INDIA HUB
Hub Lead:
Dr Mathew A Varghese
Hub Members:
Dr Abhilash Thadathils
Hub background
Priority themes of SF India Hub include Human-non human relationships, Urban Ecologies, Ecosystem interventions in the everyday, Embodied Climatic Understandings, Imaginations and Perspectives with Children, Thinking through Animals.
They are using Mahatma Ganghi University as a node, especially the extended activity of the Urban Centre with the SF Network’s assistance in reaching out to broader communities, such as engagements with City Corporations and Public Schools in India.
Hub Projects
The project is comprised of two broad segments, that entail a significant intervention in the field of sustainable development and climate, with emphasis on the urban/ urbanising contexts. The activity will comprise a joint work by the academia, actors contextually located on the ground and the city corporation in bringing up a field-based problems identified and possible suggestions of intervention and co-operative planning. This will be an initiative of the hub in partnership with university and city corporation, with a long-term agenda of establishing a functional urban ecology lab with field repositories at the CUS for ecological connectivities, designs, and eventual mappings. The partnership envisages advocacies and creative policy interventions, among other things, through developing further the existing memorandums of understandings.
You can access students’ writing about the first stakeholders engagement here.
The hub as collaborated on a report titled “Ecology as Infrastructural to Urban Fabric and Incorporated to Heritage”, under the thematic pillar of “People, Culture, and Heritage” by the Kerala Urban Policy Commission. It emphasises integrating ecological perspectives into urban planning and heritage preservation. It aligns urban ecological infrastructure with cultural narratives to support sustainable urban development.
Key points include:
- Urban Ecology and Heritage Integration: The report discusses how incorporating natural ecosystems into urban infrastructure can enhance heritage values and community well-being.
- Sustainability through Local Systems: Using case studies, it highlights successful examples of urban ecological systems like water-sensitive designs and sustainable practices that preserve cultural landscapes while meeting urban needs.
- Policy Recommendations: It proposes a framework for policymakers to view ecological systems as core infrastructure rather than supplementary, advocating for their incorporation into urban development processes.
- Community Engagement: The report stresses participatory approaches to ensure the inclusion of local knowledge in planning.
The underlying philosophy reflects the importance of balancing development with ecological and cultural preservation, aligning with sustainable development goals like SDG 11.4 (protecting cultural and natural heritage).
Members
