India’s air pollution crisis risks becoming humanitarian catastrophe

Before heading off on a foreign assignment, journalists take a course about working in hostile environments — learning about things like trauma first aid, weapons effects, and how to survive earthquakes, floods and civil unrest.

ABC's Siobhan Heanue wears the face mask
she had to buy in order to breathe properly.

It's all pretty useful training. And heading off to live and work in India, I was more than aware of the everyday dangers I'd be facing.

For instance, India has one of the world's highest road tolls and Delhi is one of the worst places in the world for sexual violence against women.

Read the ABC News story by Siobhan Heanue - "India’s air pollution crisis risks becoming humanitarian catastrophe.”

On grief and climate change

I am the daughter of a father born on the floor of a displaced persons’ camp after a Holocaust that almost wiped out his entire community. I am also the daughter of a mother born in freedom, peace and civility whose privilege informed a deep gratitude and joy for life. The dual gift of these legacies inform me every day. I know that tragedy and trauma are often man-made. That showing up and personal fortitude are often forged in the fire of recovery and renewal. I take these lessons into account when I am wracked with grief about climate change.

Dumbo Feather’s publisher and editor-in-chief,  Berry Liberman.

The arctic ice shelf just cracked off, meaning a trillion ton of ice has now entered our oceans. We are in strange and frightening territory of our own making. The weather is our only compass and it is wild and vengeful in places where peoples are the most vulnerable. Issue 52 of Dumbo Feather, and the content we’ll be sharing online over the next eight weeks, is an attempt to have a purposeful conversation about how we can collectively remain engaged and active in campaigning for the renewal of our eco-systems which are crashing and destabilising all around us.

Read the piece by Dumbo Feather’s publisher and editor-in-chief, Berry Liberman - “On grief and climate change.”