The Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) is a public interest research and advocacy organisation based in New Delhi. CSE researches into, lobbies for and communicates the urgency of development that is both sustainable and equitable. The scenario today demands using knowledge to bring about change.

After land, our water bodies are now facing tremendous stress: industries, urban 'development', increasing population, imperfect legislation... scores of wetlands, lakes, rivers and waterways are threatened by such projects and pressures.

On one hand, cities across India struggle to meet the insatiable water demands of their people; on the other, real estate and industry are eyeing wetlands and water bodies, while regulators look the other way.

According to the Directory of Asian Wetlands (1989), India has 27,403 wetlands, covering an estimated area of 4.1 million hectare. A survey by the Wildlife Institute of India says they are disappearing at a rate of 2 to 3 per cent every year. Some of the recent cases of transgression include the Nirma cement factory in Bhavnagar, Gujarat and an upcoming power plant in Kakrapalli, Andhra Pradesh.

CSE offers a media fellowship to journalists to address, analyze and report on this subject. Some of the suggested topics which can be examined are:

• Encroachments on wetlands and water bodies
• Conflicts and people's struggles
• Regulations pertaining to water management and use
• Classification of wetlands
• Biodiversity
• Livelihoods and water
• Wetland banking
• Pollution

Selected applicants from the print media will be expected to generate feature and news article/s totalling 5,000 words or three stories, based on the research carried out under the fellowship. Selected applicants from the audio-visual media will be expected to generate either a single film/broadcast or a series of episodes, based on the research carried out under the fellowships.

Duration of fellowships: 1st June to 1st August, 2011

Last date to apply: 15th May, 2011

Click here for more details about this programme

Contact details:
Papia Samajdar
Assistant Coordinator
Media Resource Centre
Centre for Science and Environment
41, Tughlakabad Institutional Area
New Delhi - 110 062
Tel: (011)-29955124
email: papia@cseindia.org
website: http://cseindia.org

Click here to know more about CSE Media Fellowships Programme