Advancing towards a net-zero future

By the end of this decade, India will witness an unprecedented level of urbanization

With temperatures soaring above 45ºC this summer, parts of North India experienced severe heat waves. Already recognized as one of the world’s most heat-stressed nations, India faces a fiery conundrum in the coming decade, as an alarming proportion of India’s population will face climate conditions that surpass both workability and survivability thresholds. This will not only affect the lives of the already large numbers of vulnerable populations but also put large businesses at risk in terms of supply chain and asset safety risks, to evolving market requirements.  

If greenhouse gas emissions are allowed this unbridled rise, humanity must be ready to confront climate catastrophe in the form of floods, cyclones, heatwaves, water stress, sea level rise, etc. These physical risks impose unbalanced challenges on geographies in terms of asset and economic safety and the safety and well-being of populations. 

On the other hand, if governments, experts, and corporations work together to halt this rise of greenhouse gases emissions and turn the tide through regulation, innovation, and cooperation, then this transition needs to be cautious, just, and inclusive for all sections of society. India has defined a long-term plan to become a net zero economy by 2070 and is leading policy changes to facilitate this transition. Leading Indian corporates have a role to play in accelerating the progress towards these sustainability targets. 

By the end of this decade, India will witness an unprecedented level of urbanization. It will have 70 cities with a population of over a million (Europe has 35 such cities today) and have an urban population twice the total population of the US today. 

The building industry is responsible for above 40% of the overall global greenhouse gases emissions, as it not only includes operations of buildings, but also the effects of the material production that is used in construction. Some estimates suggest that building materials are responsible for almost 25% of all industrial greenhouse gases emissions. It also includes several aspects of local transportation that can otherwise be reduced or eliminated by better placemaking and by laying emphasis on walkability and bikeability in urban centres. 

 At Lodha, we have taken the responsibility of ensuring a better planet for our future generations. Our product and scale give us a unique opportunity in addressing this issue, as we develop and manage integrated city scale developments, like Palava, that can be used as a living lab to evaluate low carbon interventions across lifecycle stages of the built environment. It also helps us to scale such solutions in partnership with the industry to enable a wider deployment across India and the developing world, while also being an inspiration to the developed world. Through this we also prove that development and growth decoupled from emissions is possible. 

We have imbibed the philosophy of ‘Do Good, Do Well’ and strive to act in the larger interests of our community and planet. We view sustainability as not just a business goal, but as our responsibility to leave a livable and healthier planet for the next generation. We are working with each stakeholder to develop and offer an urbanization template that is resilient and low in carbon emissions. Our sustainability strategy rests on the pillars of Resilience, to tackle physical risks; and Decarbonization, to tackle transition risks.  

We are judiciously evaluating development potential and infrastructure planning based on historic data and climate forecasts based on IPCC scenarios as part of our focus on asset resilience. We are developing initiatives of rare reach, range and expertise like the Lodha Net Zero Urban Accelerator, a partnership between us and RMI India Foundation that works on the full spectrum of the built environment emissions all the way from embodied carbon to operational carbon, clean energy, and green mobility. Through the Accelerator, we pilot initiatives and use our scale to tunnel through cost barriers and usher in industry–wide transformations that can take our nation and the world towards a net zero future.