PUNE: The Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER) Pune on Monday launched HEAL (Health, Environment, Action & Learning), a bilingual, solutions-oriented webzine that seeks to connect climate science with grassroots storytelling and public health.

Pune, India - November 1, 2017: IISER,Pashan,Pune, in Pune, India, on Wednesday, November 1, 2017. (HT PHOTO)

The webzine was launched by climate scientist and former Ministry of Earth Sciences secretary M Rajeevan at IISER Pune.

Available in Hindi and English, HEAL aims to make scientific information on climate and environmental change accessible to a wider audience while documenting their impact on human health, animal welfare and ecosystems. The platform will focus on community experiences and local solutions, particularly through collaborations with grassroots communicators across the country.

“HEAL is an important initiative to bring this One Health perspective into public discourse through credible, accessible and solutions-oriented journalism,” Rajeevan said.

IISER Pune director Sunil S Bhagwat said initiatives emerging from the research community could provide a platform for writers and readers from cities, towns and villages. The platform is being developed under the CARE (Climate, Action, Research and Education) Project led by Shalini Sharma, social scientist and associate professor at IISER Pune.

“The CARE Project was established to pioneer a solutions-focused approach that unites scientific rigour with lived experience. HEAL is the live realisation of that mission,” Sharma said.

The premier issue of the webzine is available free of charge at www.healwebzine.in.