Aug 01 2026 to Aug 01 2026 11 a.m.

Where

Bangalore International Centre

7 4th Main Rd, Stage 2, Domlur 560071

Event Description

The battle for sustainability will be won, or lost, predominantly in cities of the Global South. This lecture considers the need to reconceptualise cities as transformative agents for global sustainability. Drawing on more than two decades of research, Xuemei Bai presents recent advances in this area. in conversation with Harini Nagendra, she explores how such reconceptualisation can inform, and reshape, urban policy and planning practices. 

Rapid urbanization over the past several decades has been among the most significant social transformations of our time, with far-reaching economic, environmental, and cultural implications. Cities now stand at the forefront of global change, tasked not only with addressing a wide range of local and regional challenges but also with mitigating and adapting to broader environmental shifts, including climate change. As a result, cities are increasingly recognized as important subnational actors within international science and policy arenas, including the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

This session is part of the Let’s Talk Climate Change Talk series.

Presented by:

Venue: Seminar Halls
Speakers

Xuemei Bai
Distinguished Professor, Fenner School of Environment & Society, Australian National University
Xuemei Bai is a Distinguished Professor and Australian Research Council Laureate Fellow at Australian National University. Her research focuses on the science and policy of rapid urbanization and urban sustainability, with over thirty papers published in Nature, Science, and related journals. She is a Clarivate Highly Cited Researcher and serves as an Earth Commissioner, Co-Chair of the Future Earth Governing Council, and a Coordinating Lead Author for the IPCC Special Report on Climate Change and Cities. She is a Fellow of Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia, and was named one of the World’s 100 Most Influential People in Climate Change Policy in 2019 and 2022, and is the recipient of the Volvo Environment Prize (2018) and the Global Economy Prize (2021).

Twitter: @xuemeibao_aus

Harini Nagendra
Director, Research Centre & School of Climate Change & Sustainability, Azim Premji University
Harini Nagendra is Director of Research Centre, and Director, School of Climate Change and Sustainability, at Azim Premji University. Her work focuses on urban ecology, forest conservation and climate change amongst other themes. She is a well-known public speaker and writer on issues of urban sustainability in India Her books include Nature in the City: Bengaluru in the Past, Present and Future; Cities and Canopies: Trees of Indian Cities; So Many Leaves, and Shades of Blue: Connecting the Drops in India’s Cities. She also writes the acclaimed Bangalore Detectives Club series, a set of historical mysteries set in 1920s Bangalore.