Sustainable and Secure Future

We bring you CSTEP’s Annual Report for 2022–2023.

As we look at the past year, we reflect on collaborations that helped us forge impactful strategies to solve some of the grand challenges that the country faces today. Our world-class research founded on solid partnerships will help the country navigate through critical problems, such as climate risk and green energy transition, to shape a better tomorrow. This Annual Report is a throwback to our endeavours and a testament to our efforts in building a sustainable and resilient future.

Climate-resilient infrastructure refers to the built environment designed and constructed to withstand the impacts of climate change, including rising temperatures, increased precipitation, sea-level rise, and more frequent extreme weather events.

Cyclone Mocha — the first storm of 2023 in the North Indian Ocean — killed people, destroyed buildings, and caused economic losses in Myanmar, Bangladesh, Eastern India, and Sri Lanka. Barely a month later, Biparjoy — a rare June cyclone — formed over the Arabian Sea and struck Gujarat and other western states in India.

Plastic pollution has reached a tipping point, endangering our ecosystems, wildlife, and the very fabric of our planet. This World Environment Day marks the theme ‘Solutions to Plastic Pollution’ to address this urgent global crisis. By collectively committing to sustainable alternatives, responsible consumption, and stringent policies, we can drive the change necessary to combat plastic pollution and restore the health of our environment.

World Environment Day, celebrated on June 5 every year, serves as a global call to action to address pressing environmental challenges. As we stand at the intersection of environmental crises, we must reflect on the state of our planet and take decisive action to safeguard our future. It is imperative for nations to step up their efforts to protect and preserve our planet. India — home to diverse ecosystems — is among the countries at the forefront of this global movement.

The first two articles of our ‘Under the Weather, On the Move’ blog series talked about the various considerations in conceptualising climate migration, and why migration is usually not the first adaptation strategy when facing a combination of climatic and non-climatic risks.

A quarterly newsletter featuring CSTEP commentary, publications, events, and other developments.

The solar photovoltaic industry is witnessing a remarkable expansion worldwide. India is ranked fourth globally in ground-mounted photovoltaic deployment. While this is impressive, the waste resulting from such end-of-life photovoltaic panels is expected to be enormous at 4.5 million tonnes by 2050, as per our estimates. In the absence of suitable infrastructure facilities and a lack of proactive policies for recycling, waste accumulation can become an unmanageable problem.

Human mobility in the context of environmental impacts has been gaining increasing attention. Our blog series ‘Under the Weather, On the Move’ seeks to demystify climate migration by exploring some of its key aspects, intersectional variations, and policy angles.

In this first article, we discuss how climate migration can be broadly defined.

World Environment Day reminds us—the contributing species to pollution on planet Earth—that the environment can be preserved through mindful actions and addressing harmful human activities.

In the context of this year's focus on combating plastic pollution, the United Nations Environment Programme has strongly emphasised the significant role of individuals in accelerating the shift to a plastic-free world.