Earth day reading material

EARTH DAY 2012: Resources from Carnegie Council
To mark Earth Day 2012, we present a selection of our resources from the past year.
They cover a wide spectrum, including exploring what it means to be sustainable; some practical solutions; the role of legislation; and finally, what we can learn from novelists' visions of a climate-changed world.

PATH TO DISASTER: CHASING NON-RENEWABLE RESOURCES The Race for What's Left: The Global Scramble for the World's Last Resources http://www.carnegiecouncil.org/resources/multimedia/20120320/index.html Michael T. Klare, Five Colleges, Inc. As we run out of resources, the human race is at a pivotal point. We have two options: We can continue along the same path, leading to much of the planet becoming uninhabitable. Or we can create an alternative future where we use resources in a much more sustainable and frugal way. (Public Affairs, March 2012, video, audio, transcript)
Don't Build Keystone XL, the Pipeline to Nowhere http://www.policyinnovations.org/ideas/commentary/data/000220 Evan O'Neil, Carnegie Council Higher gas prices, negligible energy security, more global warming: The logic stacks up against the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline. (Policy Innovations article, August 2011) ----
SUSTAINABILITY ROUNDTABLES What are the Limitations and Benefits of the Sustainability Approach? http://www.carnegiecouncil.org/resources/articles_papers_reports/0103.html J. Baird Callicott, University of North Texas; Ronald Sandler, Northeastern University; Dale Jamieson, New York University; Christopher Schlottmann, New York University; David Schlosberg, University of Sydney Is sustainability the only, or even the most desirable, framework for environmental issues? What are the limitations and benefits of the sustainability approach, and what kind of alternative conceptual approaches may be preferable? What do you think? (September Sustainability Month Roundtable, September 2011)
The Population and Sustainability Debate http://www.policyinnovations.org/ideas/briefings/data/000215 Robert Engelman, Worldwatch Institute; John Bongaarts, Population Council; Steven Sinding, Abt Associates; Laurie Mazur, Population Justice Project; Barbara Crossette, The Nation; Betsy Hartmann, Hampshire College; Lisa Hymas, Grist; Mara Hvistendahl, Science According to UN projections, our world will be home to more than 9 billion people by 2050, increasing competition for livable space and critical resources such as water. What ethical standards should guide the debate about reproduction and sustainability? What do you think? (September Sustainability Month Roundtable, September 2011)
What Individuals Can Do http://www.carnegiecouncil.org/resources/articles_papers_reports/0110.html Bill McKibben, 350.org; David Biello, Scientific American; Josh Lasky, University of the District of Columbia; Mat McDermott, TreeHugger.com; Christopher Mims, Technology Review, Grist; Paul Steely White, Transportation Alternatives; Eric Zencey, Author What is the most important thing a person can do to have a sustainable impact? From consumer purchases to political action, how should we prioritize solutions? (September Sustainability Month Roundtable, September 2011)
---- WHAT DOES SUSTAINABILITY MEAN TO YOU? Prize-winning Essays from Carnegie Council's Annual Contest, "Making a Difference"
Sustainability Starts with Me http://www.carnegiecouncil.org/resources/articles_papers_reports/0112.html Akrish Adhikari, Rato Bangala School, Nepal "It is through our actions and our efforts, where large or small, that we can bring about a change in the attitudes of those around us in ensuring sustainability." (Ist Prize High School Category)
The Intrinsic Value of the Environment http://www.carnegiecouncil.org/resources/articles_papers_reports/0113.html Anil Sebastian Pulickel, National Law School of India University, Bangalore "Our conventional understanding of sustainability usually puts human needs first. What is needed is a balancing test that will consider a wider range of factors, and that encompasses the intrinsic value of the environment, regardless of any practical benefits to human beings." (1st Prize Undergraduate Category) We Are all Connected http://www.carnegiecouncil.org/resources/articles_papers_reports/0114.html Chenaz B. Seelarbokus, Kennesaw State University "My students are always shocked to realize that the global environment is one interconnected system. We have only one ocean mass, one land, and one atmosphere. For sustainability to prevail, this interconnectedness needs to be understood and experienced at all levels of society." (1st Prize Postgraduate and Teacher Category)

