Climate crisis - Question of Cities

In art, climate change is sometimes a storm,
sometimes rubble

Landscapes and nature have always been a part of the artistic oeuvre but, in the present context, how has art addressed or interacted with climate change and its complexities? Has it even? Contemporary and younger artists are finding various forms…

Learning climate change language from lived experiences

As the English-dominated climate discourse becomes more technical, thinkers and activists are responding with strategies to make it people-oriented. A lot of knowledge and understanding can be gleaned from people on the ground, they say. Well-known planner and researcher Dr.…

People show the media what words and languages to use

The local impacts, descriptions, and knowledge of climate change rarely make it to the national or global climate discussions. Question of Cities talks to multi-lingual journalists to understand how to decode it all. Doing away with technical words and understanding…

A feminist lens to address heat waves in India

The gendered impact of heat is beginning to be acknowledged but the need is for a feminist approach to address the issues of livelihood and health that arise from heat waves. This means centering well-being and care at the heart…

Resistance, confrontation,
anti-extractivist struggles in the Global South

Rising heat waves, illegal mining, degradation of water bodies and depletion of trees are increasing across the world, especially in countries of the Global South where most of the world’s vulnerable population lives. Environmentalism in these countries, or among vulnerable…

The way forward for urban local bodies to finance climate action

Cities in India are at a preliminary stage of climate actions. A 126-cities survey showed that urban local bodies are spending two-three percent, or less, of their budgets on climate-related activities. Only 50 out of 4,800 cities are preparing or…

‘We need a thorough review of, not mere amendments to, environmental laws’

We have the right to a healthy environment. It is the responsibility of the government to protect the environment and ensure a good quality of life. But the massive “unsustainable” development across the country by destroying the ecology has created…

Heat’s on Bhubaneswar, it’s time to heed warnings

Odisha, which has been lauded for its disaster management during cyclones, faces another climate challenge: Heat. Its capital Bhubaneswar started as a planned city, but rapid concretisation and haphazard constructions have taken over, changing its landscape drastically and turning it…