AI for Spatial Mapping and Analysis: GeoAI Toolkit for Urban Planners
With rapid urbanization, population growth, and evolving urban landscapes, environmental and climate challenges are intensifying, making effective and efficient urban planning increasingly critical. From shaping the physical landscape to advancing social inclusion, environmental and economic vibrancy, urban planning plays a vital role in building sustainable and resilient cities for future generations. Spatial mapping and analysis play a central […]
Sponge Parks: Porous Powerhouses for Climate Resilience
Written By: Ramya M. A. Chennai’s future is closely tied to its waters. As climate change reshapes coastal cities worldwide, Tamil Nadu’s shoreline faces rising flood risks. 91% of its coastal area is predicted to face high flood risk by 2100. Chennai, a coastal city with an estimated current population of over 12 million, runs […]
Resilience in Action: Implementing Locally-Led Adaptation in Bangladesh
Written By: Chaity Dev and Md. Jubaer Rashid Bangladesh, a country vulnerable to a wide range of climate-related disasters, such as tropical cyclones, floods, coastal erosion, droughts and landslides, has limited coping capacity or budget to adapt and respond to these disasters at the community level. However, communities in coastal, drought-prone and flood-prone regions are […]
Fostering Climate Resilient Water Security through Community Action in the Darjeeling Himalayas
Written By: Souhardo Chakraborty and Bedoshruti Sadhukhan “We need to make multiple trips on foot along treacherous mountain trails to small groundwater upwelling points, located 300 metres downhill, starting from 3 AM in the morning to collect water. If we delay then we must wait hours for groundwater to refill the well, because others would […]
Dhaka’s Climate Action Journey: A Collaborative Effort for a Resilient City
By: Makame Mahmud, Md. Jubaer Rashid Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, stands at the forefront of climate change, from rising temperatures to unpredictable rainfall and frequent natural disasters. These growing threats have pushed the city to take action, leading to the development of comprehensive Climate Action Plans (CAPs). These plans aim to reduce greenhouse gas […]
UrbanShift India 1st National-Local Dialogue
Summarised by Pratibha Caleb Topic of First National-Local Dialogue: Indian perspective of sustainable and smart infrastructure development Level of Representation: National government representatives – Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs(MoHUA), National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA) Local government representatives from five cities: Surat, Pune, Chennai, Puducherry and Agra Other representatives from UN agencies, NGOs, research institutes, […]
In Memoriam – Ritu Thakur (1985 – 2024)
The ICLEI family has suffered a terrible loss with the untimely passing of our dear Ritu Thakur, a much valued and senior member of our team, on July 25, 2024. Ritu joined ICLEI South Asia in 2010, and had, over the years, inspired us with her spirit, enthusiasm and leadership. Her colleagues respected her for […]
Rising Temperatures, Rising Solutions: South Asia’s Path to Heat Resilience
The year 2023 set a new record for global temperatures with the hottest year on record, with predictions for 2024 to bring even more severe conditions, the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) announced in a report in March 2024, issuing a ‘Red Alert’ to the world. While March 2024 happened to be the 10th straight month […]
Navigating Climate Finance for Sustainable Urban Projects in South Asian Cities
Securing adequate financing is often vital for sustainable and resilient urban development projects. Addressing this crucial topic, the Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate and Energy (GCoM) South Asia convened a webinar on ‘Mobilising Climate Finance for Cities – Unveiling Strategies for Navigating from Concept to Financing’ on 19 March, 2024, with support from the […]
Kuching City Hosts Training Workshop Amidst Green City Action Plan Development
Recognising the importance of training and capacity building of government officials and urban planners on climate-resilient development planning, a GCAP training workshop was convened on March 5 and 6, 2024. The workshop was organised by the GCAP implementation consortium with active support and cooperation from the State Economic Planning Unit of Sarawak and Padawan Municipal […]