Bolivia was feeling the fallout from a volcanic eruption in neighboring Peru on Saturday (July 20) with ash clouds darkening skies and dust blowing about the streets of cities in the eastern regions of this Andean country.

Bolivia suffers ash fallout from Peru volcanic eruption

A ban on sale, storage and manufacture of plastic came into force in six cities of Odisha Tuesday, on the occasion of Mahatma Gandhi's 149th birth anniversary, a senior official said here.

The state government has set a target of making the state plastic-free over the next two years, he said.

"In the first phase, the ban has been enforced in Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Berhampur, Sambalpur and Rourkela and the seaside town of Puri. The administration has been asked to ensure that the order is enforced in the cities in line with Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik's instructions," he stated.

The CM had said in July that plastic prohibition would come into effect across the state over the next two years.

According to the state government's directive, no one will be able to sell, manufacture and import or stock plastic and polythene items once the ban comes into force.

Also, drinking water pouches, plastic water bottles with less than 500 ml capacity, polythene bags, disposable plastic cups, plates, glasses, bowls, spoons, and plastic straws, too, will no longer be allowed anywhere in the state.

The departments of Housing and Urban Development and Panchayati Raj have been asked to execute the order in urban and rural areas respectively, while the Forest and

Environment Department has been tasked with monitoring its implementation.

Those violating the order will undergo a five-year jail term with a fine of up to a maximum of Rs 1 lakh. The state has also decided to introduce a penalty provision of Rs 2000-Rs 3000 for small traders.

"Traders dealing in plastic bags have been given time till November 30 to do away with the remaining products. Appropriate action would be taken if anyone is found selling these items," the senior official explained.

The district administration has been directed to conduct surprise raids to check violation of norms, he said.

"People have been asked not to carry any plastic or polythene bags to any public place. All religious institutions, hotels and restaurants have been told to strictly abide by the order," the official maintained.

The government is also mooting a buy-back policy, under which consumers would be given cash for selling off their plastic bottles.

The official, however, clarified that there would be no ban on blood transfusion bags, plastic used in nurseries, horticulture, healthcare, medicines, polythene more than 50 micron, water bottles of more than 500 ml capacity and thermocol used for transportation of electronic goods.

An office-bearer at Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation said teams comprising administrators of Labour Department, Odisha State Pollution Control Board and the police have been asked to create awareness among the people about the harmful effects of plastic in the state capital.

In Puri, a team led by District Collector Jyoti Prakash Das raided shops near Jagannath Temple in the morning and warned the traders and shopkeepers against use of polythene bags.

"As of now, our objective is to make people aware of the ill-effects of plastic. The response has been quite encouraging so far as around 80 per cent of people were seen using alternative means," Das added.&nbsp;

A ban on sale, storage and manufacture of plastic came into force in six cities of Odisha Tuesday, on the occasion of Mahatma Gandhi's 149th birth anniversary, a senior official said here.

A ban on sale, storage and manufacture of plastic came into force in six cities of Odisha Tuesday, on the occasion of Mahatma Gandhi's 149th birth anniversary, a senior official said here. The state government has set a target of making the state plastic-free over the next two years, he said. "In the first phase, the ban has been enforced in Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Berhampur, Sambalpur and Rourkela and the seaside town of Puri. The administration has been asked to ensure that the order is enforced in the cities in line with Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik's instructions," he stated. The CM had said in July that plastic prohibition would come into effect across the state over the next two years. According to the state government's directive, no one will be able to sell, manufacture and import or stock plastic and polythene items once the ban comes into force. Also, drinking water pouches, plastic water bottles with less than 500 ml capacity, polythene bags, disposable plastic cups, plates, glasses, bowls, spoons, and plastic straws, too, will no longer be allowed anywhere in the state. The departments of Housing and Urban Development and Panchayati Raj have been asked to execute the order in urban and rural areas respectively, while the Forest and Environment Department has been tasked with monitoring its implementation. Those violating the order will undergo a five-year jail term with a fine of up to a maximum of Rs 1 lakh. The state has also decided to introduce a penalty provision of Rs 2000-Rs 3000 for small traders. "Traders dealing in plastic bags have been given time till November 30 to do away with the remaining products. Appropriate action would be taken if anyone is found selling these items," the senior official explained. The district administration has been directed to conduct surprise raids to check violation of norms, he said. "People have been asked not to carry any plastic or polythene bags to any public place. All religious institutions, hotels and restaurants have been told to strictly abide by the order," the official maintained. The government is also mooting a buy-back policy, under which consumers would be given cash for selling off their plastic bottles. The official, however, clarified that there would be no ban on blood transfusion bags, plastic used in nurseries, horticulture, healthcare, medicines, polythene more than 50 micron, water bottles of more than 500 ml capacity and thermocol used for transportation of electronic goods. An office-bearer at Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation said teams comprising administrators of Labour Department, Odisha State Pollution Control Board and the police have been asked to create awareness among the people about the harmful effects of plastic in the state capital. In Puri, a team led by District Collector Jyoti Prakash Das raided shops near Jagannath Temple in the morning and warned the traders and shopkeepers against use of polythene bags. "As of now, our objective is to make people aware of the ill-effects of plastic. The response has been quite encouraging so far as around 80 per cent of people were seen using alternative means," Das added.

Plastic ban enforced in six cities of Odisha on occasion of Mahatma Gandhi's birth anniversary

By Arabella Seebaluck

World Environment Day this year (today) will focus on the thorny plastic pollution issue. Social media feeds every day offer users with something or other that plastic is destroying or polluting. Long gone are the days where everyone would applaud the benefits of the cheap petrochemical byproduct. Plastic is on the wanted list, it’s like a weapon of mass destruction… only one that every single one of us uses on a daily basis.

The horror stories abound media in its entirety. The most recent example is the tragic end of a whale in Thailand because she ate 80 plastic bags. The contents of her stomach were even beamed on every screen to show the public how real, how lethal, plastic garbage is. We read about how this material clogs rivers, pollutes oceans and beaches, kills fauna and flora. Many magazine covers have with a single photo expressed the urgency of the situation: whether the plastic bag-cum-iceberg or the seagull caught within a plastic bag, standing helplessly. Basically, we’ve heard about the harm plastic does to all living entities — be it humans, animals or plants — and have been shown all of its negative effects. We subscribe to environmental events, pledges, online petitions and other trendy initiatives to "beat plastic pollution". But what is our own, personal, individual contribution to it? What do we do in our daily lives to reverse harmful plastic proliferation? Truth be told, for most of us, absolutely nothing. Zilch. Nada.

Ironically, this is the best place to start: I, me, the individual… that one single person. To understand better the power of the individual, a good place to understand how this dynamic works is the other end of the spectrum. What caused the pollution in the first place? How did it begin? It began with one person. One person thought it was OK to throw away a plastic bottle on the ground. One person thought it was OK to dispose of plastic bags in the nearby river. One person was watched by another person, then another, then another… and the result is the heaps and mountains of plastic we encounter everyday… whether we’re driving to work or trying to walk on a sidewalk to the ATM or the market. There is plastic litter along every step of the way… at least in India’s metropolitan cities.

There’s a particular mindset in most of India metros… that of "mindlessness". Which can be defined by someone not particularly caring about how a situation is going to be resolved after they have been served. No need to venture very far to see how this works. Many religious institutions in our local neighbourhoods give out "offerings". These are usually food in single-use or disposable plastic or styrofoam containers. What happens to these utensils after their single use is often this: dumped at the very place where the person or persons stood to eat them. Not in a waste bin, and much less taken home to be responsibly disposed of. Each one of us often mindlessly disposes of plastic bottles, cutlery and straws. Each one of us have refillable water bottles at home — but how often do we buy disposable ones? How many of us feel responsible about where the plastic we use ends up?

