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Is nature ‘reclaiming’ the earth in this time of COVID-19? Well... Yes and no. A thread - based on my piece in @the_hindu today https://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/energy-and-environment/is-nature-reclaiming-the-earth-in-this-time-of-covid-19-well-yes-and-no/article31307128.ece?homepage=true 1/n
Across India & the world, people report close encounters with wildlife. Chirping crickets, serenading frogs, screeching owls, bold crows...in part because streets are quiet now, without traffic. We can hear the sounds of biodiversity that were inaudible to us before 2/n
The air is so clean you can see the snow-capped Himalayas from Jalandhar, hundreds of km away, not seen in decades. Delhi’s air quality is the best it's had in five years. The morning air in Bangalore is crisp, clear. Should we not have a right to live like this every day? 3/n
There are hoaxes. Deer did not occupy Coimbatore; the Malabar civet is not in Kozhikode, Venice's canals do not have dolphins: but just as exciting, they now have ducks, cormorants, crabs and fish. Venetians see need to reduce boat traffic to preserve returning biodiversity 4/n
Coyotes & foxes spotted across US cities; raccoons seen in Panama; wild boars in Barcelona’s city centre; puma in Santiago; deer exploring subway stations in Japan (heaven knows what they make of it). Cashmere goats in Llandudno. Sheep in a playground in Monmouthshire. 5/n
In India - nilgai near malls in Noida, sambar in Chandigarh, rhinoceros in Sonapur, peacocks on streets of Coimbatore * Bangalore, Olive Ridley turtles nesting undisturbed on Odisha beaches. When the crisis ends - we should not forget that our cities can be like this 6/n
Macau, U Washington, Bird Count India have launched lockdown nature challenges, asking participants to look at the birds and nature they can spot locally. This helps science - it also brings families closer. Most important, watching nature is magical. The best stress buster 7/n
BUT - here's the downside. People are cutting down trees in Mysuru because they host bats. (This is NOT a solution). Greenhouse gas emissions are down, but will bounce back after the crisis lifts. We are in an accelerating spiral of growth and the crisis is only a brief halt. 8/n
When the crisis winds out, & we return to chaos & frenzy of urban life, will we remember that we have a right to see blue skies & faraway mountains, breathe clean air, listen to bird song? Or will we push thoughts away, dive back into computer screens, headphones plugged in? 9/n
Can we — those of us fortunate enough to live under a roof, with food in our bellies and cash in our bank accounts — understand that daily life needs to slow down, that we need to spend more time looking at flowers that blossom and the butterflies that drink their nectar? 10/n
Unless this period of social distancing leads to fundamental requestioning of ways of living & working, consumption & leisure, unless we can engineer a fundamental cultural shift, tales of the world healing itself will remain dreamy tales. 11/n END https://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/energy-and-environment/is-nature-reclaiming-the-earth-in-this-time-of-covid-19-well-yes-and-no/article31307128.ece
