ESG Imaginaries to Make Cities Work

‘ESG Imaginaries to Make Cities Work’ is a webinar series co-organised by ESG in collaboration with Habitat Forum – INHAF in which key administrators, experts and activists from diverse disciplines and sectors reflected on issues and concerns systemic to urban governance and living, and articulated ideas and imaginaries towards constructing better urban futures.

The report of these four webinars, organised during July and August 2022, can be downloaded here.

Webinar  Reports in English & Kannada( Final & Session-wise)

Recordings 

Background

For over two decades, ESG has focussed on emerging urban environmental and socio-economic challenges and worked with multiple communities, government agencies, academia, media, etc. in attending to these issues and conflicts. The approach has always been about finding viable and inclusive solutions to vexatious problems by advocating deeply democratic processes which draw on intersectoral, interdisciplinary, intersectional experiences, and knowledge and histories.

Bangalore and other cities are in a mess today as they follow highly centralised governance approaches which drift away from Constitutional mandates and legal provisions that require decentralisation of administration and devolution of power. As a result various local publics do not find their due place to imagine their futures, which are then collated to build the collective imagining of the city and its future.

Week 4: Making Cities Of the 21st Century Inclusive

Report of the 4th and final webinar on “Making Cities of the 21st Century Inclusive” co organised by Environment Support Group and INHAF as part of the “Rethinking Cities” webinar series. is accessible here and the video recording here.

This webinar involved two presentations: one contextualising the experience of the transformation of Subramanyapura in South Bangalore and ongoing efforts to accommodate complexities of providing housing for the urban poor while also protecting the water commons, presented by ESG, on the one hand, and on the other, experiences of inclusive urbanisms in praxis across Connecticut and in Northern Rhode Island, USA presented by Kathleen Dorgan, Architect and Urban Planner and practitioner of sustainable community participation. The presentations were followed by responses from each of our discussants and conversations followed based on a Q&A. 

We are grateful that Mr. Tushar Girinath, IAS, Chief Commissioner of Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), Dr. Carol Upadhya, Head, Urban and Mobility Studies, National Institute of Advanced Studies, Mr. Prem Chandavarkar, writer, urbanist and Architect, CnT and Mr. Naresh Narasimhan, urbanist, architect and creative entrepreneur of the VA Group participated.  Mr. Kirtee Shah of INHAF helped sum up this series which were anchored by Mr. Leo Saldanha, Coordinator/Trustee of ESG and Ms. Bhargavi Rao, Senior Fellow/Trustee of ESG.

Week 3

The third webinar was on “Mobility and Infrastructure” held on 21st July 2022, and its report is accessible here and the video recording here.

Week 3 Of ESG Imaginaries To Make Cities Work: Mobility & Infrastructure

ESG has worked with street communities to reclaim streets as public commons, to protect street vendor rights, to promote pedestrian and cycling rights, to secure urban greenery – especially tree lines and heritage spaces, all to promote the idea of a  city that would ensure inclusivity is central to such public spaces and infrastructure. The argument has been and continues to be that there must be deep democratisation of decision making relating to mobility and infrastructure development so that the promise of Article 39 B – that ownership and employment of material resources best serve the  common good – is actually an argument for  protecting commons, ensuring good health, promoting environmentally viable and equitable livelihoods, and ensuring the city is a construct that is socially responsible, economically viable and ecologically wise.  

Week 2  

The second webinar was on “Challenges of Securing Urban Commons” held on 14th July 2022, and its report is accessible here and the video recording here. 

Week 2 of ESG Imaginaries to Make Cities Work: Challenges of Securing Urban Commons

ESG has worked with this problematique of the commons and demonstrated how securing them can be a win-win for all. Working with communities to resist privatisation of commons, such as lakes, and then asking for a policy to protect them with Public Trust Doctrine and the principle of intergenerational equity  as the basis, has resulted in path breaking outcomes – rehabilitation of lakes as inclusive commons and as sacred spaces that deserve community and statutory protection to advance ecological and water security. 

Week 1

The first webinar on “Waste and Governance” was held on 7th July 2022 and its report is accessible here and the video recording here.

Week 1 of ESG Imaginaries To Make Cities Work: Waste And Governance

For over two decades, ESG has focussed on the emerging urban environmental and socio-economic challenges and has been working with multiple communities, government agencies, academia, media, etc. The approach has always been about finding viable and inclusive solutions to vexatious problems advocating deeply democratic processes that draw on  intersectoral, interdisciplinary, intersectional experiences, knowledge and histories. Bangalore and other cities today are in a mess as they follow highly centralised governance approaches that drift from existing legal provisions in which the various local publics find no place to imagine their futures as part of a collective imagining of the city’s future.