TORONTO, January 10, 2005 -- On Tuesday, January 11, members of York’s Faculty of Environmental Studies who have been working in areas of India affected by the Dec. 26, 2004 tsunami, are mounting a special presentation to raise awareness of the need for assistance in India’s Chennai (formerly Madras) region. The presentations will take place on the first floor of the Health, Nursing and Environmental Studies building (see map), starting at 10:30am and with additional presentations taking place at 11:30am and 2pm. 

 

Right and below: Images from the Pallavan Nagar slum which was devastated by the tsunami on Dec. 26, 2004. The photos were taken by Naina Shah who is with the non-governmental organization Exnora. Shah is working with the team from FES that has been on location in Pallavan Nagar.

 

Pallavan Nagar is one of two vulnerable communities (Anju Kudasai is the other) with whom an interdisciplinary team of researchers from Canadian and Indian non-governmental agencies, led by Martin Bunch, professor in the Faculty of Environmental Studies at York, have been working as part of a longstanding project called "An Adaptive Ecosystem Approach to Managing Urban Environments for Human Health". The project focus has been to build capacity in these two communities to deal with their poor environment and health situation. Both communities were drastically affected by the recent tsunami.

 

People who wish to make donations to assist these specific communities to rebuild in the aftermath of the tsunami can make their donations through the not-for-profit NGO "Network for Ecosystem Sustainability and Health". (Donations to these communities will be coordinated on the ground in Chennai by FES project team members).

 

For more information on Tuesday's event, or on how to make donations to assist Pallavan Nagar and Anju Kudasai communities, contact Martin Bunch by e-mail at bunchmj@yorku.ca or at 416-736-2100/x 22630.

 

 

 

 

 

 

For more information, the media should contact:
George McNeillie, York University Media Relations, 416-736-2100 x22091 / gmcneil@yorku.ca