Climate change mitigation involves strategies aimed at decreasing greenhouse gas emissions, promoting renewable energy sources, improving energy efficiency, and implementing sustainable practices. CSTEP focuses on building models to simulate India's future across sectors, such as transport, industries, buildings, agriculture, and forestry, to find interventions required to achieve a sustainable and secure future. Our work also involves the study of certain themes that cut across sectors (quality of life and development vs climate action, water and land demands for agriculture vs power, etc).
CSTEP's SAFARI model: Balancing development with climate action requires a good understanding of the interactions between sectors, natural resource systems, and environmental externalities. The Climate Change Mitigation at CSTEP has undertaken a modelling study with the aim to provide such an understanding and help create scenarios for low-carbon development through the use of an interactive simulation tool called Sustainable Alternative Futures for India (SAFARI). You can access the tool here.
SAFARI estimates the energy, emissions, and resources implications of achieving developmental goals such as food, housing, healthcare, education, power for all, and transport up to 2050. The user interface allows you to explore these implications as well as the trade-offs between them. Using SAFARI, you can create integrated scenarios across sectors and test out the impact of policy choices on energy, emissions, and resources. Ultimately, we hope that this tool can be used to provide insights into developing and tracking India's long-term strategy (LTS) in line with the Paris Agreement. For more information, please contact safari@cstep.in
A Sustainable Development Framework for India's Climate Policy
As a large developing country, India’s challenge is to meet its development aspirations in a carbon-constrained world. This study, undertaken by CSTEP, uses Sustainable Development (SD) as the overarching framework and aims at equitable access to energy, clean air and water, food, health and livelihoods and economic growth. The study connects elements of SD in an integrated bottom-up approach to understand the implications for economy, energy trajectories, emissions and costs. Any reduction of CO2 is treated as a co-benefit of the framework mentioned above.
Need for Government Support for Public Bus Transport
With increasing trends in road congestion, air pollution, energy demand and emissions, there is a need to look for effective solutions to meet the urban transport demand in Bengaluru. BMTC and Bangalore Metro Rail with their collective network can contribute to an effective and integrated public transport system in the city. The report lists out the imperatives for sustained investments in a bus system. It also provides certain recommendations for supporting the existing bus system which has high network coverage in Bengaluru and serves 50 lakh passenger trips per day.
Electric Buses in India: Technology, Policy and Benefits
With deteriorating air quality, there is a need to promote public transportation. The shift from conventional diesel buses to electric buses holds several benefits. Electric buses can play a positive role by reducing local pollution, noise and fuel consumption. However, it currently faces many challenges with respect to cost and safety concerns. These challenges can, however, be addressed by a good Battery Management System (BMS), rigorous implementation of standard operating procedures and customisation of bus fleet.
Round Table on Feasibility of Electrification of Public Transportation
A round table, on the feasibility and implementation plan for electrification of public transportation in Bengaluru, was co-organised by CSTEP, India Smart Grid Forum (ISGF), and Shakti Sustainable Energy Foundation (SSEF).
Sustainable urbanization using high speed rail (HSR) in Karnataka, India
Sustainable urbanization using high speed rail (HSR) in Karnataka, India.
Institutional analysis of urban transportation in Bangalore
Institutional analysis of urban transportation in Bangalore.This paper maps and explains the institutional structure of urban transportation policy in Bangalore, India. Our critique of individual agencies and methods of policy making and implementation will demonstrate how the current setup negatively affects urban transportation planning in Bangalore. We suggest about broad institutional changes that we believe would improve outcomes and service delivery.
Scenarios: Shaping India's Future
India’s future depends on how we approach three ‘mutually-reinforcing’ aspects: (i) inclusion, (ii) governance and (iii) models for efficient use of natural resources: water, land, and energy.
Quality of Life for All: A Sustainable Development Framework for India's Climate Policy - Technical Report
Quality of Life for All: A Sustainable Development Framework for India's Climate Policy
Urban Transport Planning in Bengaluru: A Polycentric Governance System
Urban Transport Planning in Bengaluru: A Polycentric Governance System