ICLEI South Asia - February 2019

ICLEI South Asia E-News

February 2019

Emani Kumar
Deputy Secretary General, ICLEI and Executive Director, ICLEI South Asia

Warm greetings to all our readers!

We are pleased to announce that the 4^th Asia-Pacific Forum on Urban Resilience and Adaptation also known as Resilient Cities Asia-Pacific (or RCAP) 2019 will be held in New Delhi this time. The Forum will be hosted by South Delhi Municipal Corporation and organised by ICLEI South Asia as well as various ICLEI offices in April. The final dates will be shared with you soon.

This edition will also apprise you of the successful workshop on best practices under the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) supported CapaCITIES project. The two-day event witnessed discussions around building climate resilience in the sectors of solid waste management, water and wastewater management, and transport.

We have also introduced the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU) supported EcoLogistics project to the Government of Kerala as part of a deep-dive workshop on transforming transportation in Kerala. The goals of the project and expected outcomes were showcased to the officials. More details are provided in the newsletter. Have a read to know more.

Happy reading!

Swiss and Indian Experts Share Ideas on Best Practices

Under the SDC supported CapaCITIES project, a Best Practice Workshop was organised by National Institute of Urban Affairs, with support from ICLEI South Asia, econcept and South Pole Group, in New Delhi. The workshop showcased best practices on integrating climate resilience in urban planning and development. It presented the climate resilient city action plans methodology which has been used to develop action plans for the four project cities and discussed financing mechanisms for projects. City officials, stakeholders and sector experts exchanged ideas based on the experiences shared by Swiss and Indian cities. On the second day, the participants visited the General Pool Residential Accommodation (GPRA) complex in Moti Bagh to see functional initiatives on solid waste management, waste water management, solar energy powered street lighting, solar energy powered water heating, rain water harvesting and green cover maintenance in the complex.

Transport Experts Plan to Decongest Siliguri Roads

As part of the SDC supported CapaCITIES project, a study to decongest major arterial roads in Siliguri has been initiated. The team from The Urban Lab carried out the first city visit in this regard. The study will be conducted over the next four months and will lead to development of a circulation plan for major arterial roads, which segregates local and long-distance trips and reduces the friction between different road users. A decongestion strategy and a detailed improvement design for all intersections along core market area on arterial and major traffic movement corridors will also be developed.

EcoLogistics Aims to Transform Urban Freight

A discussion on sustainable urban freight management was held with the Department of Transport, Government of Kerala as part of a deep-dive workshop which was held at the Transport Commissionerate, Thiruvananthapuram. At the workshop, the BMU supported EcoLogistics project was also introduced to government officials. The project, initiated in Kochi, Panaji and Shimla, will develop GHG emission inventories with regard to the freight sector. These assessments will be used to develop respective Low Carbon Action Plans for Urban Freight (LCAP-UF). To showcase the potential of low carbon urban freight strategies identified in the LCAP-UF, a set of demonstration projects will be implemented. Based on the outcome, national policy recommendations will be suggested to strengthen appropriate framework conditions for local actions to improve urban freight.

Value Chain Analysis for Bioresources in Goa

As part of the Goa State Biodiversity Board supported Value Chain Analysis project, discussions have been carried out with farmers, middlemen and processors to understand the entire mechanism of value addition for nine bioresources (Kokum, Arecanut, Kalprasa, Prawn, Mussel, Mackerel, Jackfruit, Honey Pollen, Xylia xylocarpa). The primary data thus collected, along with related secondary data which has been collected is being analysed. Value chain analysis for each bioresource will then be developed and will help to support the Access to Benefit Sharing negotiations.

Can Cities Act as Drivers of Electric Mobility Adoption?

ICLEI South Asia participated in the India Electric Mobility Advisory Group Workshop which was held in New Delhi. As an important stepping stone to creating a way forward for the Electric Mobility Initiative, this national workshop brought together over 60 transport and civil society practitioners to discuss opportunities for short and long-term action, with a focus on charging and grid infrastructure shared and connected mobility, air quality and electric buses. This initiative will continue to work towards accelerating the introduction and adoption of electric vehicles in India.

