An international conference titled “Knowledge for Sustainable Development: Dialogues Across Disciplines to Implement Sustainable Development Goals” was held for three days from 18th to 20th January 2024 at University of Hyderabad. This international conference was spearheaded by the Internal Quality Assurance Cell (IQAC), UoH and funded by the Institution of Eminence (IoE) is a university-wide initiative; and kick starts the University’s Golden Jubilee Year-2024.
Some of the major points that emerge from the deliberations of the conference include: the need for popularizing Sustainable Development Goals (SDGS) among students, and encouraging faculty members to engage and collaborate with each other. Further, there was a call for action to change, especially to students, who can be the ambassadors of change. Both individually and in the community, the students can through their actions produce ripples or create value that transcends individual goals and aspirations. Given the significance and criticality of SDGs, the faculty were encouraged to think about increasing content of SDG related themes in their courses gradually from about 5 percent to 50 percent. The participants learned about how to collaborate with artists and be also part of communicating about SDGs in novel and innovative ways. Overall, there was a call for a shift in approach to research and teaching- by engaging with societies to understand their issues and make that as their fulcrum of research and teaching endeavours.
Some of the notable speakers at the conference include: Prof. Seeram Ramakrishna, Professor, FREng. Everest Chair, National University of Singapore (NUS), Singapore; Mr. Shombi Sharp, UN Resident Coordinator, New Delhi; Dr. Rajendra Singh Founder, Tarun Bharat Sangh, Alwar, Rajasthan; Prof. Shekhar C. Mande Distinguished Professor, Savitribai Phule University, Pune; Prof. G D Yadav Emeritus Professor of Eminence, Institute of Chemical Technology (ICT), Mumbai; A performance by Ms. Mangala Bhatt & troupe, Aakruti Kathak Kendra, Hyderabad; Prof. Rao Papineni, Professor (Adjunct-Associate), University of Kansas Medical Center, New York City, NY, USA; Prof. Maria Fernando Rollo, Professor NOVA University of Lisbon, Portugal; Prof. Anjan Ray, Independent Consultant and Adviser, Sustainable Energy, Safety, and Supply Chain Strategies, New Delhi; Dr. Sudhi Mukherjee, Chief Technology Officer, arara.io, Washington DC, USA; Prof. Elisa T. Bertuzzo, Independent Researcher, Berlin, Germany; Ms. Supriya Sahu, IAS, Additional Chief Secretary, Environment, Climate Change and Forests Department, Tamilnadu; Prof. Helena Freitas, UNESCO Chair in Biodiversity and Director, Serralves Park, Porto, Portugal. Prof. B. N. Gangadhar, Chairperson, National Medical Commission; Dr. Zelalem B. Taffesse, UNICEF, Hyderabad.
Participants at the conference include students not only from the University of Hyderabad, but colleges in the city of Hyderabad, Telangana, and from other states of the country. Besides students, speakers at the conference include faculty, researchers, innovative practitioners of sustainable development, from prominent institutions. Speakers from Portugal, Germany, the USA, and Singapore were among the participants in the conference. Over 300 persons participated at this conference addressing all the seventeen SDGs to reflect on models of implementing SDGs in India.
The conference brought together over 40 invited speakers, and around one-hundred researchers to present their work either orally or as a POSTER. A pre-conference workshop titled “Empowering Students and Young Researchers to Contribute to Sustainable Development Goals” was held on 17th January 2024.