carbon footprint
1 year, 5 months ago

India Today Roundtable discusses India's efforts to reduce carbon footprint

India Today  

The India Today Roundtable discussed India's efforts to reduce its carbon footprint and meet its commitments to cut carbon emissions by 2030. They highlighted that while India's per capita emissions are low, the country is the third largest emitter of carbon dioxide after China and the US. India has made several major commitments to address this issue, including increasing renewable …

Seeing India’s energy transition through its States
1 year, 6 months ago

Seeing India’s energy transition through its States

The Hindu  

In the upcoming G20 forum, India is planning to propose a multiple energy pathways approach to accommodate the diverse contexts and development trajectories of countries. The diversity of India’s States, which necessitates multiple pathways, will determine its own domestic energy transition. States are critical actors in India’s energy transition as there is a multi-tier governance of energy production and usage. …

Countries historically responsible for climate change cannot stall India's development, says Environment Minister
1 year, 8 months ago

Countries historically responsible for climate change cannot stall India's development, says Environment Minister

The Hindu  

India is moving towards renewable energy but countries historically responsible for climate change cannot ask it to stop its development, Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav said on March 28. Countries historically responsible for climate change cannot decide how India uses its resources to fulfil the energy needs of its population, he said. However, at 2.4 tCO2e, India's per capita greenhouse …

Analysis | Why not everyone will benefit equally from a transition to a low-carbon economy
1 year, 10 months ago

Analysis | Why not everyone will benefit equally from a transition to a low-carbon economy

The Hindu  

The 2023-2024 Union Budget, presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on February 1, 2023, depicts the Union government’s long-term vision of a technology-driven, knowledge-based economy that banks on citizen engagement, youth empowerment, employment generation, and creating a robust macroeconomic environment. This in turn calls for clear directives and frameworks to consciously embed ‘justice’ elements in financing India’s energy transition. They …

India’s just energy transition is more than a coal story
1 year, 10 months ago

India’s just energy transition is more than a coal story

The Hindu  

Just Energy Transition Partnership is emerging as the key mechanism for multilateral financing by developed countries to support an energy transition in developing countries. Transitions affect near-term fossil-dependent jobs, disrupt forms of future energy access, shrink state’s capacity to spend on welfare programmes, and thus exacerbate existing economic inequities between coal and other regions. The emphasis by developed countries’ on …

Sustainability is a key focus area for India at G20
1 year, 10 months ago

Sustainability is a key focus area for India at G20

Hindustan Times  

India assumed the G20 presidency on December 1, 2022, marked by hope, dreams, and aspirations. These efforts are helping India meet its needs while contributing to global efforts at reducing CO2 emissions India remains one of the fastest-growing economies in the world. As per the new NDC, India is committed to reducing the emissions intensity of its Gross Domestic Product …

Climate-proofing India’s socio-economic trajectory
1 year, 10 months ago

Climate-proofing India’s socio-economic trajectory

Live Mint  

With existing socio-economic challenges, India needs a people-first development paradigm to move towards a climate-secure future, and become a leading voice on climate action for the Global South. With programmes around green fuel, climate-friendly farming, green buildings, low-carbon mobility, and policies for efficient energy use across various economic sectors, the 2023-24 Budget lays a strong foundation for green growth – …

Global finance critical to India's climate actions, says chief economic adviser
1 year, 10 months ago

Global finance critical to India's climate actions, says chief economic adviser

Hindustan Times  

India will stick to its global commitments on containing the climate crisis, seen most notably in its ambitious targets on clean energy transition to reduce its dependence on burning fossil fuels, according to Economic Survey 2022-23 tabled in Parliament on Tuesday. “Hence, India currently spearheads one of the most robust climate actions through its Nationally Determined Contributions, which includes an …

India’s G20 Presidency: Prioritising Climate and Sustainable Development through Indian Culture
2 years ago

India’s G20 Presidency: Prioritising Climate and Sustainable Development through Indian Culture

News 18  

On 1 December 2022, India formally took over the presidency of the Group of 20 countries — which rotates annually between members — constituting the most powerful intergovernmental forum, known as G20. According to the Ministry of External Affairs, under the G20 Presidency, India plans to focus on the following areas — women’s empowerment, digital public infrastructure, health, agriculture, education, …

Explained | What is India’s future strategy on emissions?
2 years, 1 month ago

Explained | What is India’s future strategy on emissions?

