1985

The Citizens' Second Report on the State of India's Environment pointed out that when the rural environment gets destroyed it is poor women who suffer the most because of their culturally-determined role as providers of water, firewood and fodder to meet the daily survival needs of their households. It also pointed out that, for this reason, women often have a greater interest in environmental regeneration and management than men. This was the first report on the impact of environmental destruction on women published in the developing world.

1986

Environmental conservation is a concern for politicians: Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi invited CSE's director Anil Agarwal to address the Union Council of Ministers of the importance of environmental conservation in India's development. Subsequently, the Prime Minister requested Anil Agarwal to address all the 27 parliamentary committees attached to the various ministries of the Central government so that the message could also go out to all Members of Parliament and each ministry could discuss its own role in environmental protection. These presentations were based on CSE's State of India's Environment reports.

Rajiv Gandhi

1987

Environmental destruction has a serious impact on floods and droughts: Between 1985 and 1987, India not only saw major droughts but also numerous flood events. Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi requested CSE's director to make a presentation (later published as Wrath of Nature), to all Members of Parliament on how environmental destruction affects floods and droughts. The Prime Minister wanted to see greater use of flood and drought relief funds for environmental conservation so that future floods and droughts would be easier to meet.

1988

CSE led a seminar-cum study tour on the Thar Desert ecosystem of Rajasthan state. Later that year, CSE organised another workshop on Himalayan Wastelands was held in four Northeast cities in India.

1989

In an attempt to influence Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi who was attempting to amend the Constitution to promote democratic village governance, CSE produced Towards Green Villages: A Strategy for Environmentally-Sound and Participatory Rural Development. The publication tried to learn from the relationship of the poor to their environment and from pioneering community-based rural natural resource regeneration efforts in India carried out in the 1970s and 1980s and present lessons for macro-policy formulation.

Gandhi's 'Village Republics'
is best suited for
community management
of natural resources

The study, since translated into several languages, argues that the Gandhian concept of 'Village Republics' provides the best legal and institutional framework to create community interest in natural resource management. Later that year, CSE jointly organised the India-Pakistan Conference on Environment with IUCN-Pakistan in Lahore.