agriculture

Farmers Shakila and Gulab Mullani have been preserving the kar jondhala seeds for more than 30 years / credit: Sanket Jain

Forced to Compete with Multinational Corporations While Lacking Gov’t Support, Indian Farmers Say UN International Year of Millets Changes Nothing

Sanket Jain June 6, 2023 Sanket Jain

Over several decades, most Indian farmers have moved either toward commercial crops—like soybean and sugarcane—or toward hybrid varieties of indigenous crops. Meanwhile, grains like traditional millets, which can withstand rapidly changing weather, are on the decline in India. With the Indian government having convinced the UN to declare 2023 the International Year of Millets, what does it mean for Indian farmers? Sanket Jain reports from the western Indian state of Maharashtra.

How Sicily Is Tackling Wildfires Amid a Global Climate Crisis

Natalia Torres Garzon December 8, 2022 Natalia Torres Garzon

Over the last 14 years, Sicily has reported more than half of Italy's wooden (and non-wooden) burned area. Throughout the world, fires have intensified over the last 20 years, with more than 1 billion acres—or 11 percent—of tree cover lost. This not only affects biodiversity and human settlements close by. The greenhouse gasses emitted exacerbate the current climate crisis. Natalia Torres Garzon reports. Photography by Antonio Cascio.