India Archives - State of the Planet

women in saris hold a certificate

A Just Transition for Women: Working Toward Digital Literacy in India

As the digital divide grows, women in India are dropping out of the workforce. Columbia Climate School’s Center for Sustainable Development and the non-profit Mahashakti Seva Kendra are working together to reverse this trend.

by Radhika Iyengar and Pooja Iyengar |March 7, 2023

Covering Glaciers With Blankets to Hide the Ice — and the Real Problem

Glacier-saving campaigns are becoming more popular as ice across the globe disappears at an alarming pace. A new analysis examines the actors, motives, and implications of these campaigns in the fight against climate change.

by |January 13, 2023

Study Sees Potential Ways to Mitigate India’s Risk of Groundwater Depletion

Government-subsidized electricity has played a big role in pumping out groundwater for irrigation at an unsustainable rate. Changing the system could help, say researchers.

by |July 1, 2022
a tiger in a forested area

Study Establishes Key Areas for Tiger Movement in Central India

By mapping out overlapping areas identified as tiger corridors in previous studies, researchers hope to send a clear and cohesive message on which areas are most important for conservation.

by |May 23, 2022
women sitting at sewing tables

Are You Feeling the Heat Yet?

Disadvantaged populations are hit hardest by climate change impacts. Let us practice climate justice by thinking of the unconscious injustices that we are a part of.

by Radhika Iyengar |May 3, 2022
faye mcneill headshot

Faye McNeill Combats Air Pollution, From the Molecular to the Global Scale

The first woman to earn tenure in Columbia’s chemical engineering department, McNeill is working for cleaner air in developing countries.

by |March 8, 2022
raheja posing on a jet

Data Scientist Garima Raheja Is Addressing the Environmental Justice Issues of Air Pollution

She’s using air quality sensors to measure how air pollution impacts disadvantaged people in the U.S. and sub-Saharan Africa.

by |October 19, 2021
indian youth with umbrella in rain

Climate Change Is Making Indian Monsoon Seasons More Chaotic

A new study finds that summer monsoon rainfall in India will become stronger and more erratic, posing a threat to the region’s agriculture and economy.

by |April 14, 2021
illustration of using wind turbine to cool Earth

TED Talk Proposes A Three-Step Plan for India’s Clean Energy Transition

Senior research scholar Varun Sivaram presented his ideas at the star-studded TED Countdown Global Launch, a global initiative to accelerate solutions to the climate crisis.

by |October 12, 2020
Two adults and a child dressed in traditional clothing stand in front of a tent and a group of other people in a valley of grass and rocks.

What Superpower Conflicts Mean for Indigenous Peoples

Geopolitical tensions between China and India at their disputed Himalayan border have ecological and social consequences for local peoples.

by |June 16, 2020