---- IT'S THE ECONOMY But Will the Planet Notice?: How Smart Economics Can Save the World http://www.carnegiecouncil.org/resources/multimedia/20111025/index.html Gernot Wagner, Environmental Defense Fund You recycle? You turn down plastic and paper? Good. But none of that will save the tuna or stop global warming. If you want to make the planet notice, follow the economics, says Gernot Wagner. (Public Affairs Program, October 2011, video, audio, transcript) ---- HOW BUSINESSES CAN GO GREEN The Green Workplace and Human Behavior http://www.carnegiecouncil.org/resources/multimedia/20110706/index.html Leigh Stringer, Hellmuth, Obata + Kassabaum (HOK) Architect and sustainability expert Leigh Stringer is convinced that LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) green buildings are only a piece of the puzzle when designing a sustainable office. She argues that a crucial component is human behavior. (Just Business, May 2011, audio, transcript)
Mindy S. Lubber: Working with Companies to Address Sustainability Challenges http://www.carnegiecouncil.org/resources/multimedia/20110615/index.html Mindy S. Lubber, Ceres Even though U.S. public policies are often lagging behind, pressures from shareholders and investors, greater transparency, and heightened risk awareness are all contributing to a new focus on sustainability for many companies, says Mindy Lubber. (Just Business, May 2011, audio, transcript)
Going Green: Initiatives in the Workplace http://www.carnegiecouncil.org/resources/multimedia/20110520/index.html Michael Ellis, GreenOrder Michael Ellis, from the sustainability consulting firm GreenOrder, discusses how companies can work with employees to make sure they're onboard with green initiatives--and why that's such an important part of green workplaces. (Just Business, April 2011, audio, transcript)

---- THE ROLE OF LEGISLATION Leif Wenar on Natural Resources and Clean Trade Policies http://www.carnegiecouncil.org/resources/multimedia/20110415/index.html Leif Wenar, King's College London Consumers in countries that import natural resources are often unwittingly in business with dictators, corrupt officials, and armed groups, says Leif Wenar. Yet we could change our laws to make powerful groups in exporting countries more accountable to their own people. (Ethics & International Affairs Audio Interviews, April 2011, audio, transcript)
Legislating Transparency in the Extractive Sector: Will the Securities and Exchange Commission Take the Lead? http://www.policyinnovations.org/ideas/innovations/data/000196 Kathryn M. Martorana, Oxfam, Carnegie New Leader The SEC has an opportunity to demonstrate that the United States takes transparency and accountability seriously and intends to act as a global leader in fostering secure, equitable, long-term resource partnerships with developing nations. (Policy Innovations article, July 2011)
Global Ethics Corner: Was Durban Doomed? http://www.carnegiecouncil.org/resources/gec/data/00161 Marlene Spoerri, Carnegie Council With the 17th annual global climate change talks foundering in Durban, little hope is left for a worldwide initiative designed to combat global warming. Are global initiatives a thing of the past? Or are they our only hope for future sustainability? (Global Ethics Corner, December 2011)
---- 150 YEARS OF GREEN TECHNOLOGIES IN THE U.S. Powering the Dream: The History and Promise of Green Technologies http://www.carnegiecouncil.org/resources/multimedia/20110429/index.html Alexis Madrigal, The Atlantic Author Alexis Madrigal examines the history of green technologies in America and shows how they have been entangled with culture, ethics, and government policies. (Just Business, April 2011, audio, transcript)
---- MEGACITIES AND CHINA'S ENVIRONMENTAL CRISIS A Look at Global Sustainability, with a Focus on China http://www.carnegiecouncil.org/resources/multimedia/20120117/index.html Ma Jun, Institute of Public & Environmental Affairs; and Evan O'Neil, Madeleine Lynn, Julia Taylor Kennedy, Carnegie Council Carnegie Council's Evan O'Neil ponders the future of mega-cities, and leading Chinese environmentalist Ma Jun discusses China's air and water crisis and the work of his watchdog group, the Institute of Public and Environmental Affairs, which names and shames the worst polluters. (Just Business, November 2011, audio, transcript)
---- INNOVATIONS AT GROUND LEVEL Fruits of Our Labor http://www.policyinnovations.org/ideas/innovations/data/000209 Raji Ajwani-Ramchandani, Symbiosis Centre for Management and Human Resource Development Through patient cultivation of organic permaculture mango orchards, Adivasi families in India have been able to build sustainable income and connect to the larger processed food markets. (Policy Innovations article, March 2012)
Happy Park(ing) Day 2011 http://www.policyinnovations.org/ideas/innovations/data/000201 Dani Simons, Institute for Transportation and Development Policy Urban advocates, planners, officials, and artists join forces each September to install miniature parks and pop-up cafes in parking spaces normally reserved for cars. (Policy Innovations article, September 2011)
---- HOW DO NOVELISTS TACKLE CLIMATE CHANGE? The Climate Change Novel: A Faulty Simulator of Environmental Politics http://www.policyinnovations.org/ideas/briefings/data/000230 Adam Trexler, University of Exeter Ultimatums. Floods. Ecotage. More than 200 novels have been written that imagine life in a climate-changed world, and they point to some of the fundamental difficulties we have in articulating a just and sustainable future. (Policy Innovations article, November 2011)
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Children's stories from north-east India to be translated to delight