This brings us to the next word of interest: responsibility. Even though we are aware that a single-use plastic spoon or straw will take a 100 years or so to disintegrate naturally, how many of us refuse one when offered? What about going to the fruit and vegetable seller down the street — how many of us carry our own bags so we avoid getting even more plastic out on the street? How many of us shop with plastic consciousness: looking at products that use more eco-friendly or very scant packaging? How many of us have thought of a zero-waste lifestyle? How many of us even know what that is?

The problem is that plastic is so embedded in our lifestyles, we seldom take the time to ponder how we can manage without it. Yet, about 50 years ago, our parents and grandparents had a mostly plastic-free lifestyle. Milk would not come in pouches, but directly from the milkman's large cans… vegetables were carried in baskets or cloth bags… water was drunk out of mugs or fountains. Examples of the waste-free lifestyle are countless. And we have gold mines of information if we turn to our elders and ask them: how did you do that back in the day?

But instead, we are riding the plastic wave. Beating plastic pollution is just going to be the latest fad theme, the Facebook profile picture we’ll change into a logo or the HR event we’ll attend courtesy of the company we work at. On June 6, the day after the much-heralded "World Environment Day", we’ll all pretty much go back to how things were.

Meanwhile, plastic will continue seeping its way down the gullets of the animals which scavenge through refuse for food. Or those in our coastal waters who mistake it for an organism they normally feed on. That’s what happened to the whale previously mentioned, and turtles, fish and lots of marine animals… but also our neighbourhood cows and goats, and even our precious pets can be thus harmed. The danger in that is that we choose to be unaware of the hazards of plastic in our ecosystem and on our own health.

Right now, in India, plastic is a proliferating industry… with a planned growth of double the current amount over the next decade. It is aided by the government which sees in it a means of encouraging business and creating jobs. So if on one side there is the "Beat Plastic Pollution" rhetoric, on the other side there is a real economic need that has to be met. So although authorities try to green the country, they also have to allow ways for mouths to be fed... after all, this is politics.

But politics aside, what is currently happening outside of India? When did the problem begin? A starting point is usually the 50's, when the world’s population was about 2.5 billion people. We’re now at nearly 7 billion people in the world and 320 million tonnes of plastic are being produced worldwide yearly. In India alone, this figure averages 18 million tonnes a year, for a population which currently represents about 18% of the planet’s inhabitants. It’s established that production and consumption of plastics in India is tremendous. In terms of management of the plastic waste, this is where it becomes overly daunting. Despite the plastic bans in at least 17 states in the country, local agencies are unable to implement legislation. There is a critical lack of manpower and perhaps even willpower in some institutions to translate the letter of the law to ground reality when it comes to plastic pollution. One would be tempted to think that it’s an entirely separate issue from waste. Nothing could be further from the truth.

A lot of plastic waste ends up in oceans. So this a good illustration of how massive the problem is. Right now, researchers and NGOs agree that anything between 60-90% of marine debris is plastic. These are mostly fishing nets, but are also single-use items such as straws and cutlery. The problem is such that plastic debris has been found in one of the deepest underwater trench, the Marianas Trench. There is a patch of plastic in the pacific which is roughly twice the size of the state of Rajasthan. In the same Pacific Ocean, an entire uninhabited island called Henderson island has been found covered with plastic waste. This is because 1.8 trillion pieces of plastic litter our ocean…

There is so much consciousness and apparent publicity around the problem of plastic pollution that one would think it is near being resolved. But with an increasing world population and equally increasing plastic production, this isn’t likely to happen. If each individual were however to change their plastic consumption, that would definitely turn the tide around. Mindfulness is key in creating the awareness of how each single plastic straw, spoon or bag we use is going to impact the environment in which our children are going to live. Mindfulness means we care about what happens around us and what will happen after we’re gone. Being mindful of our own individual plastic use and disposal would be our single biggest contribution to protecting life on Earth.&nbsp;

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of ZMCL)

 
&nbsp;

The problem started with the individual. But that also means she and he can also help set it right

By Arabella Seebaluck World Environment Day this year (today) will focus on the thorny plastic pollution issue. Social media feeds every day offer users with something or other that plastic is destroying or polluting. Long gone are the days where everyone would applaud the benefits of the cheap petrochemical byproduct. Plastic is on the wanted list, it’s like a weapon of mass destruction… only one that every single one of us uses on a daily basis. The horror stories abound media in its entirety. The most recent example is the tragic end of a whale in Thailand because she ate 80 plastic bags. The contents of her stomach were even beamed on every screen to show the public how real, how lethal, plastic garbage is. We read about how this material clogs rivers, pollutes oceans and beaches, kills fauna and flora. Many magazine covers have with a single photo expressed the urgency of the situation: whether the plastic bag-cum-iceberg or the seagull caught within a plastic bag, standing helplessly. Basically, we’ve heard about the harm plastic does to all living entities — be it humans, animals or plants — and have been shown all of its negative effects. We subscribe to environmental events, pledges, online petitions and other trendy initiatives to "beat plastic pollution". But what is our own, personal, individual contribution to it? What do we do in our daily lives to reverse harmful plastic proliferation? Truth be told, for most of us, absolutely nothing. Zilch. Nada. Ironically, this is the best place to start: I, me, the individual… that one single person. To understand better the power of the individual, a good place to understand how this dynamic works is the other end of the spectrum. What caused the pollution in the first place? How did it begin? It began with one person. One person thought it was OK to throw away a plastic bottle on the ground. One person thought it was OK to dispose of plastic bags in the nearby river. One person was watched by another person, then another, then another… and the result is the heaps and mountains of plastic we encounter everyday… whether we’re driving to work or trying to walk on a sidewalk to the ATM or the market. There is plastic litter along every step of the way… at least in India’s metropolitan cities. There’s a particular mindset in most of India metros… that of "mindlessness". Which can be defined by someone not particularly caring about how a situation is going to be resolved after they have been served. No need to venture very far to see how this works. Many religious institutions in our local neighbourhoods give out "offerings". These are usually food in single-use or disposable plastic or styrofoam containers. What happens to these utensils after their single use is often this: dumped at the very place where the person or persons stood to eat them. Not in a waste bin, and much less taken home to be responsibly disposed of. Each one of us often mindlessly disposes of plastic bottles, cutlery and straws. Each one of us have refillable water bottles at home — but how often do we buy disposable ones? How many of us feel responsible about where the plastic we use ends up? This brings us to the next word of interest: responsibility. Even though we are aware that a single-use plastic spoon or straw will take a 100 years or so to disintegrate naturally, how many of us refuse one when offered? What about going to the fruit and vegetable seller down the street — how many of us carry our own bags so we avoid getting even more plastic out on the street? How many of us shop with plastic consciousness: looking at products that use more eco-friendly or very scant packaging? How many of us have thought of a zero-waste lifestyle? How many of us even know what that is? The problem is that plastic is so embedded in our lifestyles, we seldom take the time to ponder how we can manage without it. Yet, about 50 years ago, our parents and grandparents had a mostly plastic-free lifestyle. Milk would not come in pouches, but directly from the milkman's large cans… vegetables were carried in baskets or cloth bags… water was drunk out of mugs or fountains. Examples of the waste-free lifestyle are countless. And we have gold mines of information if we turn to our elders and ask them: how did you do that back in the day? But instead, we are riding the plastic wave. Beating plastic pollution is just going to be the latest fad theme, the Facebook profile picture we’ll change into a logo or the HR event we’ll attend courtesy of the company we work at. On June 6, the day after the much-heralded "World Environment Day", we’ll all pretty much go back to how things were. Meanwhile, plastic will continue seeping its way down the gullets of the animals which scavenge through refuse for food. Or those in our coastal waters who mistake it for an organism they normally feed on. That’s what happened to the whale previously mentioned, and turtles, fish and lots of marine animals… but also our neighbourhood cows and goats, and even our precious pets can be thus harmed. The danger in that is that we choose to be unaware of the hazards of plastic in our ecosystem and on our own health. Right now, in India, plastic is a proliferating industry… with a planned growth of double the current amount over the next decade. It is aided by the government which sees in it a means of encouraging business and creating jobs. So if on one side there is the "Beat Plastic Pollution" rhetoric, on the other side there is a real economic need that has to be met. So although authorities try to green the country, they also have to allow ways for mouths to be fed... after all, this is politics. But politics aside, what is currently happening outside of India? When did the problem begin? A starting point is usually the 50's, when the world’s population was about 2.5 billion people. We’re now at nearly 7 billion people in the world and 320 million tonnes of plastic are being produced worldwide yearly. In India alone, this figure averages 18 million tonnes a year, for a population which currently represents about 18% of the planet’s inhabitants. It’s established that production and consumption of plastics in India is tremendous. In terms of management of the plastic waste, this is where it becomes overly daunting. Despite the plastic bans in at least 17 states in the country, local agencies are unable to implement legislation. There is a critical lack of manpower and perhaps even willpower in some institutions to translate the letter of the law to ground reality when it comes to plastic pollution. One would be tempted to think that it’s an entirely separate issue from waste. Nothing could be further from the truth. A lot of plastic waste ends up in oceans. So this a good illustration of how massive the problem is. Right now, researchers and NGOs agree that anything between 60-90% of marine debris is plastic. These are mostly fishing nets, but are also single-use items such as straws and cutlery. The problem is such that plastic debris has been found in one of the deepest underwater trench, the Marianas Trench. There is a patch of plastic in the pacific which is roughly twice the size of the state of Rajasthan. In the same Pacific Ocean, an entire uninhabited island called Henderson island has been found covered with plastic waste. This is because 1.8 trillion pieces of plastic litter our ocean… There is so much consciousness and apparent publicity around the problem of plastic pollution that one would think it is near being resolved. But with an increasing world population and equally increasing plastic production, this isn’t likely to happen. If each individual were however to change their plastic consumption, that would definitely turn the tide around. Mindfulness is key in creating the awareness of how each single plastic straw, spoon or bag we use is going to impact the environment in which our children are going to live. Mindfulness means we care about what happens around us and what will happen after we’re gone. Being mindful of our own individual plastic use and disposal would be our single biggest contribution to protecting life on Earth. (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of ZMCL)

