" Toilets, toilets everywhere|full of shit and pee"
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A lot has been written about the achievements of tsunami rehabilitationand reconstruction work. But what is the ground reality?
In an interview V Ganapathy brings to the forefront the gruesome situation in some of the so-called tsunami settlements.
The tale of dried up river beds!
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In the interview Chitra Shekhar talks about the importance of "˜rainwater harvesting"™. He also explains the economics and politics of rivers and water.
"Ecological Sanitation" Eat, Excrete, Compost !
"As per the Millennium Development Goals, by 2015, at least 50% of the Indian population should have toilets in their own households. This roughly translates into construction of 6000, 7000 toilets per second. In order to achieve this goal we have the responsibility of creating awareness among the people and preparing them to accept something new. Ecosan will work once the people are educated about the gravity of the situation."
In the interview Subburaman tells about SCOPE"™s experiment in building Ecosan toilets in the tsunami affected village Kameshwaram. Subburaman believes that Ecosan toilets will prove to be very useful particularly in the future when water will be a limited resource.
Shanthi Century, Not Out
Shanthi, an ordinary SHG member (in Kameshwaram) has 100 Ecosan toilets to her credit. Today Kameshwaram has the highest number of Ecosan toilets in the entire Nagapattinam district and thanks to Shanthi many more Ecosan toilets are going to be constructed.
Fisherfolk have the right to the coast
SNEHA is one of the local organisations working for the tsunami relief and long term rehabilitation
Government's hidden agenda and abuse of the CRZ law
The Government is trying to relocate the fisherfolk villages to areas off the seashore. At the same time it is also cordoning off these area for projects such as aquaculture and hotel industry. It is not taking any action against the violations.
“Instead, they are using fear and vulnerability of the people on the coast after the tsunami, who are now living in fear. The intention seems to be the following: if fishermen’s rights on the coast are weakened or destroyed, there will be complete freedom for the tourism industry and other industries.”
Fishermen's struggle
An interview with T Mohan, Chennai who along with several activists has been struggling for fishermen’s right under the banner of Coastal Action Network (CAN). He’s been associated with CAN for more than 10 years.
The Government did not respect the CRZ law. CRZ law was formed in 1991 but then no one respected this law. Several groups approached the Supreme Court. Following demands made by several groups in 1995 the Supreme Court ordered all the states with coastline to protect fisherfolks’ livelihood and the coast.
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How intervention of foreign companies has affected the CRZ law
and the fishing community
Very systematic interventions have been made to politically do away with the CRZ Act. Who are ones who are intervening? Major politicians and bureaucrats. These people are supposed to be the servants of the people and they are supposed to respect and take care of the interests of the people. They are the ones who are now infringing upon the right and the ownership of people in the coastal area. Hence intention of the CRZ is now being systematically endangered by those who propelled the whole process.
India can play an important role in holding the world together";
"India is an environmentally stressed country. It is going to become more environmentally stressed overtime. Most governments are not well prepared to face these issues even at scientific level. Look at my own country. The White House is completely divorced from the signs and its not understood the gravity of the situation at all. Therefore it is acting quite irresponsibly. I think India is going to need to be a leading advocate for environmental sustainability. And its going to need to become, quite soon, a leading player in energy sustainability.â€; Prof. Jeffery Sachs believes that matters are coming upon us with great urgency even before we have any clear answers.
The Essence of Asset Management
If your bus is never on time, don't blame the bus…is what K C Leong will tell you. He will also tell you that your home is the most dangerous place on earth? He will introduce you to a lot more SHOCKING details!
Leong, who was trained as an architect, took to Asset Management, which he believes is the solution to most of our mundane problems. He draws immense inspiration from the master builder and the greatest painter ever- Leonardo Da Vinci.
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Disaster Rehabilitation, giving direction to Sustainable Development
Sandeep Virmani shares his experiences on the rehabilitation and reconstruction work done after the Gujarat earthquake in 2001, Kashmir earthquake in 2005 and after Tsunami in 2004 (in Aceh). Involving people in decision- making and the entire process of rehabilitation was a milestone in all three cases. Virmani believes that disaster can be used as an opportunity to re-fabricate cities and their structures with sustainable practices. 
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Read more: Disaster Rehabilitation, giving direction to Sustainable Development
Water infrastructure in Urban India: commodify or communitize?
Green Homes: Sustainable Living
Part I- From mineral water to packaged drinking water, water has come a long way from being freely available to a commodity with a brand name. However several attempts are being made to change this trend and to communitize water. BCIL has taken one such initiative to communitize water.
Part II- Heard of an entire community dedicated to sustainability?
"Sustainable practices begin at home" and what better could it be if you had the option of building your home keeping the principles of sustainable livelihood in view! From eco-friendly ACs to specially designed "sustainable refrigerators;it's all possible! BCIL is building communities through some simple and adoptable sustainable practices.
Chandrashekar Hariharan, Director, Biodiversity Conservation India Limited & Alternate Technology Foundation, Bangalore
Community Economy Development
Thomas H Greco shares his ideas on why money needs to be reinvented. One is the politicization and privatisation of money. Secondly, manipulation of money and banking for limited private interests and thirdly the exploitative and undemocratic nature of political money. The talk highlights ideas and information on how to transcend these limitations of conventional structures of money and banking. (website: reinventingmoney.com)
Thomas H Greco Jr. is a community economist, writer, consultant and educator. He is also the founder- Director of the Community Information Resource Center (CIRC), Arizona
Interview with Dr R T Doshi
Dr R.T. Doshi experimented with an innovative package of workable farming practices that enables city dwellers to grow their own food on every available square inch of urban space, including terraces and balconies. Dr Doshi narrates his interesting journey into growing vegetables and fruits in the Doshi way.
Interview with Mr. Bablu Ganguly
Interview with R L Kumar, a philosopher, an architect with passion for the earth
Kumar reflects on his attempt to build houses differently. On a journey with Kumar where he explains how it all started-
* The birth of Center for Vernacular Architecture
* Housing Rights and Policies
* Mainstream Architecture and Vernacular Architecture
* On why he objects his style of architecture being called unconventional
* On projects undertaken by CIEDS
* Anecdote
Livelihood restoration after tsunami and the market economy
"Livelihood restoration of the fishing community after tsunami "
(Interviewed by Priya C Nair and Shruti Kulkarni in Thiruvananthapuram, 27 April 2006 )
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