The Hindu  

The story so far: The Climate Change Conference at Sharm el-Sheikh was to end on Friday but the deadline was extended to the weekend because there were divisions among member countries on the final text of the agreement. While India unveiled its much-awaited Long-Term Low Emission Development Strategy during COP27, several outstanding issues remain. Environment minister Bhupender Yadav said the …

Parsa Venkateshwar Rao Jr | No easy ‘green’ solutions for coal-carbon dilemma
2 years, 1 month ago

Parsa Venkateshwar Rao Jr | No easy ‘green’ solutions for coal-carbon dilemma

Deccan Chronicle  

India’s carbon emissions in 2022 are six per cent compared to the United States’ 1.5 per cent, according to the Global Carbon Budget, released at COP27, the climate conference now underway at Sharm el-Sheikh in Egypt. US treasury secretary Janet Yellen had announced during her recent visit to New Delhi last week a $500 million solar facility in Tamil Nadu …

5 questions over India's emission plan at COP27
2 years, 1 month ago

5 questions over India's emission plan at COP27

Live Mint  

The strategy focuses on low-carbon electricity and transport systems, low-emission industrial systems, carbon mitigation technologies, energy-efficient urban infrastructure, enhanced forest cover, and the economic and financial aspects of low-carbon development. India is a signatory to the Paris Agreement, under which countries must formulate and communicate long-term low greenhouse gas emission development strategies, taking into account their common but differentiated responsibilities …

India fighting climate change despite accounting for less than 4% of total emissions: Environment Minister
2 years, 1 month ago

India fighting climate change despite accounting for less than 4% of total emissions: Environment Minister

The Hindu  

India is undertaking an arduous effort to fight climate change despite accounting for less than four per cent of the world's cumulative emissions so far, Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav said on Tuesday. "India, home to 1.3 billion people, is undertaking this arduous effort despite the reality that our contribution to the world's cumulative emissions so far is less than 4 …

India aims to achieve net-zero emissions target in 50 years
2 years, 1 month ago

India aims to achieve net-zero emissions target in 50 years

Deccan Chronicle  

NEW DELHI: India on Monday submitted to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change its long-term plan to achieve the net-zero target by 2070, emphasising climate justice, sustainable lifestyles and equity. Under the Paris Agreement, countries are required to submit long-term low-emission action plans to help achieve the global goal of limiting temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius as …

India’s energy future is looking green, report says
2 years, 2 months ago

India’s energy future is looking green, report says

Associated Press  

BENGALURU, India — India’s renewables sector is booming, with the country projected to add 35 to 40 gigawatts of renewable energy annually until 2030, enough to power up to 30 million more homes each year, a report said Thursday. The Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis and Climate Energy Finance estimated that India, the third largest energy-consuming country in …

India to account for 25% of global energy demand growth over next 2 decades
2 years, 2 months ago

India to account for 25% of global energy demand growth over next 2 decades

Live Mint  

NEW DELHI: India will likely account for 25% of global energy demand growth over the next two decades, said Union minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas, Hardeep S Puri on Wednesday. Addressing a round-table on ‘Opportunities in the India-US Strategic Partnership’ in Texas, US, the minister said that India’s energy strategy is mindful of commitments to global commons, to green …

India updates its NDC to tackle climate crisis
2 years, 3 months ago

India updates its NDC to tackle climate crisis

Hindustan Times  

New Delhi: India has formally updated its nationally determined contribution to fight climate change, confirming to the United Nations apex body that it will reduce the emissions intensity of its Gross Domestic Product by 45% from 2005 levels by the year 2030, and to have installed capacity for non-fossil fuel-based power sources equivalent to the country’s 50% requirement by 2030.. …

Sticking to commitments: The Hindu Editorial on India’s climate change goals
2 years, 4 months ago

Sticking to commitments: The Hindu Editorial on India’s climate change goals

The Hindu  

Ahead of the 27th Conference of the Parties of the UNFCCC, in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, in November, the Union Cabinet has approved India’s Nationally Determined Contributions, a formal statement detailing its action plan to address climate change. India’s first NDC, in 2015, specified eight targets, the most salient of them being reducing the emissions intensity of GDP by 33%-35% by …

India’s Energy-Environment Catch-22
2 years, 4 months ago

India’s Energy-Environment Catch-22

The Diplomat  

Rani, a domestic worker in New Delhi, travels 10-15 kilometers every day from her cramped urban slum in Goyla Dairy, Najafgarh, to high rise buildings in Dwarka. While India plans to reach carbon neutral status by 2070, extreme weather events like the recent heatwaves keep pushing India’s energy sector to depend on traditional coal in the absence of enough renewable …