Opinion: The problem of plastic pollution and what you & I can do about it

It is predicted that 896 towns and villages across Japan will no longer be viable by 2040 (see map below or an interactive Japanese version <a href="https://www.nikkei.com/edit/interactive/population2014/map.html">here</a>). A former minister for internal affairs, Hiroya Masuda, describes this as &ldquo;local extinction&rdquo;.

Visiting some of these towns and villages today is reminiscent of Alfonso Cuar&oacute;n&rsquo;s brilliantly observant movie Children of Men. The film is set in 2027, two decades after humanity has lost the ability to reproduce. Schools are dilapidated and their playgrounds forever quiet. Houses are empty and in disrepair.

While the situation in Japan is not as bleak (yet), Masuda notes that birthrates have fallen since the 1970s and currently stand at 1.4 children per family. The most recent projections indicate that the population will shrink by 27 million between 2015 and 2053. That&rsquo;s equivalent to the entire population of Australia vanishing.

<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/201448/original/file-20180110-36009-1sq50t2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=1000&amp;fit=clip" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/201448/original/file-20180110-36009-1sq50t2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=237&amp;fit=clip" /></a>

<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<figcaption>
In a simplified version of a map published by Hiroya Masuda in 2014, localities shown in red are predicted to become extinct by 2040. <a class="source" href="http://guzome.com/9679/%E6%97%A5%E6%9C%AC%E5%9C%B0%E5%9B%B3-%E7%99%BD%E5%9C%B0%E5%9B%B3-%E3%83%95%E3%83%AA%E3%83%BC-%E3%82%A8%E3%82%AF%E3%82%BB%E3%83%AB.html">guzome.com</a>, Author provided

&nbsp;

Masuda concluded that municipalities experiencing a 50% decline in their young female population (aged 20-39) are most likely to go extinct.

At the same time, Japan is ageing rapidly. The over-65s are estimated to rise from 26.6% of the population in 2015 to 38.4% in 2065. The population age imbalances are particularly acute in rural Japan, compounded by the young migrating to big cities.
</figcaption>
</figure>

What does decline look like?

Japan is viewed around the globe as a cool, vibrant and extraordinary place. It attracts <a href="https://www.tourism.jp/en/tourism-database/stats/">more than 24 million tourists each year</a>, many of whom visit Tokyo, Osaka or Kyoto and then travel via bullet train to other major cities. This urban core is the centre of population, economic and cultural activity, and it is all that most tourists see.

Only when you travel to rural Japan do the impacts of population decline become apparent. Last year, I spent time in two rural prefectures.

<figure class="align-center zoomable"><a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/201449/original/file-20180110-36040-fwxi4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=1000&amp;fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/201449/original/file-20180110-36040-fwxi4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;fit=clip" /></a>

<figcaption>
An abandoned farm just outside Tsuwano in Shimane Prefecture. Brendan Barrett, Author provided

In July I visited the small town of Tsuwano in Shimane Prefecture. According to Masuda&rsquo;s projections, Tsuwano will experience a 75% drop in the number of young women and its population will more than halve to 3,451 in 2040 (down from 7,500 today). In October, I visited Tokushima Prefecture in Shikoku, where the picture is very similar for most towns and villages.

In both locations, I came across many abandoned farms and houses. Nationally, it is estimated that unclaimed land will reach 7.2 million hectares in 2040 (almost the size of Hokkaido and bigger than Tasmania), with a value of close to &yen;6 trillion (A$7 trillion).

Japan&rsquo;s inheritance laws are partly to blame for this situation and also explain why 8.2 million homes are vacant across the country. Fixed asset taxes on empty lots are six times higher, so it makes sense not to demolish old houses or farmsteads
</figcaption>
</figure>

<figure class="align-center zoomable"><a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/201450/original/file-20180110-36022-152hd4a.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=1000&amp;fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/201450/original/file-20180110-36022-152hd4a.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;fit=clip" /></a>

<figcaption>A boarded-up house in Tokushima Prefecture. Brendan Barrett, Author provided</figcaption>
</figure>

<h2>&nbsp;</h2>

Dealing with decline

Everyone in Japan is aware of the challenges posed by a rapidly ageing, declining population with low birth rates. The media cover these concerns extensively.

&nbsp;

<figure class="align-center zoomable"><a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/201451/original/file-20180110-36043-ycmtnl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=1000&amp;fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/201451/original/file-20180110-36043-ycmtnl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;fit=clip" /></a>

<figcaption>TV presenters discuss the extinction of towns and cities. Brendan Barrett, Author provided</figcaption>
</figure>

&nbsp;

Local governments have been trying to encourage people to move back to rural areas by providing work opportunities and sharing details of vacant houses.

