Urban Resilience and Adaptation for India and Mongolia: Curricula, Capacity, ICT and Stakeholder Collaboration to support Green & Blue Infrastructure and Nature- Based Solutions / URGENT Project is a collaboration between universities across countries to modifying curricula, enable Capacity Building of partner institutes and country, develop ICT based courses and Stakeholder collaboration for better outreach. There are 4 European universities, 6 Indian universities and 6 universities from Mongolia coming together as part of this project.

Due to Pandemic, the Kick off meeting of this Project was successfully conducted online on March 10, 2021 and it saw participation from all the four Program universities from Germany, Estonia and Italy and 12 Universities from Mongolia and India. The Institute of Planning and Architecture, Nirma University is also a part of this URGENT project. This has set the momentum for the project that will continue till 2024.

The URGENT’s aim is to promote green & blue infrastructure and nature-based solutions (GBI & NBS) for resilient, climate-friendly, and liveable cities in India and Mongolia through ICT-enhanced tertiary education linked to labor markets & wider stakeholder circles.

In order to work on the same on July 20, 201 the first seminar was held, where all the participating universities made presentations on their scope of work and deliberated on creating knowledge pool in different forms. Through this seminar all the partners also discussed on ways to support one another for capacity building.

Research Colloquy is the Initiative taken by faculties of IAPNU to have guest lectures on research practices and processes undertaken by experts on different topics related to architecture, planning and allied disciplines. It is great for expanding one’s own horizons and knowledge to listen to different perspectives and thought processes pursued in research of varied nature. We begun the series with our first guest of the series Prof. Punita Mehta – an academician and a practicing Architect based in Baroda on August 7,2021. She entitled the session on research as “Asking Questions and Getting Answer”.

The second guest lecture of the series was held on August 21, 2021. The talk would be about process documentation research in crafts and handloom sector by Prof. Krishna Patel who is a graduate of NID and has spent about four decades as a design educator at NID where she also served as the Dean of the NID PG Campus, Gandhinagar. Currently she is a Professor at the Institute of Design, Nirma University. She did an MFA from Arizona State University (ASU), USA. Her work was published in Fiber arts Design Book 7 in 2004. Krishna co-authored a comprehensive volume called “Fibre and Loom: The Indian Tradition” which was published in 2009. She was an important part of the Jawaja project that NID undertook in the 1970s.

Through academics and research she has engaged with several artisans and crafts initiatives such as Kalaraksha Vidyalaya, Kutch. As part of the outreach activities for African countries, the Ghana basketry project was headed by her. In this lecture series she shared her knowledge and the process of documentation which becomes the important part of research for design students.

IAPNU signed an MoU with Manav Sadhna NGO on November 24, 2021 with the aim of contributing to the transformation of underprivileged communities through a rang of initiatives. Manav Sadhana offers a wide range of programs that provide services in holistic education, youth empowerment, women’s empowerment, senior care, nutrition, health & hygiene and livelihoods. They also welcome volunteers from around the globe to participate in their efforts to make meaningful change in the community. Following Mahatma Gandhi’s values in their work they stress upon the importance of inner journey experience by volunteers as much as the journey of service to the community.

To initiate the collaborative activity with Manav Sadhna volunteers from IAPNU did a survey of the communities of the slum areas near Sabarmati police station. Students will do meaningful social work activity for the aanganvadis located in each of there communities in co-ordination and guidance of Manav Sadhna volunteers & aanganvadi ‘workerben’

Institute of Architecture & Planning along with its 16 partner institutes organized the first International Conference on ‘Future is Urban’: Livability, Resilience & Resource conservation from December 16 to 18, 2021. The Conference was enriched by the deliberations & august presence of leading Scholars, Academicians and Experts from across the globe in the field of Urban planning, Urban design & Architecture. ICFU’21 received an overwhelming response to the call for abstracts. Out of around 270 abstracts received, 110 papers were selected to be presented at ICFU ’21 after undertaking a stringent double-blind peer review process. Each day of the conference started with three keynote addresses by eminent expert from our partner institutes. This is followed with 27 thematic parallel sessions, wherein scholars from all over the world presented their research. Each session was chaired by an eminent expert and witnessed enriching discussion. Routledge, Taylor and Francis group is the partner for conference proceeding & other publication. Under the guidance of convener Prof. Utpal Sharma, the conference team comprised of following members: Prof. Aparna, Prof. Swati Kothary, Prof. Jitendra Menghani, Prof. Shweta Suhane, Prof. Ankit Kumar, Prof. Prachi Patel, Prof. Sujan Umaraniya & Mansi Kumar.

As part of the ‘Urban Resilience and Adaptation for India and Mongolia’ – URGENT Project. IAPNU started a Lecture series every month. The focus this month was Emerging Environmental Contaminants and Newater Perspectives of Developing and Developed Countries. The lecture was conducted by Dr. Sanjeeb Mohapatra, who is a Scientist at Energy & Environmental Sustainability, National University of Singapore & Er. Surjeet Kumar Sahoo, who is also a scientist at Department of Forest, Environment and Climate Change, Government of Odisha. It was conducted on February 26, 2022. They explained their Focus on Holistic stormwater management, which include Solution at the source.

Institute of Architecture & Planning, Nirma University organized the first International Conference on ‘Future is Urban’:

Liveability, Resilience & Resource conservation (ICFU’21) from December 16 to 18, 2021. This conference was enriched with the deliberations & august presence of leading Scholars, Academicians and Experts from across the globe in the field of Urban Planning, Urban Design & Architecture. 110 papers were presented in 27 thematic parallel sessions at ICFU ’21. With internationally acclaimed Keynote Speakers and eminent experts from academia as session chairs all sessions saw large participation from students, academia and professionals. With the stringent double-blind peer review process in place, Conference Proceedings are being published by The Routledge Group.

