The IIT Bombay Research Park organized a one-day ‘Conclave on Sustainability’ on November 30, 2022, to discuss and deliberate on vital environmental topics and the sustainable way forward. About 194 people congregated at IIT Bombay, comprising representatives from the government, international delegations, industry leaders, Research Park member companies, NGOs, Think-Tanks, IIT Bombay faculty, external academicians, and students. The outcomes and engagement opportunities that this conclave offered are sure to get the ball rolling towards a community to champion sustainable development – comprising science, technology, and policy leaders from academia, industry, and government.
The event began with a welcome address by Prof. S. Sudarshan, Deputy Director (Academic and Infrastructural Affairs). The Chief Guest, Dr. M. Ravichandran, Hon’ble Secretary, Ministry of Earth Sciences, Government of India, attended the event virtually. In addition, Dr. Nitin Kareer, Additional Chief Secretary of the Revenue and Forest Department, Government of Maharashtra, and Shri Amar Nath, Additional Secretary Department of Administrative Reforms, Public Grievances & Pensions, were the Guests of Honour.
Mr. Nadir Godrej, Chairman & Managing Director of Godrej Industries Ltd., set the stage for the day-long insightful talks with his Plenary Lecture rendered beautifully as a poem. There were six parallel sessions on the topics – Air & Water Quality, Food-Energy-Water nexus, Sustainable & Resilient Infrastructure, Climate Change Mitigation & Green Technology, Climate Policy & Circular Economy, and AI for Sustainability. The IIT Bombay faculty shared the ongoing initiatives on the campus with the attendees.
Apart from sharing the IIT Bombay initiatives, a Poster presentation competition was held for IIT Bombay students. Around 30+ students presented their work in the above-mentioned areas. Their work was judged by Prof. Subhankar Karmakar, Prof. Vishal Dixit, and Prof. Raghu Murtugudde.
The deliberations highlighted a need to develop sector-specific strategies rather than a unique solution to all the problems. Acceptability of approaches by stakeholders also demands out-of- the-box simple ideas rather than a complex solution. The wheel to #PledgeForSustainability encouraged attendees to make a sustainable choice that could be implemented daily.
The day ended on a high note with a stimulating panel discussion between stakeholders on the topic – ‘Academia, Government, Industry, Community: Nexus for Sustainability’ with Smt. Sujata Saunik, Additional Chief Secretary, Department of General Administration, Government of Maharashtra; Mr. Satyajit Bhatkal, the CEO of Paani Foundation; Dr. Jai Asundi, Executive Director, CSTEP; Ms. Ashwini Hingne, Senior Manager – Climate, WRI India; Mr. Ravi Panga, Director & CEO, Causis E-Mobility and Prof. Raghu Murtugudde, Faculty at Climate Studies, IIT Bombay as panelists. It was unanimously agreed that the solutions for Sustainable Development Goals demand a multidisciplinary approach with involvement from multiple sectors. Though the environmental problems are global, the solution pathways exist through local participatory approaches. And the announcement of the winners of the Poster Presentation competition. The winners were awarded cash prizes by Mr. Ravi Panga.