This internal migration is known as &ldquo;U-turn&rdquo; or &ldquo;I-turn&rdquo;. The former describes someone returning to their hometown, while the latter refers to a person who decides to quit big city life.

Relocating to a small rural community, however, can be challenging. Villages and towns are close-knit communities and the returnee is expected to comply with local norms.

The Japanese have an expression, Gō ni ireba gō ni shitagae, which is equivalent to &ldquo;When in Rome do as the Romans do&rdquo;. Failure to do so can result in the returnee being, to use an English idiom, &ldquo;sent to Coventry&rdquo;. The Japanese term is mura hachibu, and it means you will be ignored and excluded.

<figure class="align-center zoomable"><a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/201452/original/file-20180110-36037-kq0rvd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=1000&amp;fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/201452/original/file-20180110-36037-kq0rvd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;fit=clip" /></a>

<figcaption>
A morning TV show provides examples of &lsquo;U-turners&rsquo; who have been &lsquo;sent to Coventry&rsquo; by their rural neighbours for not trying harder to fit in. Brendan Barrett, Author provided

&nbsp;
</figcaption>
</figure>

More radical responses needed

There are no simple answers to these challenges. The Japanese government has been very active but past policies have tended to focus on infrastructure development and construction of public facilities (roads, dams, town halls, libraries, museums, sports facilities), rather than on the economic needs and welfare of local people.

In this context, Masuda calls for a radical new approach with three core goals.

<ol>
	<li>Comprehensive measures are needed to help maintain existing populations in rural areas (through marriage, pregnancy, childbirth and childcare).</li>
	<li>Measures should be implemented to promote population redistribution and reduce migration to big cities.</li>
	<li>Policies should be introduced to enhance human resources and local skills. This includes immigration of highly trained individuals from overseas, which is controversial.</li>
</ol>

While lots of ongoing initiatives aim to attract young people back to rural areas, the biggest concern is one of livelihoods as long-term job prospects are limited. Yuusuke Kakei covers this topic in his 2015 book Population Decline x Design, presenting proposals for new local economic activity that puts women, creativity and community at the centre. To this we should add what Joseph Coughlin describes as &ldquo;The Longevity Economy&rdquo; to respond to the economic and technology needs of an aging population.

Interest in the notion of the universal basic income has also surged recently in Japan. Some commentators argue that it could play a significant role in revitalising Japan and in making rural life more attractive to young Japanese by providing them with long-term financial security.

One major challenge for local economies is access to finance, especially to support new businesses. While there are several innovative crowdfunding initiatives, Japanese municipalities should also look at the Transition Town movement for inspiration with its focus on &ldquo;reclaiming the economy, sparking entrepreneurship, reimagining work&rdquo;.

Specifically, it is worth exploring the potential of local entrepreneur forums. These bring together local investors from within the towns or villages with local entrepreneurs to support new, small business ventures.

The result is that communities pool their resources to support young people who have business ideas but lack financial resources. This is in line with both Masuda&rsquo;s and Kakei&rsquo;s recommendations to focus on local needs, rather than physical buildings and infrastructure.

While local communities search for a way forward, it is clear that Japan is leading the world in ageing, population decline and in how to respond. Many other countries are set to follow this path. We can all learn a great deal by closely examining Japan&rsquo;s experience.

&nbsp;

&nbsp;

This article was originally published on <a href="http://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a>. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/when-a-countrys-towns-and-villages-face-extinction-88398">original article</a>.

&nbsp;

Japan is facing challenges posed by a rapidly ageing, declining population with low birth rates

It is predicted that 896 towns and villages across Japan will no longer be viable by 2040 (see map below or an interactive Japanese version here). A former minister for internal affairs, Hiroya Masuda, describes this as “local extinction”. Visiting some of these towns and villages today is reminiscent of Alfonso Cuarón’s brilliantly observant movie Children of Men. The film is set in 2027, two decades after humanity has lost the ability to reproduce. Schools are dilapidated and their playgrounds forever quiet. Houses are empty and in disrepair. While the situation in Japan is not as bleak (yet), Masuda notes that birthrates have fallen since the 1970s and currently stand at 1.4 children per family. The most recent projections indicate that the population will shrink by 27 million between 2015 and 2053. That’s equivalent to the entire population of Australia vanishing. In a simplified version of a map published by Hiroya Masuda in 2014, localities shown in red are predicted to become extinct by 2040. guzome.com, Author provided Masuda concluded that municipalities experiencing a 50% decline in their young female population (aged 20-39) are most likely to go extinct. At the same time, Japan is ageing rapidly. The over-65s are estimated to rise from 26.6% of the population in 2015 to 38.4% in 2065. The population age imbalances are particularly acute in rural Japan, compounded by the young migrating to big cities. What does decline look like? Japan is viewed around the globe as a cool, vibrant and extraordinary place. It attracts more than 24 million tourists each year, many of whom visit Tokyo, Osaka or Kyoto and then travel via bullet train to other major cities. This urban core is the centre of population, economic and cultural activity, and it is all that most tourists see. Only when you travel to rural Japan do the impacts of population decline become apparent. Last year, I spent time in two rural prefectures. An abandoned farm just outside Tsuwano in Shimane Prefecture. Brendan Barrett, Author provided In July I visited the small town of Tsuwano in Shimane Prefecture. According to Masuda’s projections, Tsuwano will experience a 75% drop in the number of young women and its population will more than halve to 3,451 in 2040 (down from 7,500 today). In October, I visited Tokushima Prefecture in Shikoku, where the picture is very similar for most towns and villages. In both locations, I came across many abandoned farms and houses. Nationally, it is estimated that unclaimed land will reach 7.2 million hectares in 2040 (almost the size of Hokkaido and bigger than Tasmania), with a value of close to ¥6 trillion (A$7 trillion). Japan’s inheritance laws are partly to blame for this situation and also explain why 8.2 million homes are vacant across the country. Fixed asset taxes on empty lots are six times higher, so it makes sense not to demolish old houses or farmsteads A boarded-up house in Tokushima Prefecture. Brendan Barrett, Author provided Dealing with decline Everyone in Japan is aware of the challenges posed by a rapidly ageing, declining population with low birth rates. The media cover these concerns extensively. TV presenters discuss the extinction of towns and cities. Brendan Barrett, Author provided Local governments have been trying to encourage people to move back to rural areas by providing work opportunities and sharing details of vacant houses. This internal migration is known as “U-turn” or “I-turn”. The former describes someone returning to their hometown, while the latter refers to a person who decides to quit big city life. Relocating to a small rural community, however, can be challenging. Villages and towns are close-knit communities and the returnee is expected to comply with local norms. The Japanese have an expression, Gō ni ireba gō ni shitagae, which is equivalent to “When in Rome do as the Romans do”. Failure to do so can result in the returnee being, to use an English idiom, “sent to Coventry”. The Japanese term is mura hachibu, and it means you will be ignored and excluded. A morning TV show provides examples of ‘U-turners’ who have been ‘sent to Coventry’ by their rural neighbours for not trying harder to fit in. Brendan Barrett, Author provided More radical responses needed There are no simple answers to these challenges. The Japanese government has been very active but past policies have tended to focus on infrastructure development and construction of public facilities (roads, dams, town halls, libraries, museums, sports facilities), rather than on the economic needs and welfare of local people. In this context, Masuda calls for a radical new approach with three core goals. Comprehensive measures are needed to help maintain existing populations in rural areas (through marriage, pregnancy, childbirth and childcare). Measures should be implemented to promote population redistribution and reduce migration to big cities. Policies should be introduced to enhance human resources and local skills. This includes immigration of highly trained individuals from overseas, which is controversial. While lots of ongoing initiatives aim to attract young people back to rural areas, the biggest concern is one of livelihoods as long-term job prospects are limited. Yuusuke Kakei covers this topic in his 2015 book Population Decline x Design, presenting proposals for new local economic activity that puts women, creativity and community at the centre. To this we should add what Joseph Coughlin describes as “The Longevity Economy” to respond to the economic and technology needs of an aging population. Interest in the notion of the universal basic income has also surged recently in Japan. Some commentators argue that it could play a significant role in revitalising Japan and in making rural life more attractive to young Japanese by providing them with long-term financial security. One major challenge for local economies is access to finance, especially to support new businesses. While there are several innovative crowdfunding initiatives, Japanese municipalities should also look at the Transition Town movement for inspiration with its focus on “reclaiming the economy, sparking entrepreneurship, reimagining work”. Specifically, it is worth exploring the potential of local entrepreneur forums. These bring together local investors from within the towns or villages with local entrepreneurs to support new, small business ventures. The result is that communities pool their resources to support young people who have business ideas but lack financial resources. This is in line with both Masuda’s and Kakei’s recommendations to focus on local needs, rather than physical buildings and infrastructure. While local communities search for a way forward, it is clear that Japan is leading the world in ageing, population decline and in how to respond. Many other countries are set to follow this path. We can all learn a great deal by closely examining Japan’s experience. This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.

