Fellows Seminar Series | Regenerating Water Bodies to Build Resilient Cities in India

Urban water bodies play a critical role in maintaining ecological balance, supporting biodiversity, and providing essential ecosystem services, including water purification, flood mitigation, and recreation. However, globally, rapid urbanisation, pollution, and overall disregard have degraded urban water bodies, posing a threat to urban water security and compromising community well-being. Encroachment and pollution from household wastewater, municipal sewage, and industrial effluents are among the most critical challenges to preserving the world’s water bodies. This seminar will draw from a research paper on the subject which argues for a shift from fragmented and cosmetic approaches to embedding urban water bodies as central to climate-resilient urban planning, thereby envisioning water-secure future cities and a flourishing urban ecology.

Programme