https://www.scmp.com/rss/508274/feed Meenakshi J is an independent journalist based out of Shillong, India, and an alumna of East West Center, Hawaii. She covers community health, people, climate, solutions, gender, food science and travel. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, Nature Medicine, National Geographic, The British Medical Journal, Smithsonian, Hakai Magazine, BBC, The Guardian, Nikkei Asia, among many others. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com In the heart of Meghalaya, India – a northeastern state renowned for its lush landscapes and rich cultural heritage – lies a network of caves that are not only a testament to nature’s artistry but also hold the key to understanding Earth’s climatic past and present. The guardians of these natural treasures, the Khasi, Garo and Jaintia tribes, uphold a deep-seated tradition of environmental stewardship, passed down through generations of their matrilineal societies. They have used their extensive... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3257281/preserving-indias-underground-marvels-meghalayas-ancient-caves-face-environmental-threat?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3257281/preserving-indias-underground-marvels-meghalayas-ancient-caves-face-environmental-threat?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 01 Apr 2024 04:00:17 +0000 Prem Shreshta, 40, remembers the day in 2021 that a flood destroyed his hotel and livelihood. He was overseeing the reception desk at his riverside hotel in the town of Melamchi in Nepal when he received a call from a relative, alerting him of incoming floodwaters. His guests and staff managed to escape to safety. “We have never seen such floods here. I lost everything I had saved until now. My hotel is gone, and so is my shop”, he said, pointing towards the debris of his multi-storied hotel in... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3253773/nepals-devastating-2021-floods-show-need-early-warning-systems-himalayas-i-lost-everything?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3253773/nepals-devastating-2021-floods-show-need-early-warning-systems-himalayas-i-lost-everything?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 01 Mar 2024 09:30:09 +0000 Featuring elephants, elaborate headdresses, finely wrought jewellery, flowers, jars of wine (or perhaps water), buxom women playing musical instruments, helmeted foreigners and religious symbols, the ancient Buddhist art of the Ajanta Caves in western India is considered a supremely beautiful historical record dating from as early as two millennia ago. Now, an image of a detail from one of the murals has been deposited in an underground archive, in a decommissioned coal mine deep in an Arctic... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/arts-culture/article/3115633/indian-art-conservation-project-uses-nanotechnology-preserve?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/arts-culture/article/3115633/indian-art-conservation-project-uses-nanotechnology-preserve?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 30 Dec 2020 02:45:13 +0000