Climate Action Plan
Climate change refers to long term worldwide shifts in temperature and weather patterns. The advent of industrialization and economic growth has led to a number of adverse and unforeseen consequences on the environment and global climate. Activities like increased use of petrol and diesel driven vehicles, deforestation, greenhouse gas emissions from Industry , power generation from fossil fuels, have led to increase in the overall temperature of the earth by 1.1 o C warmer than it was in late 1800s with 2011-2020 being the warmest decade.
The Climate change also brings additional negative effects like intense droughts, water scarcity, severe fires, rising sea levels, flooding, melting polar ice, storms and declining biodiversity. As per United Nations Paris Agreement signed in 2015, it was agreed to restrict global warming by not more than 1.5oC. But as per the current projection it is likely to exceed 2.7oC by end of the century. Therefore immediate measures need to be taken to ensure sustainable development of mankind and to protect the natural environment of the planet.
The United Nations has defined 17 sustainable development goals in 2015 to be achieved by 2030. Out of these, Goal-13 concerns action to address climate change Under Sustainable Development Goal SDG-13 , there are 5 targets to cover a wide range of issues related to climate action. The first three targets are " Strengthen resilience and adaptive capacity to climate-related disasters; integrate climate change measures into policies and planning; build knowledge and capacity to meet climate change. The remaining two targets are "means of achieving" these targets: To implement the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change; and to promote mechanisms to raise capacity for planning and management
In order to achieve various targets on sustainable energy and climate Action the Shoolini University has established a multi-disciplinary Centre of Excellence in Energy Science and Technology (CEEST) in 2019. The Centre is ranked 12th in India in Energy as per SCIMAGO
Institutional World Rankings-2021. The Centre is coordinating the efforts on the implementation of all 17 SDGs in the University by focusing on high quality education in sustainable energy and climate action research , The University has formulated Policies on Sustainable Energy and Environment in 2019 and an energy efficient Solar Passive building technology construction Policy , The CEEST is coordinating the implementation of these policies and also offering M. Tech (Energy Technology) & PhD in Energy Science w.e.f 2020 and , M. Tech in Environment & Climate Science w e f 2022. . The major task of the Centre is to develop comprehensive innovative solutions to various energy and environmental challenges by promoting energy efficiency through clean renewable energy sources in the Himalayan region..
Climate Action through focussing on main Sustainable Development Goals
Glimpses of Initiatives on Climate Action by Shoolini University-Creating - A Sustainable Township
Creating a Sustainable Energy & Climate Action Research Infrastructure:
A 400kWp grid-connected Solar Photovoltaic Power Plant on the rooftops of different Blocks and parking shed in the Shoolini University campus.
Concentrated solar powered community cooking system with a capacity to cook food for 500 girl students
38000 litres per day solar water heating systems on the roof top of Hostels in the university campus.
Using Electric carts for Clean emission free transportation in the University campus.
Solar streetlights in the University campus
Priority Innovative Climate Action Research Areas as per SDG 13
The research areas for climate change action of CEEST are focused on:
- Air Quality- Clean Air
- Sustainable Ecosystems
- Clean Energy Production through Renewable energy sources Energy efficient Solar Passive Building Construction and research
- Human Health through natural practices
- Wildland /Forest Fires- Protecting forests& Environment
- Air Quality -Clean Air
Global warming can affect the ground-level ozone concentrations which in turn hamper compliance to ozone level standards in future. Similarly effects of climate change on air particulate matter is another area of research.
Sustainable Ecosystems Research
This research area focusses on development of tools and strategies to protect eco-systems from the adverse effects of climate change by communities or administrators. It includes developing scenarios of plausible future conditions that can then be used to evaluate alternative responses to climate change. This research include assessment of the likelihood and effects of extreme events on ecosystems, development of methods to assess risk to near-coastal species and habitats, development of models and maps to evaluate the effects of climate change on water availability and water quality in Himalayan region..
Clean and Sustainable Energy Production
Sustainable Energy production methods affects the environment, human health, and other measures for environmental quality. Energy technologies are changing rapidly from conventional to more sustainable forms of production to combat climate change, This is the priority area of research. The change in energy production methods is consequently seen as increase in number of electric vehicles, use of wind and solar plants for electricity production, increased use of bio-mass and bio-fuels. It is important to understand how increasing or decreasing one source of energy can affect the other sources and lead to different consequences for the environment.
Human Health through natural practices
Climate change is having direct and indirect impacts on the health of people. More extreme weather events, heat waves, spread of infectious diseases and detrimental impacts on air and water quality affects health and well-being. This area of research aims to assess those most susceptible to the health impacts related to a changing climate and identify ways to reduce those impacts. Some research areas include potential societal and behavioral responses to human health risks from climate change, approaches to assess the likelihood and effects of extreme events, including wildfires, floods, and heat waves, on human health, identification and characterization of communities and people at greatest risk to the impacts of climate change and air pollution.
Wildland -Forest Fires - Protecting forests & Environment
Effect of devastating wildfires throughout the globe is well known. Such incidents are on the rise every year. Air quality research to fill the gaps in scientific information and to develop tools to prevent and reduce the impact of smoke from wildfires and controlled or prescribed burns. Effects of erosion from burned areas on water quality, protection of susceptible human populations and ecosystems, evaluation of communication strategies to find effective ways to reduce risks encompass areas of research under this category.
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