A book launch on Gender and the Indian City by Ar. Madhavi Desai. This book presents a multi disciplinary perspective of 19 research scholars, practitioners, and professionals. They bring together empirically grounded research and case studies exploring women’s lived experiences in the context of design and urban planning, and how women can claim their legitimate space in the social construction of the city.

Prof. Kalev Sepp, professor and head of the department of environmental protection and landscape, Estonian University of Life Sciences.

He lectures on nature conservation, landscape ecology and analyzes environmental management. Kalev is the head of Ph.D. studies on environmental science and applied biology and is the head of the Scientific Council of the Institute of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. He was a Vice-President of the International Union for Nature Conservation (IUCN), an elected Councillor of IUCN (2004-2012), and a Horizon 2020 Programme Committee member for Environment, including climate change in Brussels. Kalev belongs to the Expert Commission of applied research projects at the Ministry of Rural Affairs, a member of the Scientific Council of the Estonian Ministry of the Environment.

GIFT City is a planned business district in the state of Gujarat, India. It is the new business destination offering competitive edge to Financial services and Technology related activities.

GIFT City is an integrated development on 886 acres of land with 62 mn sq. ft. of Built Up area which includes Office spaces, Residential Apartments, Schools, Hospital, Hotels, Clubs, Retail and various Recreational facilities, which makes this City a truly “Walk to Work” City. GIFT City consist of a conducive Multi-Service SEZ (Special Economic Zone) and an exclusive Domestic Area.

This City is a Vertical City which will optimize land area consumption for development. The City is located on the bank of river Sabarmati connecting the Business capital (Ahmedabad) and Political capital (Gandhinagar) of Gujarat State- The Growth Engine of India.

The GIFT City stakeholder visit began with a tour of the GIFT City. The tour consisted of places such as District Cooling System, Utility Tunnel, ICT Hub, Data Centre, Sewage Treatment Plant, Tower 1 and 2, Streetscapes, etc.

A Gala Dinner organised by GIFT City for all the Conference Delegates, URGENT Partners, Faculties, and Student Volunteers followed the Stakeholder visit.

Old City Heritage Walk:

A special feature of Ahmedabad is the plan of the old city comprising numerous pols, self-contained neighborhoods, sheltering large numbers of peoples. Some of these virtually small villages, traversed by narrow streets, usually terminating in square with community wells and chabutaras for feeding birds, gates, Cul-de-sacs and secret passages. To experience the glory of Ahmedabad, it is necessary to walk through an old quarter and truly observe the nature of its architecture, its art, religious places, its culture and traditions.

With the purpose of unveiling the city to the tourists and the citizens themselves, Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation has arranged this HERITAGE WALK OF AHMEDABAD. Route: From Kalupur Swaminarayan Temple at 07:45 a.m. daily and terminates at Jumma Masjid at 10.30 a.m.

• Adalaj Stepwell or Rudabai Stepwell is a stepwell located in the small town of Adalaj, close to Gandhinagar city in the Indian state of Gujarat. It was built in 1498 in the memory of Rana Veer Singh (the Vaghela dynasty of Dandai Des) by his wife, Queen Rudadevi.

• Built-in sandstone in the Solanki architectural style, the Adalaj stepwell is five stories deep. It is octagonal in a plan at the top, built on an intricately carved large number of pillars. Each floor is spacious enough to provide for people to congregate.

• The motifs of flowers and graphics of architecture blend very well with the symbols of Hindu and Jain gods carved at various levels of the well. The dominant carvings on the upper floors are of elephants (3 inches (76 mm) in size, each of a different design). The Islamic architectural style could be attributed to the Muslim king Begda who built it.

Sabarmati Ashram (also known as Gandhi Ashram) is located in the Sabarmati suburb of Ahmedabad, Gujarat, adjoining the Ashram Road, on the banks of the River Sabarmati, 4 miles (6.4 km) from the town hall. This was one of the many residences of Mahatma Gandhi who lived at Sabarmati (Gujarat) and Sevagram (Wardha, Maharashtra) when he was not travelling across India or in prison.[1] He lived in Sabarmati or Wardha for a total of twelve years with his wife Kasturba Gandhi and followers, including Vinoba Bhave. The Bhagavad Gita was recited here daily as part of the Ashram schedule.

It was from here that Gandhi led the Dandi march also known as the Salt Satyagraha on 12 March 1930. In recognition of the significant influence that this march had on the Indian independence movement, the Indian government has established the ashram as a national monument.

Kesarjan Building Centre Pvt Ltd. , India

Kesarjan Building Centre Pvt Ltd. Is engaged in manufacturing building products from construction and demolition waste as well as other industrial waste. Kesarjan has revive traditional lime mortar in dry from, which is more appropriate for masonry. Also involve in training and popularizing alternative construction technologies.

Vastu Shilpa Sangath LLP

Vastu Shilpa Sangath LLP, is an award winning, multidisciplinary design practice with diverse portfolio offering professional consulting services in Architecture, Engineering, Planning, Urban Design, Landscape, Sustainability, Interiors, Research and Art.

Co-financing of equipment for teaching and research training is one of the important ways to build capacity of URGENT partners, and to ensure sustainability and impact of project deliverables. Overviews of purchased equipment and its use can be found here (by partner):

Urgent Equipment