Universal access to energy is vital
2 years, 5 months ago

Universal access to energy is vital

Hindustan Times  

The centrepiece of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s pitch to the world’s richest nations at the G-7 summit in Germany was equity in energy access. Mr Modi said that access to energy shouldn’t be the privilege of only the rich at a time when geopolitical tensions are propelling energy costs and pointed out that while providing energy access to its citizens, …

A squeeze on climate goals
2 years, 6 months ago

A squeeze on climate goals

Hindustan Times  

At the United Nations climate summit in Glasgow in November 2021, member countries reaffirmed the Paris Agreement’s goal of limiting the increase in the global average temperature to well below 2°C above pre-industrial levels and pursuing efforts to limit it to 1.5 °C. This, says an International Energy Agency report, could impact the profitability of the renewable energy industry and …

‘Fossil fuels are a dead end’: UN chief emphasises renewable energy projects
2 years, 7 months ago

‘Fossil fuels are a dead end’: UN chief emphasises renewable energy projects

Hindustan Times  

NEW DELHI: Guterres’s statement came even as the World Meteorological Organisation – the UN agency which covers weather, climate and water resources – launched its State of the Climate report. United Nations general secretary Antonio Guterres, noting the global energy crises which prompted large economies to open new oil and gas fields, has proposed five critical actions to jump-start the …

Indic climate ethics can address energy poverty
2 years, 9 months ago

Indic climate ethics can address energy poverty

Times of India  

Professor Pankaj Jain is an internationally recognized academic leader in Sustainability, Jain Studies, Film Studies, and Diaspora Studies. MORE ‘Energy Poverty’ is a stark reality for around 1.3 billion people globally, who have no access to electricity and over 3 billion people with minimal access to modern forms of energy resources. Although the suburban population in advanced economies and the …

How India fares on climate action, in charts
2 years, 9 months ago

How India fares on climate action, in charts

Live Mint  

Last month, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change released the second part of its Sixth Assessment Report. Large differences exist among Indian states in their climate change mitigation and adaptation, multiple data points show. SDG 13 on climate action includes metrics such as installed renewable energy capacity, CO2 reduction due to LED bulbs, disaster preparedness, human lives lost due to …

India’s leadership in the climate crisis battle
3 years, 1 month ago

India’s leadership in the climate crisis battle

Hindustan Times  

At the recently concluded United Nations Conference of the Parties in Glasgow, global climate experts were most appreciative of India’s historic proclamations on measures to fight the climate crisis. If the global community accepts the principle of dividing the carbon space equitably across nations on a per capita emission basis, India’s share should be 17.5% of the total space. In …

Does India have a right to burn fossil fuels?
3 years, 1 month ago

Does India have a right to burn fossil fuels?

The Hindu  

There has been quite a lot of debate on India’s dependence on coal against the backdrop of the Conference of the Parties meeting. However, since India has neither historically emitted nor currently emits carbon anywhere close to what the global North has, or does, in per capita terms, it has no reason to commit to declining dependence on coal, at …

India's energy crisis: Coal shortage an opportunity to fully explore renewable, nuclear options
3 years, 2 months ago

India's energy crisis: Coal shortage an opportunity to fully explore renewable, nuclear options

Firstpost  

The current crisis should be seen as a window of opportunity to not go back to producing more coal but to begin the transition to explore green and renewable energy With a coal shortage at thermal power projects persisting and India continuing to grapple with an energy crisis, the need of the hour is for the Centre to shift focus …

A climate change narrative that India can steer
3 years, 3 months ago

A climate change narrative that India can steer

The Hindu  

In a keynote speech on September 8 in a seminar organised by a think tank, R.K. Singh, Union Minister for Power, New and Renewable Energy stated, “Environment is something we are trustees of and have to leave behind a better environment for our children and great grand children.” However, a recent report, “Assessment of Climate Change over the Indian Region” …

Green Revolution 2.0: Reliance’s Disruptive Clean Energy Plan for Every Indian
3 years, 3 months ago

Green Revolution 2.0: Reliance’s Disruptive Clean Energy Plan for Every Indian

News 18  

The Kuznets curve posited that climate awareness and the need for green energy come about only when a society reaches a certain per capita income. As a rule, that would have meant lower-income countries such as India would have never realistically been able to gain political capital by advocating green energy, and in a democracy like India that would’ve been …

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