Sustainable Development Goals And Indian Cities

This book critically examines Sustainable Development Goals and cities in developing countries with special reference to climate change, inclusion, diversity, and citizen rights in India. It discusses global issues of sustainability and climate change in the context of rapid urbanisation and focuses on the role of equitable and just processes of urban development aimed at protecting social diversity, redeeming natural environments and, pursuing economic growth geared towards improving the quality of life. The volume looks at the nature of opportunities and future challenges presented to cities and codifies ways to transcend these. It explores key themes such as mitigation of risks from heat island effects, devastating floods, and extreme weather events like droughts; improvement of air quality; compact development; reduction in urban sprawl and protection of agriculturally productive lands for long-term food security; growth of small and medium towns; protection of rural landscapes; access to basic services like water sanitation, primary education, and housing; protection of forest and green spaces for the conservation of biodiversity; renewable energy sources; enhancement of mobility through efficient public transit systems like metro systems or suburban rail; effective and equitable governance for the vulnerable; balanced regional development; inclusive human development; securing the right to the city; and climate risk and resilience. Based on new research and data presented by global experts on climate change and sustainability, this book advances multiple discourses of sustainable urbanisation by connecting social challenges such as democracy, equity, diversity, and inclusion to create an enabling environment for a better future for cities in the developing world. Lucid and topical, this book will be useful to scholars and researchers of urban studies, urban planning, development studies, sociology, public policy and administration, political sociology, city studies, geography, architecture, and economics and also to professionals and NGOs.

This book uses spatio-temporal analysis to understand urbanisation in Indian cities and explain the concept and impact of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. It creates a GHG footprint for Indian cities and engages in a discussion about the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and smart city initiatives within an Indian context. Understanding the spatial patterns of land use/land cover (LULC) dynamics in the rapidly urbanising cities of India, the readers will be able to simulate future urbanisation patterns and use spatial temporal analysis as a tool for implementing appropriate mitigation measures. Features Analyses the complete urbanisation and urban sprawl of major cities in India using advanced geospatial modelling techniques Highlights the best practices and methods used in modelling urban growth Discusses greenhouse gas emissions from various sectors and their effects in local environments Addresses the increase of local temperature in cities due to unplanned land use change and its impact on environmental sustainability and resilience Fills the need for data-driven governance and policy decisions by introducing various analyses through spatial mapping Highlighting some of the best practices and tools being used for modelling urban growth through case studies, the book is useful to those interested in using new technologies and methods for data collection and problem solving. It focuses on the major environmental issues in India, which are prevalent in most developing countries.

This volume presents a novel framework to understand urban climate co-benefits in India, that is, tackling climate change and achieving sustainable development goals in cities. It utilizes methods and tools from several assessment frameworks to scientifically evaluate sector co-benefits for informed decision making. The co-benefits approach can lead to significant improvements in the way societies use environmental resources and distribute their outputs. The volume discusses four main themes: (1) Concepts and theories on cities and climate co-benefits; (2) Contextualizing co-benefit issues across spatial scales and sectors; (3) Sectoral analyses of co-benefits in energy, transport, buildings, waste, and biodiversity, and (4) Innovations and reforms needed to promote co-benefits in cities. The discussions are based on empirical research conducted in Indian cities and aligned with the international discourse on the 2030 UN Development Agenda and New Urban Agenda created at the UN-Habitat III in 2016. The analyses and recommendations in this volume are of considerable interest to policy experts, scholars and researchers of urban and regional studies, geography, public policy, international development/law, economics, development planning, environmental planning, climate change, energy studies, and so on.

This volume examines the practicality of achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals in India, and includes policy analyses and statistical assessments of comparative data between India and different countries. With a focus on poverty and economics, the contributors offer sector and state specific performance analyses of each goal, determining the feasibility for different states and regions to implement a given goal under conditions of extreme poverty and economic distress. Readers will learn how to perform comprehensive economic performance analyses, and how to apply these methods at local and regional scales within the framework of sustainable development. The book will be of interest to students and researchers studying sustainable development, economics, and policy analysis, as well as NGOs and government agencies working towards achieving the SDGs in impoverished nations.

This book presents a selection of multifaceted development issues involving social, economic and environmental aspects, in order to inspire and guide implementation of the United Nations’ SDGs. It focuses on economic development, human well-being and sustainable pathways, with special attention to financial and knowledge resources, as well as measurement concepts. In doing so, the book draws a distinction between sustainability and sustainable pathways by refraining from dealing with broader and more direct environmental sustainability issues like climate change, environmental degradation and sustainable energy. The choice of topics, apart from their relevance for India, was guided by their importance in connection with multiple SDG goals. In addition to revealing the intricacies of systemic relationships and the dilemmas they create in policy choices, the book examines the role of actors and the critical importance of partnerships to help readers comprehend the breadth of diversities and inter-linkages involved. The roles of the central and state governments, the parliament and the state assemblies, the civil society, UN agencies and district-level authorities are separately explored in depth. Sharing valuable insights, the book encourages policymakers, practitioners and scholars to move towards a sustainable and equitable economy, and supports them in their efforts.

Haldia situated at Midnapore District of West Bengal, India.

This book examines the relationship between natural resource management, sustainable development, and governance with case studies from India and other places covering disaster risk reduction, conflict resolution, capacity building, climate change adaptation and resilience, citizen engagement and ecological conservation. Though the studies focus mostly on cases in India, the volume discusses how governance can be employed to help develop and implement sustainable practices globally through the lens of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) framework. Readers will learn how to integrate concepts of resource management, sustainable development, and governance to improve human resilience to global environmental change, and to assess the proper development approaches to assist economically stressed and resource-deprived individuals. The book will be of use to graduate students and academics, policy makers, planners, and nonprofits.