Editorial: The special issue on environment and population dynamics in South Asia

By Guest Editor: Sangram Kishor Patel

In the last few decades (particularly after 1950), the world’s population doubled from three billion to six billion-plus population. This increased the pressure on land use and resource depletion continued. Further, it fuelled with habitat destruction, loss of biodiversity, water scarcity and water pollution, air pollution, global warming, and climate change across the globe.

Large sections of the population of South Asian region lack basic human needs such as sufficient food and nutrition, clean water, adequate shelter, and access to education and health care. However, the current changing environment and frequent occurrence of extreme weather events posing a serious challenge to socioeconomic development, food security, livelihoods and health hazards among the population in the region along with the resilience mechanisms. Improved understanding of the impacts of climate change in agriculture and adaptation practices to cope with these impacts of climate change and natural disasters are therefore necessary to enhance agriculture’s sustainability and to develop policies that reduce the vulnerability of poor farmers to climate change at South Asia. Hence, it is necessary to investigate these issues through the lenses of research, which may help in formulating better policies and programs at the local and regional level. We herein have invited researchers from the international community working in the areas of environment, climate change, and population dynamics to contribute to this special issue on “Environment and Population Dynamics in South Asia.” This special issue has broadly covered the issues related to population dynamics and its relationship with various environmental issues (but may not limit to) such as climate change and resilience, natural disasters, disaster management, waste management, WASH, urbanization and air pollution, climate change and migration, and climate change and public health.

This special issue has covered a wide range of research on natural disasters, man-made disasters, and climate change in South Asia with a special focus on India. Along with climate change, the main natural disasters explored in this special issue are floods, cyclones, hurricanes, droughts, heatwaves, earthquakes, avalanches, landslides, and lightning. These pieces of research in the special issue have explored the impacts of these disasters on livelihoods, employment, food security, nutrition, physical health, mental health, education, water, sanitation, roads, infrastructures, etc. Along with the impacts, these studies have also tried to cover the resilience mechanism adopted by the communities, as well as the government measures to these effects. This special issue indicates that climate change and natural disasters have impacted the population of South Asia, socioeconomically, physically, and psychologically. There is an urgent need to focus on reducing people’s underlying vulnerabilities by taking proactive measures, engaging the community in decision-making, and generating alternative and sustainable livelihoods. It is also apparent that the state-driven policies and strategies should be conceived and designed in accordance with the framework of SDGs to ensure a better and healthy life for all.

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