Children's stories from north-east India to be translated to delight
Tue Apr 24, 2012 2:33 am (PDT)
6 times 6 translates into 180, all children's stories.....Samudra Gupta Kashyap ,br/> Six books in every one of six languages are being translated into every other of those languages, a massive project that will create 180 new editions of stories that have delighted children of the Northeast for generations, though so far only in the original languages. A group of writers and translators from four Northeastern states are working on the project, supported by the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts, and possibly the first ever initiative of this kind. The books are in Assamese and five tribal languages - Bodo (spoken in Assam), Khasi (Meghlaya), Garo (mainly Meghalaya), Manipuri and Mizo. "This has not only brought to focus the rich treasure-house of folktales for children across the region, but also brought people from the six communities closer through their stories," said project coordinator Paresh Malakar, president of Anwesha, a Guwahati-based publishing NGO. ,br/> For the INGCA, too, it is a project to showcase. "It is a massive initiative to promote inter-cultural and literary exchanges among the six languages. An effort of such a magnitude has never taken place in the country," said Prof A C Bhagabati, a former vice-chancellor of Arunachal University who is currently regional head of the IGNCA. The stories in each language were first translated into English, following which they were translated into the other five languages by a team comprising scholars in each language. "It was an experience I will never forget. And, believe me, though we live so close to the Assamese people, we hardly had the opportunity to read the beautiful Assamese folktales until I got involved in this project," said Daphinda War, a Khasi writer who teaches English at St Edmund's College in Shillong. Meghalaya and Mizoram, incidentally, were districts of Assam till 1972, with Shillong also having been Assam's capital for 98 years. One of Assam's books is Burhi Aair Sadhu, legendary in the state. The first collection of Assamese folktales by Lakshminath Bezbaroa completed 100 years last November. "It is just a coincidence that the centenary of Burhi Aair Sadhu came by. But then this project can be also called an accidental tribute to the pioneering collection," said Bhagabati. It was also an occasion for writers from these communities to meet and work together. "I did not know that there were so many wonderful folktales in the Bodo language spoken by our Bodo brethren within Assam itself until I became part of this project," said octogenerian author Tultul Barua. "There are very few collections of stories in Manipuri especially intended for children," said Tyanjam Bijoykumar Singh of Imphal. Singh is looking forward to what children will get access to once the books are translated. "It will open up a new world for them... most of us do not understand each other's languages in the Northeast," said Singh. A specialist member in the initiative is Arup Kumar Dutta, one of India's most prolific children's writers, and who was once described as "India's own Enid Blyton" by Khuswant Singh after his series of adventure stories beginning with Kaziranga Trail had earned global acclaim in the early 1980s. "The whole process, right from selecting stories from the six languages to translating them, was like a rediscovery of the colourful multi-ethnic heritage of the Northeastern region. And once these books are brought out in English (which is not included in the current project), the rest of the world will also get an interesting insight into the world of children literature in the region," he said. ,br/> URL: http://www.indianexpress.com/news/6-times-6-translates-into-180-all-childrens-stories/940525/0

Two Mothers and other stories by Khalid Mohammed- Book Release function on 5th April 2012 at TRYST ,Phoenix mills Compound

A TRYST to remember

After it's successful launch and fast-moving sales in Delhi, Khalid Mohammed's collection of short stories titled ' Two mothers and other stories' came to Mumbai with all the pomp and fanfare of a Premiere opening. The Book was launched by cine actress and fashionista Sonam Kapoor who also read a passage on 'Chandni Chowk' from the book as part of the ceremonies. Khalid's assorted friends and well-wishers from journalism, cinema and television were all there to support him on this joyous occasion.

Khalid got emotional when he spoke about the ups and downs in his career and was unstinting in his praise of friends from the Industry, like Anil Kapoor, Rishi Kapoor and Karan Johar who stood by him. He was also grateful to all his other friends who stayed supportive and gave him the courage to attempt newer creative fields like theatre and books. In his speech at the launch Khalid made a special mention of Basu Chatterjee who had given him his very first writing break way back when he was just 15 years old, for a magazine called 'Close-Up' a very popular cine magazine of those times. He also thanked Mira Nair for being the first one to commission him to write a book.

It was a night to remember with the shutterbugs going into a frenzy clicking Sonam Kapoor's pictures and the other assorted TV and media stars present , including Anant Mahadevan, Achint Kaur, Mita Vashisht, Manish Goel and wife and many others.