Toolkit for Preparation of Sustainable and Resilient Infrastructure Projects by ULBs

ICLEI South Asia provided technical support to the Global Infrastructure Basel to develop a project preparation checklist tool – “Preparation of Sustainable and Resilient Infrastructure Projects”. The tool will enable cities to consider aspects of sustainability and resilience, while preparing a project proposal for investment. It will help cities track project progress by monitoring achievement of milestones, including project preparation, structuring, achieving bankability, accessing finance and finally implementing the project. This task was accomplished in the CapaCITIES project. One of the main outcomes of the project is enhanced technical understanding of city governments and local stakeholders on preparing infrastructure development projects that also consider principles of resilience and sustainability.

Indian Infrastructure Must be Climate-Proofed to the Core

Climate resilience must be not just a guiding principle, but the focus of new infrastructure projects in India. Despite increased awareness, planning decisions and infrastructure designs still do not address resilience adequately, argues Bedoshruti Sadhukhan.

Resilient Cities Asia-Pacific 2019 to be held in India

The Resilient Cities Asia-Pacific 2019 Congress is being organised by ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability and hosted by South Delhi Municipal Corporation in the month of April in New Delhi. It will offer cities and regions from Asia-Pacific a variety of innovative solutions that build resilience to climate change at the subnational level. The event will offer a combination of high-level plenaries and technical sessions on the implementation and achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals, the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), and the New Urban Agenda. It will focus on climate resilience planning, knowledge brokering, inclusivity and governance, urban nexus, climate finance among other areas. It will also provide networking opportunities with mayors, high ranking city officials, representatives from development and UN agencies, corporates, researchers as well as potential financiers. The dates of the conference will be shared soon. Those interested in participating can write to us at resilient.cities.asiapacific@iclei.org

Resilient Cities 2019

Resilient Cities 2019 will be the 10th anniversary of the Global Forum on Urban Resilience and Adaptation, taking place over three days from 26^th to 28^th of June in Bonn, Germany. This special edition aims to discuss the state of local resilience, evaluate its progress and encourage all stakeholders to take action under the lens of the Paris Agreement and the resilience targets of the 2030 Agenda. The forum offers an opportunity for engagement among political leaders and representatives from the private sector, international organisations and research institutions.

The 3^rd International Conference on Climate Change (ICCC 2019)

The theme of the conference, to be held in Kuala Lumpur from 21^st to 22^nd of February, is ‘Adaptation and Mitigation in Practice: Local and Global Innovations’. The conference will be attended by leading ecologists, chemists, physicists, biologists, material scientists, biomedical researchers, engineers, social workers and other researchers around the world who are active at the frontiers of this diverse and multidisciplinary field.

Happy Cities Summit

The Government of Andhra Pradesh is hosting the Happy Cities Summit 2019 in Amaravati from the 13^th to 15^th of February. The event aims to build on the success and momentum of the inaugural summit, held in 2018, to establish Amaravati at the forefront of the discourse on urban innovation with a focus on citizen happiness. The upcoming event will build on the six pillars of happiness declared at the previous summit - governance, built environment, natural environment, economy & livelihood, culture and community, and physical and mental wellbeing. ICLEI South Asia is one of the partners in the event.

ICLEI South Asia E-News

February 2019

Swiss and Indian Experts Share Ideas on Best Practices

Transport Experts Plan to Decongest Siliguri Roads

EcoLogistics Aims to Transform Urban Freight

Value Chain Analysis for Bioresources in Goa

Can Cities Act as Drivers of Electric Mobility Adoption?

Toolkit for Preparation of Sustainable and Resilient Infrastructure Projects by ULBs

Indian Infrastructure Must be Climate-Proofed to the Core

Resilient Cities Asia-Pacific 2019 to be held in India

Resilient Cities 2019

The 3rd International Conference on Climate Change (ICCC 2019)

Happy Cities Summit

ICLEI South Asia Secretariat

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The 3^rd International Conference on Climate Change (ICCC 2019)