BIPF spearheads community-driven climate resilience with Ideate 2024

By Soumya Mohapatra

Bhubaneswar,Sept. 5: Bansidhar & Ila Panda Foundation (BIPF), in partnership with Dasra, on Thursday successfully concluded the 13th edition of its annual flagship conference, IDEATE 2024.

This year’s theme, “Utkal Udyam: Community-Centric Development for Climate Resilience,” convened policymakers and industry leaders across segments to address the pressing challenges of climate change and to explore transformative strategies that empower grassroots communities or climate adaptation.

In her welcoming address, Ms. Shaifalika Panda, Trustee and Founder CEO, BIPF, emphasised the importance of inclusive collaboration in building climate-resilient communities. She said, “By working together, we can co-create solutions to amplify our impact, pool our resources, and drive systemic change. Recognising the tremendous potential within our communities and empowering them is not just an option but essential to building resilience towards climate change.”

Delivering the special address, Mr.Benjamin Sovacool, Director, Boston University for Global Sustainability, highlighted the need for local knowledge integration and remarked, “Communities in Asia are leading the way in piloting new and innovative forms of nature-based, institutional, and informational climate adaptation that will help protect people for decades to come. The best of these efforts harness communities themselves as critical agents of change.”

A key highlight of the event was the panel discussion titled “Harnessing Grassroots Knowledge for Climate Resilience. During the discussion, Mr. Samir Shisodia, CEO of Rainmatter Foundation, outlined the need to build a collaborative ecosystem and said, “We have lost sight of the big picture by focusing extensively on the various multidimensional aspects.

Building a collaborative ecosystem is not a choice, but essential for climate action”. Further, Mr. Jarnail Singh, Deputy Director (India), MacArthur Foundation underlined the importance of localisation and said, “State-based strategies play a crucial role in combating climate change, driving localized solutions that are both sustainable and impactful.”

Other esteemed panelists included Mr. Devjit Mittra, Programmes Director, Socratus Foundation; Padma Shri Sabarmatee, Co-Founder, SAMBHAV; and Ms. Tanaya Patnaik, Director, Sambad Group (Eastern Media Ltd.). The panel was moderated by Ms. Parnasha Banerjee, Director, ClimateRISE, Dasra.

In addition, a fireside chat between Dr. Abha Mishra, Head of Office-Odisha, UNDP India; Ms. Bijal Brahmbhatt, Director of Mahila Housing Trust, andclimate champion Madhusmita Paridaexaminedways of creating an ecosystem with women at the core, coming together to scale up climate action.

The objectives of Ideate 2024 focused on promoting sustainable practices, addressing vulnerabilities in natural resource management, and ensuring equitable resource access for communities across India. The forum also encouraged collaboration and underlined the role of philanthropy as a catalyst in building climate-resilient communities.