The discovery of lithium in Jammu and Kashmir is significant for India's push towards electric vehicles but any environmental gains could be negated if it is not mined carefully, say experts, citing risks such as air pollution and soil degradation in the fragile Himalayan region.
The discovery of lithium in Jammu and Kashmir is significant for India's push towards electric vehicles but any environmental gains could be negated if it is not mined carefully, say experts.
This public webinar discussed research findings from IISD's State of Sustainability Initiatives.
The International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) hosted a public webinar to discuss the findings from the IISD's forthcoming report: Voluntary Sustainability Standards in South Asia: A focus on the cotton sector in Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
The research maps voluntary sustainability standards (VSSs) criteria and market potential and explores how VSSs can help address three major sustainability issues: pest management, water conservation, and farmers’ incomes and prices.
Moderator
Speakers
Discussants
The early success of e-mobility in India can largely be attributed to a supportive policy landscape at the national and state level. Of the 36 states and Union Territories in the country, 26 have released EV policies over the last 5 years, with 16 of them being released between 2020 and 2022. However, none of them are on track to meet their targets of EV penetration, charging infrastructure or investments, according to a recent study.
Union Minister of Finance Nirmala Sitharaman reiterated ‘green’ 23 times and ‘sustainable’ nine times in her budget speech on February 1. She pegged ‘green growth’ as one among four opportunities that can be transformative during Amrit Kaal, the term first used by Prime Minister of India in 2021, referring to the next 25 years in India’s growth. The expenditure budget increased by 33% in capital to Rs. 10 lakh crores (Rs. 10 trillion).
The Kappahl Pilot Project
This brief summarizes the results of mapping different cotton actors' supply chains in Bangladesh, India, and Sri Lanka that supply organic cotton apparel for Sweden-based fashion retailer Kappahl.
The supply chains that underlie today’s sophisticated global economy remain largely unknown and opaque, even to the businesses directly involved. But a detailed understanding of the networks that bring products to market is critical to advancing sustainable production and consumption. And supply chain knowledge lays the foundation for disclosure that can promote accountability. Businesses are increasingly interested in using supply chain visibility and transparency to demonstrate their commitment to good environmental, social, and governance practices.
IISD partnered with Sweden-based fashion retailer Kappahl on a pilot project to map supply chain actors in Bangladesh, India, and Sri Lanka that produce some of the brand’s organic cotton apparel for babies.
IISD’s State of Sustainability Initiatives team and Kappahl engaged with actors at various points between the cotton farms and the company’s 360 retail stores. IISD ultimately succeeded in mapping actors and collecting sustainability information on previously opaque tiers that were ginning, spinning, and dyeing cotton before it ever reached the garment makers that dealt directly with Kappahl. The researchers for the team used SupplyShift, a supply chain sustainability platform, to carry out this work.
This case study explains both opportunities and challenges for Kappahl and its suppliers. The project left the company better positioned to identify and address supply chain risks in the organic cotton value chain, while opening new communication and engagement channels with suppliers to advance sustainability that didn't exist before. Kappahl can also link the new information with existing farm and household data of cotton growers to better support them.
Maharashtra is among the top 5 states with most comprehensive policy designs, according to a study by 'Climate Trends', a research-based consulting and capacity building initiative that aims to bring greater focus on issues of environment, climate change, and sustainable development.
Significant lithium reserves have been found in India for the first time in an important discovery that bodes well for the south Asian giant’s plans to transition into clean energy and its push for electric vehicles.
The Geological Survey of India (GSI) has for the first time established availability of Lithium inferred resources of 5.9 million tonnes in Salal-Hamaina area of Reasi in Union Territory (UT) of Jammu & Kashmir - a discovery of strategic importance which will go a long way in solving shortage of Lithium, key component of Lithium-ion batteries used in electrical vehicles (EVs) and other chargeable instruments. The discovery makes India as having the seventh largest resource of Lithium globally. It'll, however, take time to convert it to reserves.
As the G20 Summit in India approaches, it is urgent to understand how energy decisions made by the world’s largest economies will affect the achievement of the Paris Agreement goals. This webinar explores how the G20 Summit under India’s presidency can be a platform to increase collaboration among emerging economies on national energy targets. It provides tools for policy-makers, investors, and companies to align with the Paris Agreement in the context of the principles of common but differentiated responsibilities.
Energy scenarios have a key role to play in guiding the transformation of the energy system to meet the 1.5°C temperature limit under the Paris Agreement. The IISD Navigating Energy Transitions report provides guidance for policy-makers, investors, and companies on how to align energy decision making with the goals of the Paris Agreement. It conducts an unprecedented analysis of the most influential modelled pathways consistent with limiting warming to 1.5°C.
This webinar, organized in collaboration with the Indian Institute of Management Calcutta’s Centre for Development and Environment Policy, begins by looking at the implications of 1.5°C-aligned scenarios for fossil fuel phase-out and renewable energy scale-up. This is followed by a presentation of India’s G20 climate and energy priorities and a discussion on expectations for India’s G20 presidency.
Olivier Bois von Kursk, Policy Analyst, IISD
Shruti Sharma, Senior Policy Advisor, IISD
Runa Sarkar, Professor, IIM Calcutta