Ground-level evidence from Tamil Nadu on the sudden disruption of supply chains for both non-perishable and perishable commodities has pointed to the adverse effects of COVID-19 on farming and farmers’ livelihoods. In Thanjavur, known as the ‘granary of south India’, and Pudukottai and Villupuram districts of Tamil Nadu state, farmers are unable to sell their produce. Without adequate storage facilities, they are staring not just at losses, but also lack of liquidity to prepare for the next planting season.

“Necessity is the mother of invention” – Plato

This is a famous phrase, indicating that a need or problem encourages creative efforts to meet the need or solve the problem. The world is currently going through a difficult time due to COVID-19 pandemic, which has resulted in an almost-complete shutdown of all activities across the globe. This is impacting millions of people but the most affected are poor or smallholder farmers.

Agriculture is the main source of income worldwide. However, in India there is a declining trend in the proportion of workforce employed in this sector, with many people seeking alternative employment. Here, Dr Pratheepa CM and Dr Rengalakshmi R from MSSRF and TIGR2ESS Flagship Project 1 describe the ability of two caste groups in rural Tamil Nadu to secure non-farm work.

Women’s role in agriculture is of the utmost importance not only for developing the rural economy but also in ensuring food security. During COVID-19 lockdown in India, women’s unpaid workload in both domestic chores and care for family has noticeably increased. Here, Dr Pratheepa and Dr Rengalakshmi from the M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation (MSSRF) describe the situation faced by agricultural labour families in their study area for TIGR2ESS Flagship Project 1 and how women are tackling the lockdown period.

May 22 has been celebrated as ‘World Biodiversity Day’, or ‘International day of Biological Diversity’ since 2001, primarily to create awareness among people and enhance efforts towards conserving biological diversity in land and waterscapes across the world. Each year the biological diversity day observes a theme that aids in the conservation efforts. This year the theme: ‘our solutions are in nature’.

It is challenging to discuss relevant conservation issues in the middle of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic surge in India. On May 2, World Tuna Day will be observed to promote the conservation and sustainable stock management of this deep sea species.

Bees are one of the busiest species on the planet. A single honeybee will typically visit around 7,000 flowers a day. It takes four million flower visits to produce a one kilogram of honey.

The world observes Bee Day on May 20 to raise awareness about the importance of pollinators and how they contribute to our sustainable developments. Human activities, however, have been increasingly putting bees and other pollinators such as butterflies, bats and humming birds under threat.

The UN Secretary General António Guterres’s call for India to give up coal immediately and reduce emissions by 45% by 2030 is a call to de-industrialise the country and abandon the population to a permanent low-development trap.