The Pope has said he hopes the document, entitled LautadoSii (Praised be),’On Care for Our Common Home’, will influence the UN conference on climate change in Paris this year. Secretary General of the United Nations Ban Ki-Moon praised the moral leadership being demonstrated by Pope Francis, also hoping that this leadership will prove influential, if not decisive, in the upcoming Paris climate talks in November this year.

Moving from emission reductions to energy use as the basis for international cooperation must now shape our approach to the climate negotiations

MukulSanwal[1]

Small changes in urban human behavior and increased energy efficiency will have a positive impact on our natural resources.

Mukul Sanwal[1]

For growing economies the stress has to be on patterns of natural resource use and not on the status of natural resources; that is, dealing with the causes rather than the symptoms of the problem of climate change. The time has come for rapidly growing Asia to distinguish between the global, regional and national aspects of climate policy, recognize the linkages and shape the deliberations for the new climate regime by taking substantive measures at home.

Preparations for the Rio+20 United Nations conference on sustainable development have begun, but the first round of preparatory meetings did not address important issues such as sustainable resource use, production and consumption.

Less than a kilometer from Asia's largest Solar Termal plant, west of Bikaner, Rajasthan, lives the farmer Sabhu Khan. His hamlet is still unreached by the grid. Instead of the grid connection, he decided to go for an off-grid solar system – He bought it himself, at full market price – for Rs. 9500 and a 12 volt car-battery – locally made and with a 1 year guarantee.