"Securing our Common Futures" Dialogue with Pakistani Delegation

Issues of Land, Water, Seed Sovereignty and Consumption to be addressed on 16th October, at Inst. of Agricultural Technologists, Bangalore, 3 pm

Date: 16 October, 2013
Time: 3.00 pm to 5.00 pm
Venue: Indian Agricultural Institute, Queen's Road, Bangalore

Environment Support Group

[Environmental, Social Justice and Governance Initiatives]

 

invites you to a Dialogue with the 21 member delegation of educationists and environmentalists from Pakistan

 

on the theme

 

Securing our Common Futures

Issues of Land, Water, Seed Sovereignty and Consumption

Wednesday, 16th October 2013

 

at Institute for Agricultural Technologists, Queen's Road, Bangalore 560001

3 pm to 5 pm

 

as part of the India-Pakistan Dialogue on

 

Common Interests and a Common Future: Exploring India-Pakistan Partnership

 

in collaboration with

 

Pakistan India Forum for Peace and Democracy (Karnataka Chapter)

Indian Social Institute (Bangalore), St. Aloysius College (Bangalore), Christian Institute for the Study of Religion and Society, Board of Theological Education of the Senate of Serampore, Visthar, Vimochana/CIEDS Collective and Student Christian Movement of India

 

and

 

Centre for Dialogue and Reconciliation (CDR), Mumbai and Lahore University of Management studies (LUMS), Pakistan

 

Kindly confirm your participation in advance by calling ESG on 26713559 ~61 or by email to shashi@esgindia.org

Environment Support Group, 1572, 36th Cross, Ring Road, Banashankari II Stage, Bangalore 560070. Tel: +91-80-26713559 ~ 61 Fax/Voice: +91-80-26713316

 

Email: esg@esgindia.org Web: www.esgindia.org Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/93728320253/

 

Background Note


Common Interests and a Common Future: Exploring India-Pakistan
Partnership

India-Pakistan Dialogue


India and Pakistan form the pivot of South Asia region and are increasingly playing a decisive
role in global affairs. However, over the past six decades, gruelling poverty, mis-governance,
political manipulation of religion, gender disparities and caste and ethnic conflicts have warped
and wounded daily life of millions in both the countries. Economic advancement has been
blocked, and access to basic rights like health, universal education and employment remains
unacceptably limited to those most in need. Elsewhere in the world conflicts have been
encouragingly and bravely addressed, yetconflicts in of South Asia remainunresolved.

 
The history of India- Pakistanrelations has led to a trust deficit between the two countries.
However, in recent years there is growing number of citizen initiatives and exchanges taking
placebetween India and Pakistan, among people involved in health, education, trade and
business. Despite some scepticism, all these initiatives have helped in making incremental
progress towards normalising Indo- Pak relations.These initiatives are helping to strengthen
cooperation at people to people and institutional level in theareas of mutual interest
Recently India-Pakistan revived the Joint Commission. It has mandate to discuss 8 subjects –
Agriculture, Education, Environment, Health, Information, IT & Telecom, Science &
Technology, and Tourism. This provides scope for a wide cooperation between government as
well as non-governmental Institutions/organizations.

 
To take advantage of these new openings, the Centre for Dialogue and Reconciliation (CDR) and
the Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS) are jointly starting a one year pilot
project. The project hopes to bring representatives of middle schools and Urban Environmental
groups from Karachi, Mumbai, Lahore and Amritsar to shareconcerns, challenges and best
practice experiments. It is hoped that through the discussions and exchange of ideas, the
participants will be able to evolve some ideas that can be implemented by them in their
respective cities. It is also hoped that the schools and environmental groups would form their
networks at the end of the year.

There would be three India Pakistan roundtable dialogues during the year in Mumbai, Lahore
and Amritsar.
 

The project hopes to bring together educationists, and environmental experts and
professionals,and draw from their experience and expertise to evolve new ideas and
recommendations. This project is replicable on a larger scale that can involve larger institutional
collaborations between India and Pakistan. The multiplier effects of such partnerships can be
very diverse and productive.
 

The project roundtable dialogues would focus on three major themes in education and urban
environment protection.The deliberation will focus on issues of common concerns, challenges
andexploring new opportunities that have increased relevance for both the countries.