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THEME PAPER
cities, the Urban Local Bodies Reduction 2015-2030 was climate change adaptation and
(ULBs) will especially have also developed which aims mitigation, and to supporting
to play a significant role in to “strengthen social and the efforts of cities and human
providing inclusive services economic resilience to ease settlements, their inhabitants
for all and transforming cities the negative effects of climate and all local stakeholders as
into incubation centres for change, man-made disasters, important implementers.”
innovation and sustainable and natural hazards”. The Member countries are also
growth. Sustainable Development encouraged to commit
Goals (SDGs) adopted by the to “supporting building
According to the estimates United Nations in 2015, further resilience and reducing
from Climate Watch by World outlines targets and actions emissions of greenhouse gases
Resources Institute, India that keep local governments from all relevant sectors”.
emits per capita emissions of accountable and promotes These transformations
about 2.47 tonnes of carbon regular monitoring and must ensure to “leave no
dioxide equivalent (tco2), reporting against the targets. one behind” in the path
as compared to the global The SDG 11 - Sustainable towards sustainable urban
average of 6.45 tco2per capita Cities and Communities - development. This highlights
(WRI 2020).According to the and SDG 13 - Climate Action the importance of addressing
Global Climate Risk Index - together lay out targets and needs of the vulnerable and
2020, India was also found to indicators to capture progress marginalized communities
have had the highest number in reducing vulnerability of while developing and
of deaths in 2018 due to urban communities while implementing any climate
extreme weather events, such developing infrastructure that action and resilience strategies
as cyclones, heavy rainfall, is climate resilient. There are in cities.
floods, and landslides a few trade-offs between the
(Business Standard, 2019). In two goals, but with effective CHALLENGES OF
this scenario, it is imperative policy making and urban MA INS T RE A M IN G
for Indian cities and management, cities and RESILIENCE IN CITIES
governments to strengthen communities can be made
resilience building efforts more sustainable, as well as Achieving climate resilience
and align with global goals help local institutions to spur in Indian cities needs to be a
and targets that focus on climate action. holistic and iterative process,
enhancing technical and as the cities face a myriad
financial capacities of cities. Additionally, the New Urban of challenges. There is a
Agenda (NUA) initiated presence of complex urban
To ensure global emission by the United Nations, and ecosystems with multiple
reduction, the Paris adopted in 2016 by national tiers of governance which
Agreement was adopted in governments, provides a exacerbate issues related to
2015 wherein the member roadmap for sustainable urban environmental degradation,
countries aimed to keep the development over the next 20 vulnerable infrastructure,
global temperature rise this years. A key recommendation and inadequate attention to
century well below 2 degrees under the ‘Environmentally socio-economic wellbeing of
Celsius above pre-industrial sustainable and resilient citizens. A report by C40 Cities
levels. And to reduce urban development’ policy Climate Group (C40 Cities
and prevent climate risks is to promote “international, 2016) classifies urban climate
across the globe, the Sendai national, sub-national and action challenges into two
Framework for Disaster Risk local climate action, including broad categories - 1) systemic
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