Opinion: By 2040, 896 towns will disappear in Japan. Here's why.

The metropolis of Mumbai is not only the financial capital of India it is also a reflection of India&rsquo;s progress in the last 70 years of Independence. With a population of 18.41 million, the megalopolis ranks among the top 20 cities on the basis of GDP; annual gross domestic product of Mumbai exceeds $400 billion.

However, the flip side of the shimmering success is creaking infrastructure, overpopulation, unplanned growth, spreading urban sprawl and a general decay of quality of life.

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<h5>Mumbai is a prime example of a very 21st-century dilemma &ndash; how to keep the engine of development chugging along without hurting the environment in which it is functioning.</h5>
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This weakness is aggravated during the monsoons, especially on days when there is an unusually heavy downpour. We all remember the floods of 2005 that took its toll on the people as well as the economy. Estimates suggest approximately 1000 people died and the city lost $100 million in business in just two days.

Since then Mumbai residents have witnessed flooding, waterlogging and building collapsing during the monsoons. The severity is nowhere near 2005 levels, still, it&rsquo;s bad.

Mumbai is a prime example of a very 21st-century dilemma &ndash; how to keep the engine of development chugging along without hurting the environment in which it is functioning.

Surprisingly, the city&rsquo;s geographical location and its eco-system provide a unique opportunity to create a model sustainable city that can act as a template for other large port cities to follow.

The narrow strip on which the megalopolis rests has 149 km of coastline and seven interconnected islands. It also boasts of 16 kilometers of beaches and four rivers Oshiwara, Mithi, Dahisar and Poisar which together have a length of more than 41 kilometres.

Incidentally, Mumbai is one of the few fortunate cities globally that has over 70 sq. km of creeks and mangroves. However, this rich ecosystem is besieged by unplanned development, very high rates of migration in the last 3 decades, rampant dumping of waste in the rivers and encroachment of beeches and coastline by real estate developers.

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<h5>State of infrastructure will make Mumbai increasingly vulnerable to disasters induced by extreme weather conditions that will increase in ferocity and regularity due to intensifying climate change.</h5>
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This has led to choking of rivers, their tributaries and other water channels. The building of residential and commercial properties in the catchment areas of the river and wetlands has further eroded the natural capacity of the terrain to deal with large flows of water.

During monsoons when water flows increases there is no natural or man-made capacity to provide it with an outlet or accommodate it. This results in water logging and flooding.

This state of infrastructure will make Mumbai increasingly vulnerable to disasters induced by extreme weather conditions that will increase in ferocity and regularity due to intensifying climate change.

The vulnerability will be more acute&nbsp;as the city has persisted with ineffective land use planning and insufficient investment in infrastructure. The spread of informal settlements with poor quality housing and lack of disaster preparedness has gone on for long.

The good news is that there is enough resilience left in Mumbai&rsquo;s geography, ecology and people to script a turnaround. This spirit was visible recently in the case of lawyer Afroz Shah who started cleaning the Versova beach and then was joined by various citizen groups.

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<h5>Town planners in the state government and Brihan Mumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) need to look at the sustainable development paradigm as the way forward.&nbsp;</h5>
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He is not alone, residents of Bandra Band Stand forced Maharashtra Maritime Board to complete Bandra Bandstand Promenade repair work.

Yet these encouraging citizen interventions are not enough to turn a city&rsquo;s fortunes. It needs an institutional push from the top which means sustained action by the government. Town planners in the state government and Brihan Mumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) need to look at the sustainable development paradigm as the way forward.

It should be built on the 17 parameters of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as envisaged by the United Nations. Among the goals, number 3 (good health &amp; well being), 10 (reduced inequalities), 12 (responsible consumption &amp; production), 14 (protecting life below water) and 15 (protecting life on land) can act as the basis for immediate action.

October 31st is designated as World Cities Day by the United Nations. In the 21st century, the importance of this day can&rsquo;t be overemphasised. The opinion builders, policymakers and the city administrators can together take a pledge today to stop the city from expanding towards the sea through encroachment on its coasts and beeches.

It should also save its mangrove forests and revive them where they have been degraded. It should also start working to decongest the sever lines and internal drainage channels, especially the four rivers, to save itself from drowning during rains.

Rehabilitation and reconstruction of informal settlements need to be pursued on a mission mode for the long-term health and resilience of the city. Honest and sustained initiatives in these core areas would be the best way to commemorate the World Cities Day.

It is a long and difficult road but worth taking as the cost of not acting now will be far greater than the benefits of tough decisions taken today.

On World Cities Day, opinion builders, policymakers and the city administrators need to focus on rehabilitation and reconstruction of informal settlements.

