The film “2018 – Everyone is a Hero” is India’s official entry for the 96th Academy Awards and shines light on the catastrophic Kerala floods of the same year. The drama tells a tale of survival amid relentless torrential rainfall and other environmental issues such as encroachment, sand mining, and deforestation in the Western Ghats, which propelled the disaster. This devastating event in Kerala has been recorded as its worst flood since 1924. The Academy Awards, or Oscars as they are popularly known, are granted annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). The event honors all aspects of the film industry and the broad array of gifted individuals who contribute to movie-making. At the 95th Academy Awards held in 2023, India claimed two Oscars, with “Naatu Naatu” from RRR winning Best Original Song and “The Elephant Whisperers” taking home the award for Best Documentary Short.
The Gujarat Government’s Ban on Conocarpus Trees
In an environmentally conscious move, the Gujarat government has prohibited the planting of Conocarpus trees, a non-native species, both in forested and non-forested areas. Citing detrimental impacts on the environment and human health, this ban follows a similar decision made previously by the Telangana government. These trees are a fast-growing mangrove shrub found in tropical and subtropical coastal areas worldwide, planted with the intention of increasing green cover in certain regions. However, their winter flowers produce pollen that can lead to health issues such as colds, coughs, asthma, and allergies. Additionally, their extensive root system is known to damage infrastructure, particularly drainage systems.
The Inaugural UrbanShift Asia Forum
Recently, New Delhi hosted the first-ever UrbanShift Forum (Asia), dedicated to providing training and capacity-building to regional cities for integrated and sustainable urban development. Supported by the Global Environment Facility (GEF), it is a program within Urban Development and the WRI Ross Center for Sustainable Cities. United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) leads the initiative, which is implemented in collaboration with C40 Cities, International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI), UNDP, Asian Development Bank (ADB), and the World Bank.
Pangolin’s Hidden Diversity Unveiled
The Pangolin, often referred to as the world’s most poached mammal, brought a hidden secret to the surface. This exceptionally endangered creature was originally believed to feature just eight species—four Asian and four African. However, recent research unveiled a ninth pangolin species, temporarily dubbed Manis mysteria. The findings came to light following analysis of scales seized from traffickers in China’s Yunnan province during 2015 and 2019. Despite an international trading ban imposed in 2016, the newly discovered species is already under stress, exhibiting signals such as declining population, low genetic diversity, inbreeding, and genetic load.
