Global Vision and Local Action: Big Solutions

Leadership Trainings
Many people have asked what happens in a leadership training, and while each one was dependent on the participants (usually two to five participants from each of ten to twenty universities) and their backgrounds in this field. We begin with a presentation on the urgency of climate change in India, briefly touching on the major impacts to all sectors of society through floods, droughts, glacier melt, changing agricultural systems, changing economic systems, and massive human migration.

The problem out of the way and the need for urgency set, we move onto discussions of climate solutions, beginning with the big climate solutions. We wanted to show students that solutions exist and are being implemented in a really big way -- like gigawatts of solar, wind and tidal energy around the world and full scale eco-cities reaching reality -- and that India has the chance to do the same. More importantly, we want to show that we have a choice, but that the balance is already shifting towards a green economy and its also worth getting on the bandwagon!

The following 8 big ideas form a major part of our Climate Solutions Presentation, sharing global best practices and global solutions, from which we launch into a session where students create a vision for the world, for India and for their community, communicating that vision with no words and with action. From the macro, we dive into the micro, where students break into groups to discuss the relevance of these solutions on the campus level -- how they can drive global change through local action. These trainings are powerful and incredible, and we'd love to share the big solutions with you. For more information on the trainings' impact, see some stories and commitments of the Campus Climate Challenge.

Solution 1: Renewable Energy
The renewable energy technologies for meeting both large scale baseload power generation and small scale power needs already exist today. India, already a global leader in wind, has immense untapped renewable energy resources, especially in solar.

Solution 2: Sustainable Agriculture
With increasing pressure on agricultural systems because of climate change, already seen in the form of droughts, floods and erratic rainfall patterns across the nation, our food security is under threat. This coupled with current agricultural trends towards increased consumption of energy, water, and fossil fuel based fertilizers means poorer productivity and lower incomes for farmers. Sustainable agricultural practices, inherent to India's past, must become the norm, and a much larger priority.

Solution 3: Green Transport
With 1.2 billion needing to be on the move, India needs to think carefully about its mobility strategy. This must involve a carefully developed mix of metros, high speed rail, bus rapid transit system running on clean fuels, renewable energy powered and electric private transport, and transition solutions including CNG auto-rickshaws and congestion taxes.

Solution 4: Rethink Materials
Nature cannot withstand this one way flow of materials. It will be critical in the future for us to rethink the natural resource use and energy consumption required for making every single product, especially on a planet of 9 billion people in 2050. In particular, by sourcing local materials and finding renewable resources (like our banana leaf plates and mud cups) rather than relying on plastics for all that is around us.

Solution 5: Put a Price on the Planet
Without proper pricing for what we receive from a stable biosphere, and for the hidden costs of fossil fuels, we will not be able to find the right equation for the urgency of climate action. 'Climate change is the greatest market failure of all time', some argue the result of a series of market externalities such as ecosystem services, and threatens to place huge costs on individuals and industries in India, ranging from physical costs to insurance, from health costs to national security unless our economic value system changes.

Solution 6: Build Eco-Cities
In cities like Masdar and Dongtan, developers are completely redesigning how cities are built and beginning to incorporate principles of sustainability, community and self-sufficiency. Given the rapid rate of urbanization in this country, India as well should develop model cities along these principles, especially for all the new-builds.

Solution 7: IT Solutions to Climate Change
"What isn't measured, can't be managed." There is an increasing demand for information on energy and carbon use, which needs intelligent, sophisticated technology to process and guide individuals and organizations. ICT (Information and Communication Technology) can provide a means to make energy visible. Examples of its applications today are carbon labelling, effective building management systems, smart power grids, efficient manufacturing systems, intelligent logistics and power management software for computer systems themselves.

Solution 8: Drive Green Education and Green Jobs
With 500,000 engineers graduating every year and over 70% of India's population under 35, in the future, we will need every job to be a green job if we are to maintain this planet. Renewable energy and green building companies across India are growing incredibly quickly, but students are not graduating with appropriate skills to meet this need. Simultaneously, parents, students, and educators are not aware of the enormous potential markets and thus the need for quality green education. Our programs, working with vice chancellors, students, and corporates is trying to transform this balance to ensure that Indian institutes are preparing students for a post-carbon economy.