BRICS Academic Mid-Term Conference

Registration

Inaugural Session

Ceremonial Lamp Lighting

Welcome Address

Surekha Dangwal, Vice Chancellor, Doon University, India

Thematic Address

Harsh V Pant, Vice President, Observer Research Foundation; Executive Director, BRICS Think Tanks Council, India 

Video Address

Gurmit Singh, PVSM, UYSM, AVSM, VSM (Retd), Governor of Uttarakhand, India

Inaugural Address

Anand Bardhan, Chief Secretary, Uttarakhand, India

Keynote Address 

Shambhu L. Hakki, Joint Secretary (MER), Ministry of External Affairs; BRICS Sous Sherpa, Government of India 

Break

Spotlight Address and Launch of Special Report

Reimagining Credit Ratings: Sovereignty, Risk, and the New Financial Order

Mehul Pandya, Managing Director & Group CEO, CareEdge Group, India

Session 1: Green Industrial Transformation in a Fragmented Global Economy

Economic growth has long gone hand in hand with industrial transformation and rising energy use. In a net-zero world, that equation is being rewritten, with major implications for how countries develop and compete. As geopolitical fragmentation deepens, green industrial policy is now being shaped by strategic competition. Export controls and supply chain constraints are further narrowing the space for cooperation. At the same time, BRICS countries are also emerging as key producers and exporters of green technologies, creating an opportunity to advance a more balanced and inclusive model of global green development. The stakes are high for these economies, which are not only late industrialisers but also among the most vulnerable to climate change.

• How can BRICS countries move beyond knowledge-sharing to coordinate on standards, resilient supply chains, and green industrial ecosystems?
• What asymmetries exist in access to critical minerals, clean technologies, and capital, and how do they shape industrial competitiveness across BRICS?
• What lessons can be drawn from emerging green industrial policies in these countries to support employment, inclusive growth, and economic transformation?

Speakers

Xie Xinfeng, Professor,  Jimei University, China

Victoria V. Panova, Vice-Rector, Higher School of Economics; Head, BRICS Expert Council, Russia

Walter Antonio Desiderá Neto, Planning and Research Technician, Institute for Applied Economic Research, Brazil (IPEA), Brazil

Mahmoud Mohsen Ahmed Ali, Political Researcher at Prime Minister Technical Office, Egyptian Cabinet,  Egypt

Dejene Girma Kebede, Principal Investigator and Director, Biotech Research, Ethiopian Institute of Agricultural Research, Ethiopia

Moderator

Jhanvi Tripathi, Associate Fellow, Observer Research Foundation, India

Session 2: Protecting Biodiversity and Indigenous Knowledge Systems

The BRICS countries are home to many of the world’s biodiversity hotspots and ecological resources. At the same time, they are at the centre of competing pressures between conservation, development, and livelihoods. As biodiversity loss accelerates globally, BRICS countries will play a critical role in shaping the future of conservation and sustainable resource management. Addressing these challenges will require inclusive and holistic approaches that respond to the interconnected nature of climate change, biodiversity loss, and ecosystem degradation. They are also home to rich Indigenous Knowledge Systems, which offer context-specific, community-led approaches to managing land, forests, and water resources, but remain excluded from formal policy frameworks.

• How can BRICS countries address accelerating biodiversity loss while balancing conservation with development and livelihood priorities?
• What role can Indigenous Knowledge Systems play in delivering scalable and measurable biodiversity conservation outcomes?
• What financing and incentive structures can drive large-scale biodiversity conservation and ecosystem restoration?

Speakers

Allucia Lulu Shokane, Dean, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Zululand, South Africa

Bruktawit Ejigu Kassa, Director of Communications, Ethiopia Agricultural Transformation Institute (ATI), Ethiopia

Omid Babelian, Research Fellow, Institute for Political and International Studies (IPIS), Iran

Alexandre Cunha, Director of Regional, Urban and Environmental Studies, Institute for Applied Economic Research, Brazil

Sabyasachi Saha, Associate Professor, Research and Information System for Developing Countries (RIS), India

Moderator

Heena Makhija, Associate Fellow, Observer Research Foundation, India

Break

Session 3: Scaling Climate Finance for the Green Transition

The global climate finance architecture is strained, with investment falling short of what is needed to drive the green transition. For emerging economies, high costs of capital and constrained access to finance continue to limit scale and speed. This creates space for BRICS countries to develop more competitive and accessible financing approaches. Institutions such as the New Development Bank will be central to this effort, but questions remain around their ability to scale, reduce the cost of capital, and mobilise investment at the pace required.

• What are the key drivers of the high cost of capital in emerging economies, and how can they be addressed to accelerate the green transition?
• What financial instruments and risk-sharing mechanisms can mobilise capital at scale, especially for adaptation projects?
• What role can institutions such as the New Development Bank play in lowering financing costs and expanding access to capital, and what reforms may be needed to enhance their effectiveness?

Speakers

Egor Muravev, Expert, Institute of Natural Resources Economics and Climate Change and Lecturer, School of World Economy, HSE University, Russia

Fatma Hamdon, Economic Expert, Information and Decision Support Center (IDSC), Egypt

Priyadarshi Dash, Associate Professor, Research and Information System for Developing Countries (RIS), India

Nirmala Gopal, Head, Department of Criminology and Forensic Studies, University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Moderator

Aparna Roy, Fellow and Lead, Climate Change and Energy, Observer Research Foundation, India

Creative Consensus: India’s Role in Re-centring BRICS

Open House Discussion

Shambhu L. Hakki, Joint Secretary (MER), Ministry of External Affairs; BRICS Sous Sherpa, Government of India 

Moderator

Harsh V Pant, Vice President, Observer Research Foundation; Executive Director, BRICS Think Tanks Council, India

Break

Cultural Performance