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event-category: State Climate Action

First Division-level Conference of Panchayats (COP) in Maharashtra in Nagpur

We are bringing together grassroots leaders, government officials, and civil society at the Chitnavis Centre, Nagpur on 20th August 2025, for the inaugural Conference of Panchayats (COP) focused on climate action in Eastern Vidarbha. Against the backdrop of Maharashtra’s mounting climate crises – droughts, water stress, crop losses, and shifting forest landscapes – this one-day gathering aims to forefront Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) as champions of local resilience.

The Nagpur COP is being organised by Asar in collaboration with the State Climate Action Cell (Environment & Climate Change Department, Government of Maharashtra), Waatavaran Foundation, YUVA Rural Association (YRA), and Policy Development Advisory Group (PDAG).  

The event will feature interactive sessions and collaborative group work, enabling Sarpanches and Panchayat representatives from over 50 villages in Nagpur, Gondia, Bhandara, Chandrapur, Wardha, and Gadchiroli to co-create pathways to initiate and sustain conversations and action on climate adaptation, sustainable agriculture, forestry, and livelihoods in their respective districts and blocks. 

With special addresses from state and district leaders, and facilitators from YRA, Waatavaran, PDAG, and Asar, this event promises meaningful exchange, practical solutions, and momentum for future district-level convenings.

Multi-Stakeholder Consultation on Climate-Resilient and People-Centric Development in the Himalayan and Sub-Himalayan Region of West Bengal

Asar in collaboration with its local partner, Praajak Development Society, in support from University of North Bengal, is organising a Multi-Stakeholder Consultation on Climate-Resilient and People-Centric Development in the Himalayan and Sub-Himalayan Region of West Bengal. 

Given the constantly emerging climate induced vulnerabilities, the Eastern Himalayan Region and the Terai are at the immense grip of the emerging threats including altered rainfall patterns, rising temperatures, biodiversity loss, and increasing frequency of landslides and flash floods, particularly in the fragile Himalayan ecology. Traditional livelihoods such as tea cultivation, forest-based and agricultural work, and mandarin orange farming are increasingly under stress. Considering such a situation, it becomes important to focus on building a climate-resilience and climate-adaptabile model in this region, as much as it is important to look at the net-zero emissions target. 

This regional consultation is intended to initiate a discourse around climate-adaptive and people-centric alternative economy and livelihood potential for this region. 

This pivotal consultation aims to bring together a diverse set of stakeholders, including researchers, practitioners, policymakers and community leaders to engage in meaningful dialogue which will be focused around following key themes

  • Localised economic diversification, strengthening sectors like tea, mandarin orange etc while promoting complementary and climate-resilient livelihood opportunities; 
  • Community-driven pathways for climate-resilient livelihoods;
  • Policies and collaborations that ensure a just, inclusive and ecologically sustainable transition 

Report Launch | Pathways of Transition: Climate Resilience and Energy Efficiency in Agriculture (CREEA) – Learnings from District-Level Consultative Interdepartmental Workshops, Kerala

On 16 July 2025, we launched a report that brings together months of field-level insights and institutional collaboration: Pathways of Transition: Climate Resilience and Energy Efficiency in Agriculture (CREEA) – Learnings from District-Level Consultative Interdepartmental Workshops, Kerala

The report captures key takeaways from the CREEA district workshops held between July 2023 and January 2024, conducted with the guidance and support of the Department of Agriculture Development and Farmers’ Welfare and the Energy Management Centre (EMC), Kerala.

The launch event saw participation from over 100 attendees, including senior officials from across departments—Agriculture, Animal Husbandry, Soil Survey, Groundwater, LSGD, MGNREGS, ANERT, NABARD, Kudumbashree, Kerala Agricultural University, and others.

We were honoured to have:
Shri P. Prasad, Hon. Minister for Agriculture
Shri K. Krishnankutty, Hon. Minister for Electricity
Dr. Shekhar Kuriakose, Chief Resilience Officer, Kerala State Climate Change Adaptation Mission
Dr. R. Harikumar, Director, EMC-Kerala, who delivered the welcome address.

What does the report offer?

  • Hyper-local documentation of climate impacts and vulnerabilities across Kerala
  • Introduction to the CREEA framework & principles for resilience and energy efficiency in agriculture
  • Insights from the consultation process and multi-departmental structure of district-level CREEA workshops
  • Field stories and climate-resilient agriculture (CRA) initiatives already underway
  • A set of flagship projects aligned with five key priority areas:
    1️⃣ Integration and Convergence
    2️⃣ Risk and Emergency Planning
    3️⃣ Climate-Resilient Farming Systems
    4️⃣ Net-Zero and Energy-Efficient Agriculture
    5️⃣ Capacity Building and Skill Development

At the heart of this work is a simple but powerful belief: Tackling the impacts of climate change in agriculture isn’t just about new technologies—it’s about listening, learning, and acting together.