The writer self-image

BY SHANNON MCKELDEN We all have a self-image. This isn’t necessarily an accurate portrayal of what is true, but how we perceive ourselves, which is made up of all kinds of things from our past to our parents, our experiences and our interpretations. One of the most detrimental things to us being Happy Writers can be a negative writing self-image. Whatever your self-image is, your behavior will remain true to it almost all the time. Which means, if you think of yourself as a bad writer, that self-image dictates how you behave and your behavior reinforces your self-image. We also tend to remain in the “comfort zone” of our self-image, even if it’s negative. A writer with a poor writing self-image, who then achieves a fast rise to the top of the bestseller lists, can come crashing down even more quickly, as they are uncomfortable with the contrast of the stardom to the self-image they have. Their behavior pulls them back to “where they belong.” Their self-image comfort zone. Self-image = Who we are AFRAID we are. Think about that. Your self-image may be that you are a terrible writer. If you care about how well you write, then you put a lot of emotion behind the FEAR that that self-image may be true. (If you weren’t an aspiring writer, you wouldn’t be afraid of being a terrible writer, because it wouldn’t mean much to you.) But we do care. So, the idea that we really might be a terrible writer — our self-image — terrifies us. We don’t take into consideration that we have written some wonderful things. The good sentences tend to not affect our self-image as much as the bad sentences, right? Published authors may get dozens of great reviews, but that one bad review will have them desperately considering applying to flip burgers at Mickey D’s. Because it points to our terror that we are actually living up to our self-image. How you think of yourself is transmitted to others, too, who will reinforce your self-image. You give off visual, verbal and emotional clues to — not WHO you are — but to your self-image. Who you BELIEVE you are. How others subsequently treat you then “confirms” for you that this must be the way you are. “You are constantly letting other people know how to treat you by the way you treat yourself.”- – Paul McKenna, Ph.D., I attended a writing workshop a few years ago, and the instructor had us doing some exercises and then sharing them with the class. There was one writer there who spent much of the day making self-deprecating remarks about her writing abilities. “Oh, you won’t want to read this. Sounds like a 5-year-old wrote it.” “Better not call on me for this exercise…unless you want to show what NOT to do.” This went on much of the day, and she got quite a few laughs along the way, though I know it made some of us uncomfortable because we didn’t know what to say. Two weeks after the class, she finaled in the top three of a pretty prestigious writing contest. So why, if she was a good enough writer to final in a contest known for being a quality contest, was she constantly putting her writing down? My guess is that it was because of her self-image that she was a bad writer. She was terrified that it might be true, and she covered it up with humor. She might suck at writing, but she could get a good laugh. Unfortunately, her portrayal of herself as a bad writer, if done in the wrong company — like to an editor or agent — would likely lead to a rejection. After all, if a writer doesn’t have confidence in their own writing, why should anyone else? And each rejection earned on the basis of that lack of self-confidence just reinforces that self-image of being a lousy writer. So how do you change your writer self-image? Here’s a few steps you can take to help boost your self-image:

1) Notice where your self-image is negative. If you find yourself thinking (or saying out loud) that you suck at writing or that you’ll never be published…start by just taking notice of this. No judgment. Just notice.
2) Ask yourself where you may have developed this belief. Has someone told you in the past that you suck, at writing or anything else? Or have you placed a self-imposed time frame on yourself to become published that you haven’t met?
3) Notice how your own actions, words, etc., may encourage others to reinforce your negative self-image. Do you put yourself down to others? Even asking for critiques on something that’s not your best work can end up back-firing when iews,the critique points out where you need work.
4) Challenge your negative feelings. If, for example, you’ve pinpointed some of the cause of your negative self-image to the lack of support of family members, who point out that you’ll “never make it,” realize that they are not the utmost authority. We can do anything we put our minds to, as long as we don’t give up. Dispute — even just to yourself — any negative opinions others have about you. List the reasons THEY might be wrong about you.
5) Stop yourself. Call a halt to the behaviours you have that encourage others to agree with your poor self-image. Don’t belittle your writing efforts out loud EVER. If you can’t say anything nice about yourself, don’t say anything at all.
6) Notice the good stuff. You can turn your negative self-image into a positive one by noticing the good you do, the improvements you make, or even the areas outside of writing in which you excel. If you have learned to be a great parent, you can just as easily learn to be a great writer. (Pretty sure any parent would agree that raising kids is MUCH more difficult than writing a book!)
7) Practice being the writer you want to be. Defy your negative beliefs by being the opposite. If your self-image tells you you’re a lousy writer, then practice being a great writer. Sit down with the intention of being an awesome writer just for today. That doesn’t mean writing to perfection first try, because that’s not what being a great writer is about (it’s all in the editing…ask any writer!). It means that, just for this moment, you put your negative self-image in time-out and you play only with the positive writer inside you. It’s much more fun, believe me!
Hopefully, some of those tips will get you start improving your writing self-image.