Background

Urbanization is one of the most transformative global trends of the 21st century, with over half the world's population currently residing in urban areas, a figure projected to rise to two-thirds by 2050. This rapid shift poses a challenge for achieving multiple Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) set by the United Nations, especially SDG 11 (the dedicated urban goal), SDG 1 on poverty, SDG 3 on health, SDG 7 on energy, and SDG 13 on climate action. 

 

In India, urban transformations have been a driving force behind its growth story. Cities contribute approximately two-thirds of the country’s economic output. However, rapid and unplanned urban growth in India has placed immense pressure on its natural capital, leading to a cascade of environmental and social crises, including pollution, biodiversity loss, water scarcity and flooding, waste mismanagement, and unequal access to urban facilities and spaces. Building sustainable and inclusive cities, therefore, demands recognizing them as complex socio-ecological systems where nature and humanity must thrive together. These global trends raise a critical question: how can cities solve questions of biodiversity, equity, and access?

 

This two-day conference seeks to engage with the critical questions and complex dynamics of the current global urban, foregrounding ecological, social, infrastructural, and governance perspectives. By bringing together academics, policymakers, practitioners, industry stakeholders, and community actors, it aims to foster a relational shift in urban planning in India - one that focuses on the relationships between social and ecological components rather than just structural expansion.