Observer Research Foundation America

What an epic few days it’s been as part of the Observer Research Foundation America US-India Emerging Climate Leaders Program! 🌍✨🌱🚀 Picture this: endless brainwaves on clean energy, climate policy and getting up close and personal with cutting-edge innovations shaping a greener future. From the roundtable discussions contextualizing U.S.-India Energy and Climate Cooperation with the U.S. Embassy India and USAID India to having deep-dive chats on foreign policy over chai at NITI Aayog, every moment has been packed with inspiration and game-changing ideas. 💡 The whole experience was like blending tech, nature, and diplomacy into one massive brainstorm session. And trust me, the #climate future looks exciting when you have passionate leaders from both the U.S. and India exchanging bold visions. 🌍⚡ What blew my mind? The sheer #collaboration magic! This wasn’t just a bunch of meetings—it was a fusion of policymakers, clean energy startups, climate geeks, and business all pulling together to figure out how to fix the biggest puzzle of our generation and infact for the humankind! Leaving this experience with a head full of ideas, a notebook crammed with action plans, and a heart full of excitement for the next steps in climate action. 🌟 Here's to disrupting the status quo, powering up on clean energy, and making some serious waves for a sustainable future. A huge shout out to Medha Prasanna, Shayak Sengupta and Caroline Vecci Arkalji in shaping and delivering this wonderful program. Ready to roll, and can’t wait to keep this momentum going with all the amazing leaders I met along the way! 💪🌎 Amol Kapoor | Abigail Doerr | Bhagyashri Kulkarni | Ishan K. Sharma | Jonika Rathi | Karan Sinha | Lindsay Maizland | Miaoru G. | Meenakshi Venkatraman | Mridu Jhangiani | Pankaj Mahalle | Patrick Soltis | Perrin Krisko | Paul Gordon | Vandita Sariya | Vanshica Kant | Vedant Patil | Tanya Kak

The killing of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah has raised tensions in the Middle East. Dhruva Jaishankar explains how ongoing conflicts in the Middle East complicate both India’s tactical economic objectives and its longer-term strategic goals. "The recent developments in the Middle East complicate both India’s tactical economic objectives and its longer-term strategic goals. Anticipating a period of heightened tensions and intensified proxy conflicts will be necessary as India continues to deepen engagement with various power centers in this contested region." Read more: https://bit.ly/4gQBvkn

The #Global #Digital #Compact, which was adopted at #UNGA79, wades into the tricky undercurrents of global debates over #data #governance, #human #rights and more importantly, the regulation of #emerging #technologies. Learn more from Anit Mukherjee's Comments: https://bit.ly/4emsEW0. "As we saw during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Global South is at the back of the queue and will be among the last to benefit from technological breakthroughs, be it in digital, energy or health sectors. The GDC’s focus on AI, while relevant at present, overshadows the need for a strategic vision of how global cooperation in technology can benefit the poorest and the most vulnerable. What it does, however, is to provide a broad scope for countries of the Global South to cooperate and co-create solutions relevant for their development needs and priorities. The power of cooperation will hopefully be more than the power of a few countries – and companies – to determine the fate of three quarters of humanity. Digital transformation should work for the benefit of development of the countries of the Global South, not to their detriment."

I am incredibly grateful for the enriching learning exposure and invaluable networking opportunities I received during the Study Trip Schedule in New Delhi as a U.S.-India Emerging Climate Leader. Visiting renowned organizations and meeting the brilliant individuals who are at the forefront of shaping climate policy in both the U.S. and India was truly inspiring. Each interaction deepened my understanding of the collaborative efforts needed to tackle the pressing climate challenges we face today. A heartfelt thank you to the team at Observer Research Foundation America for making this experience possible. Your passion, commitment, and innovative ideas fuel my motivation to contribute meaningfully to our shared goals. Medha Prasanna Caroline Vecci Arkalji Dhruva Jaishankar

As a part of the Observer Research Foundation America's #Emerging #Climate #Leaders fellowship study trip to Delhi last week, I met an amazing cohort of climate professionals, learnt from and interacted with various researchers and think tanks--including India's apex public policy think tank NITI Aayog. Had an exciting week with a fun bunch and I hope connections made will go a long way :)

