India 2047: Building a Climate Resilient Future Conference on 19-22 March
The New Delhi event is to be organized by MoEFCC in collaboration with two institutes at Harvard University USA
The four day
conference to focus on Adaptation and Resilience to Climate Change
Union Ministry
of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC), in collaboration with two
institutes at the Harvard University, USA, is organizing a Conference on ‘India
2047: Building a Climate-Resilient Future’, from 19th – 22nd March 2025, at
Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi. The Lakshmi Mittal and Family South Asia
Institute and the Salata Institute For Climate and Sustainability at the
Harvard University, USA are the organising partners for the event. This event
will serve to identify the key challenges in adaptation and fine tune India’s
response in terms of policies, programmes and action at the field level geared
towards a climate-resilient India@2047.
Suman Bery, Vice Chairperson, NITI Aayog and Union
Minister of State for Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Kirti Vardhan
Singh will grace the inaugural session of this conference. The event would also
be addressed by distinguished speakers from Government of India, academia,
research institutions, private sector and the Harvard University. Notable
amongst these are Prof. Tarun Khanna, Director, The Lakshmi Mittal and Family
South Asia Institute and Jorge Paulo Lemann Professor at the Harvard Business
School; Prof. Jim Stock, Vice Provost for Climate and Sustainability at Harvard
University, Prof. Daniel P. Schrag, Professor of Environmental Science and
Engineering at Harvard University, amongst others.
The Conference will be organized over a period of four
days, where multiple breakout sessions with several technical sessions focusing
on adaptation and resilience under the following themes: (i) Climate Science and its implications on
Water & Agriculture, (ii) Health, (iii) Work, and (iv) Built Environment.
i.
The theme on Climate Science and its implications on
Agriculture and Water will explore the scientific, policy,
and practical dimensions of adapting to heatwaves, changing monsoon patterns,
and water distribution issues.
ii.
The theme on Health convenes leading
health professionals and health system experts, from India and the world to
address essential questions on the impact of heat.
iii.
The theme on Work will focus on impact
of climate change on labour productivity.
iv.
The theme on Built Environment seeks to
examine how built environment should be prepared for rising temperatures over
the coming decades.
There will be several crosscutting issues across these
themes, such as governance, traditional knowledge, livelihood and skilling,
gender, and financing. The workshops aim to generate tangible outputs such as
research papers, technical documents, and policy briefs, as agreed upon by
participants to contribute scientific evidence to global initiatives. This
event will be a special opportunity to discuss adaptation and resilience to
climate change amongst a receptive and influential audience in a location where
this issue is an immediate concern.
This Conference will bring together government, academia,
civil society, private sector, and other relevant stakeholders to foster
interdisciplinary dialogue and collaboration to address the pressing challenges
posed by climate change. It will enable stakeholders to develop strategies for
a sustainable and climate-resilient future for India, which will require
multipronged interdisciplinary planning.
With a focus on policy integration, scientific
advancements, and localized adaptation strategies, the Conference aims to
bridge critical knowledge gaps that hinder effective climate planning. This is
not just another Conference —it is a crucial opportunity to engage with
influential stakeholders in the region where climate adaptation is an urgent
priority. The insights gathered here will directly contribute to shaping
India’s upcoming National Adaptation Plan, ensuring that it is evidence-based,
inclusive, and aligned with India’s broader development goals.
As India approaches its centenary of independence in
2047, this upcoming Conference will be a significant step toward ensuring a
climate-resilient future, backed by innovation, collaboration, and actionable
policy insights.
Lakshmi Mittal and
Family South Asia Institute
The Lakshmi Mittal and
Family South Asia Institute is a university-wide research institute at Harvard
that engages in interdisciplinary research to advance and deepen the
understanding of critical issues in South Asia and its relationship with the
world.
Salata Institute for Climate and Sustainability
Established in 2022, The Salata Institute for Climate and
Sustainability is an interdisciplinary hub dedicated to accelerating climate
research, education, and action. Since 2023, the Salata Institute has supported
the South Asia Adaptation Research Cluster, which comprises leading climate
scientists, epidemiologists, planners, and experts. The cluster is dedicated to
advancing climate adaptation research in the Indian subcontinent, focusing on
the impacts of extreme heat and changing weather patterns. It aims to identify
at-risk populations and inform targeted intervention strategies. The cluster
collaborates with regional and international partners to ensure that adaptation
strategies are both scientifically robust and aligned with local needs.