Usha Dewani

A beautiful, equitable water management system

Khonoma village, which fought the British four times, is today also known for how it protects its ecological heritage. Watch how its indigenous water management system works. Usha Dewani posted 10 years 5 months ago

Women in Khonoma tying beads to make necklaces

Sparkle in the mountains: The indigenous 'Hydroger'

Villages of Nagaland that aren't connected to the electricity grid have been given hope by a new source of power. Usha Dewani posted 10 years 8 months ago

Hydroger machine at Logwesunyu village, Nagaland

Zabo: The art of impounding water

Kikruma in Nagaland has its own system of water harvesting. Watch a farmer explain this unique method called Zabo, which helps manage water while nurturing the soil and optimizing agriculture. Usha Dewani posted 10 years 9 months ago

Ponds as reservoirs for paddy fields located below

Bihar's great walls of destruction

In this video, Dr. Dinesh Mishra explains why Bihar is so vulnerable to flooding and more importantly, why structural measures (embankments) have caused more harm than good. Usha Dewani posted 11 years ago

Once rice fields, now filled with sand (Jul 2012)

Water for friends- for free!

At a time when Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES), is much talked about, two villages in Nagaland show that helping one's neighbour doesn't always have to be for a cost. Usha Dewani posted 11 years 1 month ago

South Sikkim adapts to climate change

Climate change is causing heavy, brief rain spells in many parts of the world. Rain-shadowed South Sikkim is bearing the brunt of it in Northeast India. The video shows how the people are adapting. Usha Dewani posted 11 years 1 month ago

A picture paints a thousand words? So do comics!

Local jokes, dialogues and narratives from issues of community quarrels over water tanks to rainwater harvesting came alive in a Grassroots Comics workshop in Sikkim to mark World Water Day. Usha Dewani posted 11 years 1 month ago

Deepor beel: Entangled in a net of dangers

Banning fishing in the beel has not only affected the sustenance of the Keot fishing community in Guwahati but it is also threatening the beel's very existence. Usha Dewani posted 11 years 1 month ago

Barter by the beel

The centuries old Jon beel mela in Assam has a unique ritual- a barter between the tribes of the nearby hills and plains. Will urbanisation let the historic festival thrive? Usha Dewani posted 11 years 1 month ago

Eatables laid out for exchange at Jon beel mela

Kolkata's grossly undervalued natural sewage management system

The benefits of the East Kolkata Wetlands are known to all in the state but the greed for land and lax penalties are destroying this Wetland of International Importance. Usha Dewani posted 11 years 1 month ago

Fish rearing on wastewater, East Kolkata Wetlands

Shifting cultivation for a changing climate

The 'Jhum' farming system has been criticized as an environmentally unsustainable practice but do the strengths of the system offer a better chance in the wake of a changing climate? Usha Dewani posted 11 years 1 month ago

Identity theft in Northeast India

Development and modernisation come at a cost to Indigenous people who have historically struggled to assert their rights. For sustainable growth, their identity must be respected and embraced. Usha Dewani posted 11 years 2 months ago

Indigenous communities remain marginalised

Envisioning the future

Rural communities in Lakhimpur district of Assam engaged in an interesting exercise of visualising their possible futures in the context of climate change-to prepare themselves for an emergency. Usha Dewani posted 11 years 2 months ago

Floods in Jiadhol river (Source: Amita Bhaduri)

Adapting to a changing climate

In recent years, Meghalaya has begun to face the effects of climate change. Watch how local farmers have adapted farming techniques and type of crops to accommodate these changes. Usha Dewani posted 11 years 2 months ago

Arecanut is susceptible to climate change impact

Ingenious system to manage sewage in Kolkata

Fisher folk of the East Kolkata Wetlands use sewage from the city’s lakes to rear fish. Watch an interview of the person who popularized this system that the locals invented years ago. Usha Dewani posted 11 years 7 months ago

Fishermen use wastewater of Kolkata to rear fish

Sowing the seeds of change

Self-sufficient farming gives women in rural Alipurduar in West Bengal food, health and confidence! Usha Dewani posted 11 years 9 months ago

Garden irrigated by a single pot of water

Umananda island uncovered

The Umananda island in Assam, which is the smallest inhabited river island in the world, holds people and primates at par. Usha Dewani posted 11 years 9 months ago

Fight water-borne diseases before they happen

Diarrhoea, cholera and dysentery are often rampant after the monsoons. The state of Assam piloted a programme to teach people to prevent their occurrence rather than to treat the illness later. Usha Dewani posted 11 years 10 months ago

Mobile labs that tested water samples in Assam

Life by the Maguri Beel

This photo essay showcases the richness of the Maguri Beel, a swampy area in Assam. Usha Dewani posted 12 years ago

Reviving dying springs in Sikkim

A video shows the effort of the Dhara Vikas initiative in rejuvenating the dying springs of Sikkim. Usha Dewani posted 12 years 1 month ago