The metropolis of Mumbai is not only the financial capital of India it is also a reflection of India’s progress in the last 70 years of Independence. With a population of 18.41 million, the megalopolis ranks among the top 20 cities on the basis of GDP; annual gross domestic product of Mumbai exceeds $400 billion. However, the flip side of the shimmering success is creaking infrastructure, overpopulation, unplanned growth, spreading urban sprawl and a general decay of quality of life. Mumbai is a prime example of a very 21st-century dilemma – how to keep the engine of development chugging along without hurting the environment in which it is functioning. × This weakness is aggravated during the monsoons, especially on days when there is an unusually heavy downpour. We all remember the floods of 2005 that took its toll on the people as well as the economy. Estimates suggest approximately 1000 people died and the city lost $100 million in business in just two days. Since then Mumbai residents have witnessed flooding, waterlogging and building collapsing during the monsoons. The severity is nowhere near 2005 levels, still, it’s bad. Mumbai is a prime example of a very 21st-century dilemma – how to keep the engine of development chugging along without hurting the environment in which it is functioning. Surprisingly, the city’s geographical location and its eco-system provide a unique opportunity to create a model sustainable city that can act as a template for other large port cities to follow. The narrow strip on which the megalopolis rests has 149 km of coastline and seven interconnected islands. It also boasts of 16 kilometers of beaches and four rivers Oshiwara, Mithi, Dahisar and Poisar which together have a length of more than 41 kilometres. Incidentally, Mumbai is one of the few fortunate cities globally that has over 70 sq. km of creeks and mangroves. However, this rich ecosystem is besieged by unplanned development, very high rates of migration in the last 3 decades, rampant dumping of waste in the rivers and encroachment of beeches and coastline by real estate developers. State of infrastructure will make Mumbai increasingly vulnerable to disasters induced by extreme weather conditions that will increase in ferocity and regularity due to intensifying climate change. × This has led to choking of rivers, their tributaries and other water channels. The building of residential and commercial properties in the catchment areas of the river and wetlands has further eroded the natural capacity of the terrain to deal with large flows of water. During monsoons when water flows increases there is no natural or man-made capacity to provide it with an outlet or accommodate it. This results in water logging and flooding. This state of infrastructure will make Mumbai increasingly vulnerable to disasters induced by extreme weather conditions that will increase in ferocity and regularity due to intensifying climate change. The vulnerability will be more acute as the city has persisted with ineffective land use planning and insufficient investment in infrastructure. The spread of informal settlements with poor quality housing and lack of disaster preparedness has gone on for long. The good news is that there is enough resilience left in Mumbai’s geography, ecology and people to script a turnaround. This spirit was visible recently in the case of lawyer Afroz Shah who started cleaning the Versova beach and then was joined by various citizen groups. Town planners in the state government and Brihan Mumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) need to look at the sustainable development paradigm as the way forward. × He is not alone, residents of Bandra Band Stand forced Maharashtra Maritime Board to complete Bandra Bandstand Promenade repair work. Yet these encouraging citizen interventions are not enough to turn a city’s fortunes. It needs an institutional push from the top which means sustained action by the government. Town planners in the state government and Brihan Mumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) need to look at the sustainable development paradigm as the way forward. It should be built on the 17 parameters of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as envisaged by the United Nations. Among the goals, number 3 (good health & well being), 10 (reduced inequalities), 12 (responsible consumption & production), 14 (protecting life below water) and 15 (protecting life on land) can act as the basis for immediate action. October 31st is designated as World Cities Day by the United Nations. In the 21st century, the importance of this day can’t be overemphasised. The opinion builders, policymakers and the city administrators can together take a pledge today to stop the city from expanding towards the sea through encroachment on its coasts and beeches. It should also save its mangrove forests and revive them where they have been degraded. It should also start working to decongest the sever lines and internal drainage channels, especially the four rivers, to save itself from drowning during rains. Rehabilitation and reconstruction of informal settlements need to be pursued on a mission mode for the long-term health and resilience of the city. Honest and sustained initiatives in these core areas would be the best way to commemorate the World Cities Day. It is a long and difficult road but worth taking as the cost of not acting now will be far greater than the benefits of tough decisions taken today.

Mumbai needs to stop growing towards the sea

We tend to think that nature and cities are polar opposites. Yet this is not true. As my research on Bangalore or Bengaluru &ndash; India&rsquo;s IT hub &ndash; shows, for centuries, the population of this region grew because of nature, not despite it.

In my book Nature in the City: Bengaluru in the Past, Present and Future, I take a deep dive into the ecological history of an Indian city, going way back in the past to the 6th century CE.

Inscriptions on stone and copper plates show that the starting point for a new village was often the creation of a tank, or lake, to collect rainwater &ndash; essential and life-giving in this unfavourable low-rainfall environment. These inscriptions provide fascinating insights into the close relationship that these early residents had with nature. They describe the landscape as consisting of the lakes, the surrounding irrigated and dry land, the &ldquo;wells above&rdquo;, and the &ldquo;trees below&rdquo;. This three-dimensional view of the landscape, consisting of two major resources, water (lake) and food (agriculture), nourished by nature below (in the form of wells) and above (in the form of trees) is a remarkably holistic conception of nature.

Unfortunately, in today&rsquo;s urbanised India, we have lost all trace of this three-dimensional vision.

Declining sources of water

The&nbsp;central areas of Bangalore had 1960 open wells in 1885; today, there are fewer than 50. Bangalore also lost many of its lakes, which were considered to be filthy breeding grounds for malaria, and converted to bus stands, malls, housing, and other built spaces.

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Sree Kanteerava stadium was built in 1997, where Sampangi lake used to be located before. (Others)
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The city&rsquo;s central Sampangi lake, which supplied water to many parts of Bangalore in the 19th century, was transformed into a sports stadium by the 20th century, leaving behind only a tiny pond for ceremonial religious purposes. As long as lakes and wells supplied water, essential for the activities of daily life, they were worshipped as sacred and protected as life-giving.

Rituals celebrating the overflowing of lakes during the monsoon by paying homage to the lake goddess kept the importance of lakes in the forefront of people&rsquo;s imaginations. But once the piped water began to be provided in the 1890s, these water bodies began to decay. By the end of the 19th century, wells and lakes began to be polluted with garbage, sewage, and even corpses during times of epidemics and disease.

Citizens nurturing nature

What transformed this centuries-long, strong relationship between people and nature? When Bangalore shattered its local loop of dependence by importing water from outside, people forgot the importance of their local sources of water.

Yet, as our research has shown, Bangalore still needs water just as badly for its resilience. The city has grown so large that piped water from distant rivers can no longer supply all its needs.

Thus resurgent citizen movements across Bangalore have begun to focus on protecting and restoring lakes in their neighbourhoods, which will also recharge the water below ground. In some low-income settlements, where adequate water supply is a constant challenge, community wells, once ignored, are now being assiduously protected and maintained as well.

The same pattern &ndash; of an early, close relationship with nature, followed by a break, and later a resurgent interest in the connection &ndash; is also playing out when it comes to trees. Early residents did not only focus on water but also &ldquo;greened&rdquo; this dusty, hot landscape of the dry Deccan plateau. Successive rulers from the 16th century onwards and common citizens planted millions of trees over centuries.

Each settlement was greened with a gundathope&nbsp;&ndash; a woodlot commonly planted with fruiting trees, jackfruit, mango and tamarind &ndash; which provided shade, fruits, firewood for cooking, grazing material for cattle, and occasionally timber as well.

When one tree was chopped down, another was planted to ensure continuity. New areas of the city were assiduously greened by administrators, who planted trees, and residents, who watered and cared for them, benefiting from the services they provided. This practice of greening continued during the British colonial period of governance, and later into the 20th century, after Indian independence. Because of the cool climate of Bangalore &ndash; in part due to its location on a plateau, but also because of its lakes and trees, created, planted and nurtured by local residents and rulers over centuries &ndash; the city became a chosen location for the British army, and later as a science and industrial hub in south India.

It is no accident that Bangalore, once called India&rsquo;s lake city and garden city, became the country&rsquo;s IT capital.

Soaring temperatures and rising air pollution

By the late 20th century, this relationship had begun to fray. With rapid growth, roads and other built infrastructure gained importance in the minds of planners. As a consequence, trees were disregarded and felled in their thousands for development projects in Bangalore.

Inevitably, with more private vehicles on the road, and fewer trees, the city became hotter, and the air severely polluted. Citizens soon realised this connection. So did academics. Our research, for instance, demonstrated that trees cool the air by 3 to 5&ordm;C, and reduce the temperature of the road surface by as much as 23&ordm;C, as well as significantly reducing air pollution.

Social media to the rescue

Yet citizen movements did not fade. In the early 21st century, the nonagerian Honnamma Govindayya has become an epitome of struggles to protect Bangalore&rsquo;s environment.

She fought against real estate developers who wanted to convert a local park that her children played in, taking a case all the way to the Supreme Court of India. She won and saved a tiny but very important patch of green from destruction.

Mass citizen protests in recent years have continued and gained significant victories for the city&rsquo;s green cover, including the reversal of a controversial decision to build a steel flyover, which would have destroyed thousands of trees.

