Climate and Development Outlook

This report by the Climate and Development Knowledge Network (CDKN) outlines its activities and strategic approach to promoting climate compatible development in India. It details the use of multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) to align Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) with sustainable development, the implementation of urban Heat Action Plans, and the promotion of private sector financing for rural renewable energy. The document emphasizes the integration of climate resilience into disaster risk management and the importance of gender-sensitive planning.

• CDKN utilizes multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) to help India align its Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) with sustainable development goals. This approach identifies benefits and trade-offs in policy selection, specifically tested in the energy, household cooking, and building sectors, suggesting that emissions can be reduced by focusing on specific sectors even as overall energy use grows.
• To combat extreme heat in Indian cities, CDKN supported the development of the Ahmedabad Heat Action Plan 2013, which includes an early heat-health warning system and measures to move vulnerable residents to shaded areas. This model has been expanded to other cities and states, and in September 2016, CDKN commissioned a 'Roadmap for planning heatwave management in India' with support from the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA).
• The Micro-franchising for Sustainable Rural Electrification (M-SuRE) pilot project, launched in 2014, tested business models in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh to connect rural renewable energy operators with lenders. The project has lit 500 homes and avoids 60 tons of CO2 emissions annually, supporting India's target of 200 gigawatts of new renewable power capacity by 2030.
• CDKN identifies a lack of credit as a primary barrier to scaling private sector energy access models. The report suggests that flexible loan guarantees can 'unlock' lender participation by removing perceived risks and enhancing borrower credit ratings through peer-to-peer exchanges.
• In Uttarakhand, CDKN developed a community-focused climate vulnerability and risk assessment (VRA) covering agriculture, water, forestry, human health, and disaster risk. This initiative led the Government of Uttarakhand to dedicate 1% of its budget to address the VRA issues identified.
• CDKN's work in urban India includes 'climate proofing' cities like Bangalore and Madurai using blue-green infrastructure—networks of water systems (blue) and ecological spaces (green). Additionally, research in Gurugram and Puri suggests crowdfunding and underutilised corporate social responsibility funds as viable financing mechanisms for city-level climate action.
• The 'Raising Risk Awareness' project, launched in 2016 with the World Weather Attribution initiative, found that while annual mean temperatures across India are increasing, heat waves are becoming more frequent and intense only in a relatively small area of the country.

APA

Bhatt, M. R., & Paul, A. (2017). Climate and Development Outlook. Climate and Development Knowledge Network. https://cdkn.org/sites/default/files/files/INDIA_Outlook_May2017.pdf

Chicago

Bhatt, Mihir R., and Aditi Paul. Climate and Development Outlook. Climate and Development Knowledge Network, 2017. https://cdkn.org/sites/default/files/files/INDIA_Outlook_May2017.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Bhatt |first1=Mihir R. |last2=Paul |first2=Aditi |title=Climate and Development Outlook |publisher=Climate and Development Knowledge Network |date=May 2017 |url=https://cdkn.org/sites/default/files/files/INDIA_Outlook_May2017.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{bhatt2017climate, author = {Bhatt, Mihir R. and Paul, Aditi}, title = {{Climate and Development Outlook}}, institution = {Climate and Development Knowledge Network}, year = {2017}, month = may, url = {https://cdkn.org/sites/default/files/files/INDIA_Outlook_May2017.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }