This discussion will be livecast on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube 2:30 p.m. IST onwards.
Please note that registration is on a first come, first served basis. If your registration is successful, you will receive a confirmation email and a link through which you can join the discussion.
Storms are commonplace in the Sundarbans area of the northern Bay of Bengal. With global warming on the rise, frequent storms, and increased population in the region — larger number of people are at finding themselves at risk.
When a cyclone hits the Sundarbans, attempts are made to contain environmental degradation. Economic progresses on account of big cyclones get severely derailed. A continued situation only exacerbates suffering of people that result in poverty and developmental deficits. This is but one example of environmental change making lives and livelihoods difficult.
A ‘business-as-usual’ outlook post a natural calamity only results in mounting risks. Strategic and managed retreat — on the other hand — from at-risk locations, can deliver on the development and conservation goals. It can help build on climate resilience as well.
This webinar will look into the political barriers to retreat, or advancement in different directions, in the face of heightening threats in low lying coastal areas.
Mark T. Gibbs, Australian Institute of Marine Science
Shikha Mukherjee, former editor, Times of India, Kolkata
Anamitra Anurag Danda, Senior Visiting Fellow, ORF Kolkata