Today these movements are strongly supported by social media. In the flyover case, the twitter tag #steelflyoverbeda (&ldquo;beda&rdquo; meaning &ldquo;no&rdquo; in the local language, Kannada) went viral, attracting hundreds of followers.

Social media has provided an easier way for once-isolated groups of people to connect and coordinate, and often to ratchet up public pressure on nature-blind administrators. Who knows how many would have supported Honamma Govindayya if she had a Twitter account then?

Understanding the history of nature reveals a very different picture from the preconceived idea that, at least in countries like India, where the pressures of development and growth are so large, nature and cities cannot coexist.

Today, this perspective on the ecological history of Bangalore can help city-dwellers worldwide understand why nature in the city is not just important for the metropolis&rsquo;s past, but also essential for its resilient future.

<figure>
This article was originally published on <a href="http://theconversation.com" rel="nofollow" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" target="blank">The Conversation</a>. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/when-cities-were-natures-haven-a-tale-from-bangalore-85411" rel="nofollow" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" target="blank">original article</a>.

Photo Credit: Wikimedia
</figure>

With the pressures of rapid growth and development cities in India are losing its ecological balance

We tend to think that nature and cities are polar opposites. Yet this is not true. As my research on Bangalore or Bengaluru – India’s IT hub – shows, for centuries, the population of this region grew because of nature, not despite it. In my book Nature in the City: Bengaluru in the Past, Present and Future, I take a deep dive into the ecological history of an Indian city, going way back in the past to the 6th century CE. Inscriptions on stone and copper plates show that the starting point for a new village was often the creation of a tank, or lake, to collect rainwater – essential and life-giving in this unfavourable low-rainfall environment. These inscriptions provide fascinating insights into the close relationship that these early residents had with nature. They describe the landscape as consisting of the lakes, the surrounding irrigated and dry land, the “wells above”, and the “trees below”. This three-dimensional view of the landscape, consisting of two major resources, water (lake) and food (agriculture), nourished by nature below (in the form of wells) and above (in the form of trees) is a remarkably holistic conception of nature. Unfortunately, in today’s urbanised India, we have lost all trace of this three-dimensional vision. Declining sources of water The central areas of Bangalore had 1960 open wells in 1885; today, there are fewer than 50. Bangalore also lost many of its lakes, which were considered to be filthy breeding grounds for malaria, and converted to bus stands, malls, housing, and other built spaces. Sree Kanteerava stadium was built in 1997, where Sampangi lake used to be located before. (Others) × The city’s central Sampangi lake, which supplied water to many parts of Bangalore in the 19th century, was transformed into a sports stadium by the 20th century, leaving behind only a tiny pond for ceremonial religious purposes. As long as lakes and wells supplied water, essential for the activities of daily life, they were worshipped as sacred and protected as life-giving. Rituals celebrating the overflowing of lakes during the monsoon by paying homage to the lake goddess kept the importance of lakes in the forefront of people’s imaginations. But once the piped water began to be provided in the 1890s, these water bodies began to decay. By the end of the 19th century, wells and lakes began to be polluted with garbage, sewage, and even corpses during times of epidemics and disease. Citizens nurturing nature What transformed this centuries-long, strong relationship between people and nature? When Bangalore shattered its local loop of dependence by importing water from outside, people forgot the importance of their local sources of water. Yet, as our research has shown, Bangalore still needs water just as badly for its resilience. The city has grown so large that piped water from distant rivers can no longer supply all its needs. Thus resurgent citizen movements across Bangalore have begun to focus on protecting and restoring lakes in their neighbourhoods, which will also recharge the water below ground. In some low-income settlements, where adequate water supply is a constant challenge, community wells, once ignored, are now being assiduously protected and maintained as well. The same pattern – of an early, close relationship with nature, followed by a break, and later a resurgent interest in the connection – is also playing out when it comes to trees. Early residents did not only focus on water but also “greened” this dusty, hot landscape of the dry Deccan plateau. Successive rulers from the 16th century onwards and common citizens planted millions of trees over centuries. Each settlement was greened with a gundathope – a woodlot commonly planted with fruiting trees, jackfruit, mango and tamarind – which provided shade, fruits, firewood for cooking, grazing material for cattle, and occasionally timber as well. When one tree was chopped down, another was planted to ensure continuity. New areas of the city were assiduously greened by administrators, who planted trees, and residents, who watered and cared for them, benefiting from the services they provided. This practice of greening continued during the British colonial period of governance, and later into the 20th century, after Indian independence. Because of the cool climate of Bangalore – in part due to its location on a plateau, but also because of its lakes and trees, created, planted and nurtured by local residents and rulers over centuries – the city became a chosen location for the British army, and later as a science and industrial hub in south India. It is no accident that Bangalore, once called India’s lake city and garden city, became the country’s IT capital. Soaring temperatures and rising air pollution By the late 20th century, this relationship had begun to fray. With rapid growth, roads and other built infrastructure gained importance in the minds of planners. As a consequence, trees were disregarded and felled in their thousands for development projects in Bangalore. Inevitably, with more private vehicles on the road, and fewer trees, the city became hotter, and the air severely polluted. Citizens soon realised this connection. So did academics. Our research, for instance, demonstrated that trees cool the air by 3 to 5ºC, and reduce the temperature of the road surface by as much as 23ºC, as well as significantly reducing air pollution. Social media to the rescue Yet citizen movements did not fade. In the early 21st century, the nonagerian Honnamma Govindayya has become an epitome of struggles to protect Bangalore’s environment. She fought against real estate developers who wanted to convert a local park that her children played in, taking a case all the way to the Supreme Court of India. She won and saved a tiny but very important patch of green from destruction. Mass citizen protests in recent years have continued and gained significant victories for the city’s green cover, including the reversal of a controversial decision to build a steel flyover, which would have destroyed thousands of trees. Today these movements are strongly supported by social media. In the flyover case, the twitter tag #steelflyoverbeda (“beda” meaning “no” in the local language, Kannada) went viral, attracting hundreds of followers. Social media has provided an easier way for once-isolated groups of people to connect and coordinate, and often to ratchet up public pressure on nature-blind administrators. Who knows how many would have supported Honamma Govindayya if she had a Twitter account then? Understanding the history of nature reveals a very different picture from the preconceived idea that, at least in countries like India, where the pressures of development and growth are so large, nature and cities cannot coexist. Today, this perspective on the ecological history of Bangalore can help city-dwellers worldwide understand why nature in the city is not just important for the metropolis’s past, but also essential for its resilient future. This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article. Photo Credit: Wikimedia

When cities were nature's haven: A tale from Bangalore

&ldquo;When the earth is sick and polluted, human health is impossible.... To heal ourselves we must heal our planet, and to heal our planet we must heal ourselves&rdquo; --Bobby Mcleod, Aboriginal poet and activist,&nbsp; 
 
These words provide us with a poignant reminder about what needs to be done to save our planet. Fast-paced consumerism and insatiable materialism have come to define our species and in the process set our planet on the path to destruction. Our rapacious greed has put a question mark on the future of the only known planet in the universe that can sustain life. 
 
The time could not be more ripe to launch aggressive self-correction measures. Unfortunately, our leaders are still in a game of establishing onus on the basis of traditional responsibility, rather than coming together to take strong and decisive measures aimed at reducing carbon emissions. While the political economy of climate change goals has led to some sort of a stalemate in the international arena, there are solutions which can be adopted by cities to rein in rising air pollution levels without much dependence from political leaders. These solutions can be implemented by business models that inherently support environmental goals.&nbsp; 
 
For example, one of the biggest sources of pollution is automobiles. While moving to cleaner and more efficient fuel-operated vehicles is the most ideal option for curtailing city pollution levels, in emerging economies considerable time is needed before complementary infrastructure can be created to support this move. Thus, there is a dire need to think of short-term solutions that can address the challenge of rising car ownership and pollution levels in the city. 
 
