Another one of CSE’s activities has been to interact with the voluntary sector, to go and visit them and visit them and plan programs with them. The process of writing various reports brought CSE close to various NGOs. It not only popularized some efforts such as Chipko movements but also gave considerable publicity to their various small struggles. CSE now acts as a resource center for environmental information. It has set up a computer center and a documentation center to meet the increasing demands for information. An environmental clippings service has also begun. With the help of the Wasteland Board, CSE conducted give workshops for the media in the east, west , north and south, and the northeast. People from village councils.the northeast. People from village councils. the academies, and voluntary and government sectors were invited to participate in the workshops.
CSE has also interacted with the government. When the new education policy was being planned by the government, CSE was asked
how to include environmental concerns.in 1986 the environment secretary gabe a copy of the environment report to the Prime Minister.Rajiv Gandhi invited Agarwal to talk on environmental issues to the cabinet, where it was further decided that similar talks should be
given to the parliamentary consultative committees. Furthermore,each ministry was asked to discuss what could be done. Altogether,twenty-seven lectures were given, and the entire process took a longdefense ministry, and suggested that the latter give a lecture in parliament on the relation of the environment to floods and droughts.Agarwal presented this lecture in 1987, and a small book on droughtand flood was brought out. CSE has tried to build a relationship withgovernment officials. 'It does not subscribe to the general feelings of
average Indians who elect politicians but hate them, and do not like towork with them,' says Agarwal. Various ministries of the governmenthave been briefed on the degradation of the environment, deforestation, and the causes of droughts and famines with a consequence that most bureaucrats today accept the need for alternatives. It is a difficultmatter, and politicians and bureaucrats may be slow in implementingchanger; they may also merely co-opt the new phraseology.
The ministry of environment also wanted to carry on an awarenesscampaign. CSE suggested that the ministry give selected journalists anopportunity to explore environmental issues in depth and to acquiresome expertise. So a month-long fellowship for selected journalists hasbeen started. An amount of Rs. 5,000 to Rs. 10,000 is given to selected capable journalists in all languages who can produce a letter from aneditor that whatever they write will be published. In 1987 the fellowship was given on that year's theme of flood and drought, 1988 on water conservation, and in 1989 on safe drinking water. Some journalists produced several excellent reports, while some others were not able tocomplete their work. The continuity of the fellowship depends on funding availability; the CSE merely facilitates the process.
CSE's main coordinator, Agarwal, has been awarded several honors including the Padma Shri of the Government of India. The Centre hasfunded itself partly by selling the book, and partly from grants fromthe Ford Foundation, NORAD, and the department of environment.The quality of CSE's report is first class. It reflects professionalism and the heavy use of Indian resources. The CSE has been able to generateideas and concerns such as biomass, green national product, and ecosystem, and has pushed them for discussion and implementation.Agarwal explains: Earlier it was known that environment and poverty are separate things. Poor countries need not to concern about environment. We created for the first time a national and international understanding that development and environment are not separatebut connected. Moreover, the so-called 'development' may lead toworsening of environment. Through State of Environment reports people may become aware of what is happening around, and on thatbasis they can act. CSE has mostly done networking, but it brought environmental issues into the fold of old issues and played an important role in increasing environmental awareness.