Are greener policies the answer to climate change?
Public policy shapes almost every aspect of our lives. Greener policies need to be implemented on an urgent basis in order to tackle the climate change crisis. On 11th July, Talk Dharti To Me hosted a webinar on transforming traditional systems to make them more sustainable.
The three speakers who led the webinar were Saurabh Jain, Shagun Sethi, and Pujarini Sen. They are all involved in shaping green policies in various capacities, from representing governments and consulting firms to climate advocacy groups. They spoke about what it means to be a changemaker and shape a more sustainable future for all. All three of our speakers spoke about their careers and openly shared their opinions on what transforming institutions entails. In case you missed it, you can view the recording of the webinar here:
01:18 – Opening
01:43 – Introductions
04:08 – Saurabh Jain
Saurabh Jain is the Research & Policy Secretary to the Minister of Environment & Climate Change Govt. of Maharashtra. He steers all climate-related initiatives for the GoM under the Minister’s leadership. He is a Konrad Adenauer Scholar and an incoming Master’s student at the Hertie School, in Berlin. He has extensive experience in the field of public policy with stints in the Ministry of Commerce and Industry and the IPAC (Indian Political Action Committee)
15:10 – Shagun Sethi
Shagun is a Consultant for ESG, Business and Human Rights. She has a Master’s degree in Global Thought from Columbia University. Prior to that, she studied political science and sociology at the University of Delhi. She is passionate about women's rights and recently co-authored “Walk With Women: Gendered Perceptions of Safety in Urban Spaces” with Leading Cities. Shagun also serves as a Director for Global Leadership at One Shared World and has been recognised on India's A list for her work in global leadership and development.
28:40 – Pujarini Sen
Pujari Sen is a Global Climate Diplomacy Manager at Climate Group. She has 12+ years of experience working in the climate space - roles ranging from government relations and policy advocacy to global climate and energy negotiations. She has previously worked with leading international organizations such as Greenpeace and has a Bachelor of Arts degree from Jadavpur university.
38:55 – Q & A
39:02 – [To Shagun & Saurabh] As individuals in the private and public sectors respectively, what are your opinions on public-private partnerships? Is that something that you believe your respected sector is interested in or believes in, and do you think it could be a viable green way forward?
45:50 – [To Pujarini] I agree with the notion that cooperation is key, in particular for the climate problem, it is a multidisciplinary problem. So, what would be some methods for the sustainability community to reach out to people from other fields to give them incentives to work together?
51:43 – Our efforts may not be enough to wake the conscience of companies, which is why incentivising action and penalising in-adherence for the same seems like the more effective solution. For instance, in my industry, which is architecture, rainwater harvesting is one such issue. So, what are your thoughts on the same? Also, how do we make sure that individuals and businesses that have embarked on this journey don’t pause or quit owing to the bleeding from R&D?
1:00:20 – Closing & Thanks