Sharmila Vaidyanathan

1 month ago | india.mongabay.com | Sharmila Vaidyanathan

A new study looked at the changes in tree cover, project longevity, and the changes in income and assets for participating households in select tree-planting projects, that received carbon credits till 2022. While the tree cover increased by 48% in five projects, the longevity and durability depended on long-term engagements with the farming communities and economic benefits to the participants.

1 month ago | thehindu.com | Sharmila Vaidyanathan

Climate-driven food shortage and undernourishment could affect the composition of the human gut microbiota, exacerbating the effects of climate change on human health, according to a new review article published in The Lancet Planetary Health. The article comes on the heels of a growing number of studies that highlight the key role food and nutrition play in maintaining a healthy microbial population in the human gut, leading to better metabolic and intestinal health.

2 months ago | livemint.com | Sharmila Vaidyanathan

To think none of this would have happened if a brutal allergy attack hadn’t changed the trajectory of Bose's PhD research. In the summer of 2010, Bose was a PhD candidate at the Department of Geography, University of Cambridge, looking to explore community-based conservation efforts in Spiti Valley, Himachal Pradesh. But one morning, she woke up with a swollen throat in the throes of an allergy attack that required immediate medical attention.

2 months ago | thisismold.com | Sharmila Vaidyanathan

I met multidisciplinary artist Indu Antony when we were both presenting at an ethnography symposium. My paper was about what it meant for an individual to explore the city of Bengaluru on foot. Antony, on the other hand, talked about what it meant to do the same, guided by your nose. Intrigued by her project, I approached Antony after the seminar. She was standing near a table where she laid out a range of vials and scented papers ensconced in large glass bell jars to protect their odours.

2 months ago | scroll.in | Sharmila Vaidyanathan

In 2024, when food researcher and writer Shivani Unakar visited Maan taluka in Satara, Maharashtra, she learned from local millet farmers that insufficient rainfall had delayed the germination of the jowar(sorghum) crop. “The farmers were very concerned. But towards the end of my trip, a heavy bout of rainfall lasted for two to three days. Although it saved the crop, the farmers later informed me that they could only get 60% of their regular harvest,” said Unakar.