HEAT IN CITIES: Addressing Increasing Heat Stress in Urban India | 04 10 2024

This is a recording of a webinar organized by The Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE) and the Bengaluru Sustainability Forum (BSF) titled 'Heat in Cities: Addressing Increasing Heat-Stress in Urban India', under BSF's Climate Charche series.
The webinar discussed the impact of heat-stress on public health and urban systems, focusing on strategies, responses, and action plans to mitigate heat-related risks.
A note on the panelists
Apekshita Varshney // HeatWatch India
Apekshita Varshney founded HeatWatch, with support from the Mira Fellowship, to amplify the unequal impact of extreme heat on marginalized populations in India and advocate for ground-up action. As a campaigner, she focuses on people-powered movements, climate finance, and accountability across Asia. She has led communications for UNDP’s Business and Human Rights program and consulted for various nonprofits on human rights and social justice projects. With a background in journalism, Apekshita has covered topics like the environment, urbanization, and gender. She holds a master’s in Urban Development Planning from University College London, supported by the Commonwealth Master’s scholarship.
Dr Neethi Rao // Centre for Social and Economic Progress
Dr. Neethi V Rao is a health policy and systems researcher with interests in health systems governance and intersectoral public policy at the intersections of environment and health. Her research and practice have involved providing technical support in strategic planning, policy design, implementation, and evaluation including impact assessments for governments and international development agencies. She worked with the health systems governance team at the World Health Organization, supporting research and advocacy towards a World Health Assembly Resolution proposal on social participation for 2024. She is currently a Fellow at the Centre for Social and Economic Progress, Delhi and Adjunct Faculty at the Institute of Public Health Bengaluru.
Sarita Fernandes // Heatwave Action Coalition
Sarita is the co-convener of the Heatwave Action Coalition (HAC) and founder of O.C.E.A.N. She is a coastal policy researcher and works on the intersections of climate with gender and land-use conflicts. Her interests focus on stakeholder equity in commons, union support for small food producers, environmental defender rights and creative data design tools in climate justice, environment impact assessments and policy audits for building impactful narratives. She has been a UN Ocean Conference Delegate for the Youth and Innovation Forum in 2022 and the winner of the Innovation challenge in sustainable seafood. She also contributes to the National Fishworkers Forum as the Secretariat - the first woman secretariat to hold office since its foundation. She is an alumni of St. Xavier's College (Mumbai) with a Masters degree in Public Policy.
*Climate Charche, a series hosted and curated by the Bengaluru Sustainability Forum, explores the inter-linkages between climate change and city systems. Through these engagements, BSF aims to exchange knowledge and enhance city-level climate plans for better adaptation and resilience.

[@zenrainman]

What excellent insights from all the speakers . Thank you for this important discussion.