Various steps are being taken to achieve green growth, a safe handle to confront the global warming threat and shape a safe economic future, with an ultimate aim to achieve Carbon Net Zero by 2070 as envisaged by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India told representatives from the Asia-Pacific region at an international conference held recently.
At the event "Productivity and Green Growth: New Interlocking Paradigms" held in Chennai, Sundeep Kumar Nayak, Director General, National Productivity Council (NPC) explained how the Council has been promoting productivity enhancement making the country move towards green growth.
He also elaborated the need to prioritize green finance in decoupling industrial growth from environmental degradation and highlighted practical approaches to achieve the same.
Earlier, Asian Productivity Organization, Tokyo Secretary General Dr. Indra Pradana Singawinata echoed similar views saying that we need to go beyond environmental protection and adopt a broader, more holistic measure of sustainable development that captures not only the ecological but also the social, cultural, and human dimensions of well-being. Ensuring that sustainability is inclusive means guaranteeing the involvement of all stakeholders in decision-making processes, especially those most affected by environmental challenges, said Dr Singawinata.
The event witnessed participation from experts, policymakers, industry leaders, and stakeholders who discussed strategies for institutional strengthening for green growth, financing mechanisms, leveraging ESG ratings to boost green finance and realizing net zero emission targets for achieving higher productivity and green growth.
International participants were those from countries such as Republic of Korea, Taiwan, Malaysia, Philippines, Indonesia, Singapore, Fiji etc.
APO National Awards for the year 2022 were also announced during the conference. GMR Rao, Group Chairman, GMR Group was conferred with APO National Award for Productivity Advocate for his exemplary work in championing the cause of productivity while Professor Pradip Kumar Ray, Emeritus Professor, IIT Kharagpur was conferred with APO National Award for Productivity Technical Expert in recognition to his grass root level work encompassing productivity modeling, ergonomics, safety engineering, and lean engineering operations management.
The conference was addressed by international experts including Dr Hung Suck Park Distinguished Chair, Professor, Department of Chemical Engineering, Ulsan College, Ulsan, ROK; Dr. Kaushik Deb, Senior Research Scholar, Center on Global Energy Policy, Columbia University, USA and Nicholas Gandolfo, Director, Sustainable Finance Solutions (AsiaPacific), Sustainalytics, Singapore.
