ICLEI South Asia at UEA Summit 2017

ICLEI South Asia participated in the Urban Environmental Accords (UEA) Melaka Summit 2017 held in Melaka, Malaysia. Mr. Emani Kumar in his keynote address, highlighted the ever increasing importance of local actions and their potential to address global sustainability challenges, including climate change impacts. ICLEI’s role in promoting eco-mobility through engaging actively with the community and the significant contribution to developing policies and interventions made through the EcoMobility World Festivals conducted hitherto in Suwon (2013), Johannesburg (2015) were also discussed.

ICLEI South Asia Organises Green Cities Conference

The two-day conference on Green Cities – ‘Leveraging Regional Cooperation & Integration for a Green Growth Cities Network in ASEAN’ was held in Melaka, Malaysia. The event, organised by Asian Development Bank (ADB), ICLEI and Green Growth Asia with support from IMT-GT and Melaka Green Technology Corporation, focused on sharing experiences from development and implementation of Green City Action Plans, and on need for ensuring green growth and sustainable development in the ASEAN region. The importance of energy efficiency initiatives in ensuring low emission development in the region was showcased through several initiatives undertaken and supported by the Melaka State Government.

IUWM Project Gets Awarded at World Water Challenge 2017

ICLEI South Asia has been awarded the third prize at the World Water Challenge 2017 for 'Integrated Urban Water Management: Tradition to Solution for Cities' (IUWM) project, supported by the European Union, for the category of 'outstanding solution'. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, Government of Korea launched the 'World Water Challenge 2017' which is the contest for creative solutions to address water problems that the world faces. It was first held at the 7th World Water Forum in 2015 to seek solutions to solve water related problems and share the same with people all over the world.

Conference on ‘Peri-Urban Ecosystems for Enhancing Urban Resilience’

The conference on ‘Peri-Urban Ecosystems for Enhancing Urban Resilience’ was organised by ICLEI South Asia along with Gorakhpur Environmental Action Group in New Delhi. The two-day event brought together practitioners and policy makers to discuss the role of ecosystems in urban and peri-urban regions to build resilience, with special focus on planning, governance mechanisms and particularly vulnerable groups. The event was attended by Mayors, Deputy Mayors and local and provincial government officials from cities from Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Bhutan apart from cities in India. Through a panel in the conference, Mr. Emani Kumar facilitated discussions among the local government officials bringing out their issues with managing ecosystems as a means of resilience building with limited policy support.

Udaipur Shares its Low Carbon Strategies at Climate Change and City Transformation Forum

Mr. Chandra Singh Kothari, Mayor, Udaipur, presented details of various ongoing low carbon initiatives in Udaipur city at the 2017 Climate Change and City Transformation Forum. Highlighting the need to move towards low carbon urban development, Mr. Kothari presented various ongoing pilot initiatives in Udaipur with focus on solid waste management and low carbon urban mobility. The low carbon initiatives were appreciated by various international cities including city of Tabaco from Philippines and Moreland in Australia. Mr. Kothari appreciated the technical assistance offered by ICLEI South Asia for these initiatives supporting low carbon urban development.

Preparation of the Nomination Dossier of Majuli River Island as a World Heritage Site

Majuli Island is a district located mid-stream in the Brahmaputra River in the state of Assam. It was recently declared as Assam’s first Biodiversity Heritage Site and first carbon neutral district. Originally proposed as a world heritage site in 2004, the island is still awaiting to be listed as one. ICLEI South Asia, along with Creative Footprints is developing the nomination dossier of the site for the State of Assam. An MoU has been signed with the Directorate of Cultural Affairs, Government of Assam and work has commenced on the preparation of a comprehensive nomination document which will showcase the unique natural and cultural values of the island.

Energy Interventions in Kochi as Part of their Smart City Plan

A kick-off meeting was organised in Kochi for the project entitled “Energy interventions in Kochi as part of their Smart City Plan”. The meeting was chaired by Mrs. Soumini Jain, Mayor, Kochi Municipal Corporation and was attended by a diverse set of stakeholders including Kochi Municipal Corporation, state government departments, local commerce and businesses, resident welfare associations, local NGOs etc. The objective of the meeting was to collate ideas from these stakeholders on the implementation of the solar city master plan.

Akshay Urja Website Launch in Rajkot by Gujarat Chief Minister, Shri Vijay Rupani

With an aim to make Rajkot a smart and sustainable city, the Chief Minister of Gujarat, Shri Vijay Rupani, launched Akshay Urja Rajkot/Rajkot SMART Energy Lab website on the 22nd of September, 2017. The SMART Energy Lab has been developed in partnership with ICLEI South Asia under the project “Building Efficiency Accelerator”. Akshay Urja Rajkot/SMART Energy Lab is a Rajkot Municipal Corporation (RMC) initiative seeking to link policy makers, private sector, educational institutions and citizens of Rajkot, enabling them to make significant contribution to the realisation of Smart Cities and Smart India Mission unveiled by the Prime Minister.

Investment Grade Energy Audits on Two RMC Buildings in Rajkot under Building Efficiency Accelerator Project

ICLEI South Asia is one of the key partners in the SE4ALL Building Efficiency Accelerator (BEA) in South Asia region. ICLEI South Asia is the BEA Local Lead Partner organisation, and through our Rajkot office will assist the city in planning and implementing building efficiency actions. As a part of the project, ICLEI South Asia has appointed GSH Energy Services Pvt. Ltd. , Ahmedabad to perform investment grade energy audits on two selected RMC buildings viz. RMC Central Zone Office Building and RMC Multi-Activity center at Nana Mauva in Rajkot in order to identify their current status of energy performance and advise on potential cost-efficient measures to improve the same.

Second Phase of India’s GHG Emission Estimates for 2005-2013

A conference on 'India's GHG Emission Estimates for 2005-2013: National and State Level' was organised by GHG Platform India in collaboration with ICLEI South Asia. With over 55 registered participants, the event was well attended by Government officials from relevant departments of Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh and the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Government of India, and the Petroleum Conservation Research Association as well as civil society representatives and sectoral experts.

Meet Tikender Panwar, Former Deputy Mayor of Shimla

Mr. Panwar has dedicated himself to start a dialogue about the most pertinent sustainable development related issues in our country. He has volunteered to write weekly blogs for ICLEI South Asia to create awareness among the masses.

Read blog

Having witnessed the commitment of cities and sub-national governments to sustainable and climate resilient development over the last eight plus years at ICLEI South Asia, I am ever enthusiastic about exploring all opportunites to accelerate on-ground action towards ensuring livable cities. Creating partnerships with like-minded organisations and partners is integral to this endeavour. In my new role, I look forward to increasing our partnerships in the region to enhance the impact of our engagement with National and Sub-national authorities.

After being with ICLEI South Asia since December 2007 and working with a number of ICLEI colleagues, Partner organisations and cities in South Asia, it is a pleasure to be granted this opportunity to serve as the Deputy Director for the Regional Secretariat. I hope that this change is positive for cities, collaborators and colleagues. Together we can continue our joint work in the region with special focus on Sustainable Urban Planning, Mobility and Built Environment.

Asia LEDS Forum and Resilient Cities Asia Pacific Congress 2017

We are pleased to announce that registration for the Asia LEDS Forum 2017 - "Catalyzing Support for NDC Implementation in Asia" on 5th-6th December and the 3rd Asia-Pacific Forum on Urban Resilience and Adaptation - Resilient Cities Asia Pacific Congress 2017 (RCAP 2017) on 7th-8th of December is now open . Both the events will be organised in Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam. For registration and more information please follow the links below.
ALP Forum - Registration
RCAP 2017 - Registration