We hope this report helps catalyse that journey—through multi-stakeholder and inter-departmental consultation, convergence, and collective ownership.

How can state-level collaboration shape resilient food systems in your region?

Conclave on Sustainable Transition for a Climate Resilient MH

Asar recently organised a co-creation conclave on ‘Sustainable Transition for a Climate Resilient Maharashtra’. The conclave brought together 25+ civil society and community-based organisations from across the state to lay the foundation for a common understanding of the just transition process. 

Mr Abhijit Ghorpade, Director of the State Climate Action Cell (Govt of Maharashtra) delivered the keynote address highlighting the significance of including community-level stakeholders in steering the transition.

Special remarks and panel discussions with experts from leading policy think tanks, academia, and grassroots organisations helped introduce, simplify and contextualise the concept of Just Transition to the participating organisations through the lenses of labour, migration, gender, and livelihoods.

Plenary sessions with the participating organisations included deliberations on the current understanding of climate resilience and just transition, the need for information and knowledge dissemination about risks and opportunities from the transition, the need for a regional focus within the state, opportunities across sectors for Maharashtra, and approaches for sustained engagement between local collaborators.

The meeting highlighted the need for more grassroots engagement on critical climate-related issues especially in villages and vulnerable urban clusters. It is an important step towards fostering greater local and state-wide multi-stakeholder collaborations to build climate resilience.

Asar signs MoU with Maharashtra’s State Climate Action Cell

A New Chapter in Our Work in Maharashtra

On July 3, 2025, Asar Social Impact Advisors signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the State Climate Action Cell, Department of Environment and Climate Change, Government of Maharashtra.

This 3-year partnership builds on our shared commitment to strengthening climate action in the state. Together, we will:

➡️ Co-develop District Climate Action Plans for Beed and Raigad.

➡️ Deepen grassroots engagement through initiatives like the Conferences of Panchayats (CoPs).

➡️ Create accessible, multilingual Information, Education, and Communication (IEC) materials on climate change in Marathi, Hindi, and English, tailored to regional contexts and sociocultural contexts.

➡️ Expand climate education by facilitating learning exchanges, training local administrators, and supporting a statewide network of climate educators.

We’re thankful for the leadership and continued support of Mr. Abhijit Ghorpade, Director, State Climate Action Cell. This collaboration reflects what we believe in deeply—climate action that is co-created, inclusive, and grounded in local realities.

Spotlight on Women and Climate: Talk and Photo Exhibition in Chennai

On March 8, marking International Women’s Day, Asar and Poovulagin Nanbargal hosted a talk on the economic impact of climate change on women by noted economist Ms. Jayati Ghosh. She emphasized the need for governments to recognize how climate change disproportionately affects women.

National award-winning director Vetri Maaran inaugurated a powerful photo exhibition curated by Thiyagu and Vignesh, documenting the struggles of women in Ennore, where environmental hazards like oil spills and ammonia leaks have impacted livelihoods.

The event, introduced by Priya and coordinated by Kavitha Muralidharan and Jenny, drew over 300 participants, including students from 17 colleges, and received wide media coverage from outlets such as The Hindu, New Indian Express, Nakheeran, and IBC Tamil.

Co-creation Conclave 2.0

Asar organised the second state-level meeting as part of its co-creation conclave series on Just Transition across Jharkhand in Ranchi on 1st October 2024. 30 participants from 23 civil society and community-based organizations across the state came together to ideate on actionable steps for the thematic areas that were identified during the first conclave held in May.

What stood out the most wasn’t just the discussions but the ownership that emerged. Organisations volunteered to lead and host the next three meetings—showing that this isn’t just a conversation but an initiative that’s gaining momentum! 

We’re now in the process of refining all the incredible ideas into a strategic roadmap for the next few months. The collective commitment was monthly virtual meet-ups and quarterly physical gatherings to ensure we keep pushing the agenda forward.

Highlights of the Day:

  1. The spirit of collaboration shown through multiple organisations stepping up to take leadership roles.

2. Hearing participants reference our work with Conference of Panchayats as a model for driving systemic, long-term change was truly inspiring!

3. Establishing clear timelines and collaborative working groups will foster accountability and ensure that the momentum from the conclave leads to tangible, on-ground results.

This journey is just the beginning, and with such a dynamic and committed group, we’re inspired to work towards making a lasting impact together.