Over the last few days, participating in the Observer Research Foundation America U.S.-India #Emerging #Climate #Leaders Program (ECL24) in Delhi offered a unique opportunity to collaborate with an inspiring cohort of professionals in energy, climate finance, agriculture, and climate journalism. Our journey included engaging in discussions at the Centre for Social and Economic Progress, TERI - The Energy and Resources Institute, Ananta Aspen Centre, Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW), and the Clean Energy International Incubation Centre, as well as with USIBC - US India Business Council and the Observer Research Foundation. We explored India's energy potential, the integration of renewable technologies, and opportunities for collaboration. Engaging with thought leaders like NITI Aayog's Shri Suman K. Bery, Dr. Shamika Ravi, Mr. Sanjeev Sanyal, and U.S. Embassy India DCM Jorgan Andrews provided deep insights into sustainable development, economic policymaking, and the evolving U.S.-India climate partnership. A key aspect of the program was the opportunity to discuss our working policy papers, which addressed opportunities and challenges in the climate and energy sector while proposing actionable solutions. This included recommendations for bilateral collaborations between India and the U.S. to strengthen our efforts in addressing climate change. The experience was both inspiring and thought-provoking, offering valuable perspectives on advancing climate action and fostering energy transitions for a sustainable future. #ECL24 #ClimateAction #EnergyTransition #SustainableDevelopment #USIndiaRelations

The last few days have been really insightful on the study tour with Observer Research Foundation America's India-US climate leaders program. I could tell you that we attended many important meetings with policy experts, govt officials, civil society partners, and private sector players, all relentlessly working towards a shared future, but will leave that for another time. While all of this is crucial, lately, I have found myself thinking about how exposure to such diversity in approaches and ideas for innovations to address the most defining crisis of our times can come together? Affecting social change itself is a complex and long drawn process, but what happens when you add speed and scale to this complexity as you think about the #climate crisis? How do you balance the urgency of reducing greenhouse gas emissions with the long drawn task of fundamentally changing our patterns of consumption, production and everything in between? I don't claim to have any clear answers but this fellowship has been a great reminder of building communities of practice that form the fabric of this change. When a crisis is that overwhelming and universal, sticking to one individual ground breaking approach or one organisation that knows it all can be limiting. In that sense, the problem must first belong to and be owned by several such communities of practice together. Then, we might actually have a shot to look at building a lens of affecting change at an ecosystem level (sorry not a fan of 'solving' and 'reversing' the climate crisis mindset). To the extent this is true, I found strength in being a part of one such community of practice through the course of this fellowship - whether it was discussing the emergent climate and energy technologies we are excited about, or sharing the uncertainty of the impending US elections - from discussing why poverty and developmental challenges precede any conversation on emissions , to laughing (and possibly crying) about how much research is enough research for our joint policy memos ( hint - 100 citations are now 1 footnote; expert feedback and peer reviews now feature even in our dreams). We are able to appreciate the fact that addressing climate change is not separate from the day to day experiences of living through heat waves and seeing how that's both - a livelihood struggle and a climate change reality, of walking through a city with a receding forest cover but looking at some promising climate resilient agricultural technologies in the same piece of land, holding contradictions - all while immersing ourselves in local cultures, shared vulnerabilities of being young professionals who still don't quite know if all our efforts will ever be enough. It seems to me that connecting at the level of the community instead of just the challenge might be a better approach to look at fighting a big crisis. So here's to this community that I am truly grateful to know and be a part of.

🌱 #ClimateWeekNYC wraps up today. Some highlights from our programming this week in both New York and Delhi: - September 22-27: #Emerging #Climate #Leaders study trip in 🇮🇳. 19 young leaders traveled to Delhi to learn more about U.S.-India #energy and #climate #cooperation. - September 25: At India Day @ #UNGA, Dhruva Jaishankar moderated the discussion, “To the Lighthouse? Promises and Pathways for the Rising South”. Speakers included Daniel Seymour, Gargee Ghosh, Udaibir Saran Das, and Aude Darnal. - September 25: Evening reception with the Sequoia Climate Foundation and the Council on Foreign Relations. Speakers included John Podesta, 🇺🇸 Special Advisor for International Climate Policy, Ed Miliband, 🇬🇧 Secretary for Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, and Mari Elka Pangestu, 🇮🇩 Special Envoy for Climate.

ICYMI: Comments from this week 🔽 - Natalie Boyse explores American perceptions and knowledge of modern India - Caroline Vecci Arkalji explains how #GlobalSouth nations like 🇧🇷 and 🇮🇳 are tackling #rapid #urbanization and #development Read more: https://bit.ly/3yM2cG0