Recently, the role of transporting people from point A to point B in a city has been assumed by technology aggregators. A complex innovation displayed in the simplest form is solving the inefficiencies that have haunted the urban transportation sector for centuries. But do these players solve other challenges through their technology? In particular, aren&rsquo;t the aggregators simply adding more cars on the road and adding to traffic snarls and city pollution levels? The answer is no!&nbsp; 
 
The sophistication of technology has allowed them to build products that marry innovation with traditional concepts aimed at reducing congestion and pollution. One such product is &ldquo;carpooling&rdquo; or &ldquo;ridesharing&rdquo; as these aggregators are calling it today. Simply put, the idea is aimed at efficient utilisation of existing assets while directly impacting a city&rsquo;s space availability and carbon emissions generated by vehicles. The concept is old but the advancement in technology has navigated the challenges the idea encountered in a non-digital space such as optimising conflicting schedules, making sharing a ride comfortable, et cetera. However, amid all the talk about decongestion of cities and cheaper transport options that have been generated by these options, a quiet revolution has the potential of making significant value additions to our climate change goals. 
 
Ridesharing promotes more people in fewer cars and results in the reduction of emissions, because the number of kilometres driven across a city and fuel burned are reduced significantly. Further, as more people embrace this means of transportation, a wonderful and complementary relationship is created between public transport and these services, which disincentivises car ownership substantially. At a time when cities like Delhi have a vehicular density of 80 vehicles per kilometre and 27 lakh personal vehicles with 1,463 new vehicles added to the city every day, one is compelled to think of scenarios which can reverse this trend. 
 
A &ldquo;stick&rdquo; approach would entail levy of congestion charges and other related taxes, but a more innovative solution comes in the form of people using their existing personal vehicles to offer rides to other people travelling to the same destination or nearby. The experiment has already generated positive impact from both a decongestion and environmental perspective. 
 
For example, Uber&rsquo;s study of ridesharing in LA revealed that in eight months it managed to reduce 1,400 metric tonnes of CO2 emissions. In San Francisco, the monthly reduction totalled 120 metric tonnes. As this model is scaled, it will further benefit the environment not only because of reduced emissions but also because of the opening up of urban space which would otherwise be earmarked for public parking or extension of road lengths. The free space could be used for environmental goals, such as the creation of public parks.&nbsp; 
 
It is estimated that every carpool helps remove four cars from the road, which is as good as planting 4,000 trees. Imagine the impact we can have on Delhi&rsquo;s abysmal air pollution levels if we turned on the private ridesharing switch on each of its its 27 lakh personal vehicle. 
 
This is essentially the way forward for ensuring sustainable development &ndash; building profitable business models led by technology-driven solutions that also benefit collective environmental goals. Such ideas require public and government support. An enabling regulatory landscape would help environmentally-conscious companies to scale their business and effect momentous transformation in the way we have traditionally operated. 
 
To this end, while we continue to bicker over the Intended Nationally Determined Commitments (INDC) and Common but Differentiated Responsibilities (CBDR), there is a real opportunity for local government, citizenry and businesses to come together and bring about incremental changes to reduce emissions.

As climate change worsens cleaner transportation is essential, but waiting for politicians to act is taking forever...

“When the earth is sick and polluted, human health is impossible.... To heal ourselves we must heal our planet, and to heal our planet we must heal ourselves” --Bobby Mcleod, Aboriginal poet and activist, These words provide us with a poignant reminder about what needs to be done to save our planet. Fast-paced consumerism and insatiable materialism have come to define our species and in the process set our planet on the path to destruction. Our rapacious greed has put a question mark on the future of the only known planet in the universe that can sustain life. The time could not be more ripe to launch aggressive self-correction measures. Unfortunately, our leaders are still in a game of establishing onus on the basis of traditional responsibility, rather than coming together to take strong and decisive measures aimed at reducing carbon emissions. While the political economy of climate change goals has led to some sort of a stalemate in the international arena, there are solutions which can be adopted by cities to rein in rising air pollution levels without much dependence from political leaders. These solutions can be implemented by business models that inherently support environmental goals. For example, one of the biggest sources of pollution is automobiles. While moving to cleaner and more efficient fuel-operated vehicles is the most ideal option for curtailing city pollution levels, in emerging economies considerable time is needed before complementary infrastructure can be created to support this move. Thus, there is a dire need to think of short-term solutions that can address the challenge of rising car ownership and pollution levels in the city. Recently, the role of transporting people from point A to point B in a city has been assumed by technology aggregators. A complex innovation displayed in the simplest form is solving the inefficiencies that have haunted the urban transportation sector for centuries. But do these players solve other challenges through their technology? In particular, aren’t the aggregators simply adding more cars on the road and adding to traffic snarls and city pollution levels? The answer is no! The sophistication of technology has allowed them to build products that marry innovation with traditional concepts aimed at reducing congestion and pollution. One such product is “carpooling” or “ridesharing” as these aggregators are calling it today. Simply put, the idea is aimed at efficient utilisation of existing assets while directly impacting a city’s space availability and carbon emissions generated by vehicles. The concept is old but the advancement in technology has navigated the challenges the idea encountered in a non-digital space such as optimising conflicting schedules, making sharing a ride comfortable, et cetera. However, amid all the talk about decongestion of cities and cheaper transport options that have been generated by these options, a quiet revolution has the potential of making significant value additions to our climate change goals. Ridesharing promotes more people in fewer cars and results in the reduction of emissions, because the number of kilometres driven across a city and fuel burned are reduced significantly. Further, as more people embrace this means of transportation, a wonderful and complementary relationship is created between public transport and these services, which disincentivises car ownership substantially. At a time when cities like Delhi have a vehicular density of 80 vehicles per kilometre and 27 lakh personal vehicles with 1,463 new vehicles added to the city every day, one is compelled to think of scenarios which can reverse this trend. A “stick” approach would entail levy of congestion charges and other related taxes, but a more innovative solution comes in the form of people using their existing personal vehicles to offer rides to other people travelling to the same destination or nearby. The experiment has already generated positive impact from both a decongestion and environmental perspective. For example, Uber’s study of ridesharing in LA revealed that in eight months it managed to reduce 1,400 metric tonnes of CO2 emissions. In San Francisco, the monthly reduction totalled 120 metric tonnes. As this model is scaled, it will further benefit the environment not only because of reduced emissions but also because of the opening up of urban space which would otherwise be earmarked for public parking or extension of road lengths. The free space could be used for environmental goals, such as the creation of public parks. It is estimated that every carpool helps remove four cars from the road, which is as good as planting 4,000 trees. Imagine the impact we can have on Delhi’s abysmal air pollution levels if we turned on the private ridesharing switch on each of its its 27 lakh personal vehicle. This is essentially the way forward for ensuring sustainable development – building profitable business models led by technology-driven solutions that also benefit collective environmental goals. Such ideas require public and government support. An enabling regulatory landscape would help environmentally-conscious companies to scale their business and effect momentous transformation in the way we have traditionally operated. To this end, while we continue to bicker over the Intended Nationally Determined Commitments (INDC) and Common but Differentiated Responsibilities (CBDR), there is a real opportunity for local government, citizenry and businesses to come together and bring about incremental changes to reduce emissions.

Technology and business must combine to help commuters navigate congested cities

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