A panel discussion was organised today by the Delegation of the European Union to India at the specially-designed theme pavilion based on Vanaspatey Shanti, a hymn from the Yajurveda. The theme of the discussion was- ‘Climate Diplomacy’ based on this year’s theme at the World Book Fair- ‘Environment and Climate Change’. The aim behind this discussion was to reflect on innovative climate diplomacy initiatives and practitioners, to showcase experiences and new approaches of climate diplomacy in India and in the EU. The esteemed list of panellists included Dr Sunita Narain, Director General, Centre for Science and Environment, New Delhi and Author of Conflicts of Interest, Mr. Dennis Tänzler, Director International Climate Policy, Adelphi, Germany & Co- Editor of Climate Diplomacy in Perspective – From Early Warning to Early Action, Dr. Navroz Dubash, Senior Fellow, Centre for Policy Research, Author of A Handbook of Climate Change; India: Development, Policy and Governance; The Rise of the Regulatory State of the South and Tubewell Capitalism and Ms. Henriette Faergemann Bredsten, First Counsellor – Environment, Energy, Climate Change, Delegation of the European Union to India.
India, the EU and its Member States have been practical pioneers of climate diplomacy for many years. This non-traditional area of diplomacy has evolved greatly, illustrating the change foreign policy undergoes in term of topics, forums, approaches and actors involved.
In working with and engaging with diplomats, climate experts and the general public worldwide at the national, regional and international levels, there exists a plethora of hands-on experiences of innovative approaches. These contribute not only to a better understanding of climate politics in different regions, but also to establishing, fostering and managing networks between various actors with different perspectives on climate diplomacy.
One challenge is to join forces to implement the landmark Paris Climate Agreement of 2015, another challenge is to integrate climate diplomacy across the foreign policy portfolio – the EU Global Strategy, published last year, being one of the cornerstones of respective efforts.
This discussion was followed by an event centred around the latest book, Conflicts of Interest – My journey through India’s Green Movement (Penguin 2017) authored by Sunita Narain, India’s foremost environmentalist. The book gives a personal account of the various battles fought as part of the country’s green movement over the last three decades.
While outlining the enormous challenges that India faces today, Narain talks about how corporate lobbies and political interests often scuttle their effective resolution. She recounts some widely reported controversies triggered by research undertaken by her along with her team at Centre for Science and Environment such as a report on pesticides in colas, and a study on air pollution in Delhi, and includes a ringside view of global climate change negotiations.
The book also includes an ‘environmental manifesto’, a blueprint for the direction India must take if it is to deal with the exigencies of climate change and environmental degradation. The book covers a variety of subjects including Air Pollution, Endosulfan’s curse, Cola Wars, Climate’s Charge, Tigers and/or People, Water and Waste Wars and a Blueprint for the Future.