School of Sustainability, Xavier University, Bhubaneswar, and ConXerv, the committee for Sustainability hosted its annual business conclave, Parivartan’ 21, and its 6th Annual Sustainability Summit’ 21 on 5th & 6th February 2021, respectively. School of Sustainability, Xavier University, in collaboration with Bronx’s Community College/City University, New York, has taken the Sustainability Agenda forward. The School proposed the launch of CARES (Centre for Advanced Research and excellence in Sustainability); one of the first initiatives would be setting up weather monitoring stations and related studies, facilitated by Mr. Rakesh Panda, Partha Foundation. The event also witnessed another milestone: the Wipro Sustainable Stewardship Programme, strengthening the program by supplementing academic learning via access to national and international platforms regarding training resources and involvement in impactful research and projects, extended to the Undergraduate program.
The theme for the Parivartan’ 21 was Leveraging energy transition stimulus to take a giant leap towards Decarbonisation: The next big move?. The theme explores how industries are solving the decarbonization dilemma ,and how investments and policies have created an environment where organizations have a framework to decarbonize their operations. Dr. Neal Phillip, Professor & Chairperson at Department of Chemistry, Earth Sciences, Environmental Sciences, Bronx Community College, City University New York, gave the Keynote Address the theme. The event had some eminent industrial experts and academicians who discussed the topic mentioned above with their on-field experience. The speakers for the event were-
1. Mr. Ganga Charan Sharma, Vice President, Supply Chain Audits, Middle East & Africa (IMEA) Region at TÜV Rhein land India Pvt. Ltd.
2. Ms. Paramita Sen, Adjunct Lecturer Department of Chemistry, Earth Sciences and Environmental Sciences Bronx Community College, City University New York
3. Dr. Sunita Purushottam, Head of Sustainability at Mahindra Life space Developers Ltd
4. Mr. Masood Mallick, Joint Managing Director at Ramky Enviro (REEL)
The theme for the 6th Annual Sustainability Summit’ 21 was Integrating circular economy with nature-based solutions. The speakers shed light on how industries have started integrating circular economy by taking inspiration from nature through natural ways. The discussions took place by two panels. Prof. Dr. Vikrant Vijay Patil, Faculty Coordinator, Career Advisory Services and Dr. Aditi Haldar, Director, GRI South Asia, were the respective panel moderators.
Panel 1 focused on Nature-Based Solutions and the members of the Panel were-
1. Dr. Biplab R. Patnaik, Founder & MD, Life Link Eco Technologies Pvt. Ltd.
2. Mr. C. Srinivasan, SLRM, Vellore
3. Mr. Anshul Ojha, Desert Research Center, Rajasthan
4. Dr. Fredrick Stephen, Asha Kiran Society, Koraput, Odisha
5. Ms. Iris Kuhnlein, Sustainability Specialist and Social Innovator
Panel 2 focused on Circular Models- a flow of Wealth and the members of the Panel were-
1. Mr. Krishnamohan Narayan, Managing Director, BASF India
2. Mr. Barttanu Das, Head HR, L&T Constructions Heavy Civil Infrastructure
3. Ms. Dipanwita Chakraborty, Regional Director- Corporate Responsibility and Sustainable Development, Asia-Pacific, Cargill
4. Ms. Dharashree Panda, Associate Director, Flipkart
The event concluded with a Q&A session where the students raised pertinent questions to the panel, making the session interactive and insightful. Finally, the event ended with a vote of thanks by Prof. Dr. Vikrant Vijay Patil, Faculty Coordinator, Career Advisory Services, School of Sustainability, Xavier University, Bhubaneswar, to the speakers, moderator, faculty members, and everyone who contributed to its smooth functioning and flawless execution.
ABOUT XAVIER UNIVERSITY, BHUBANESWAR
Xavier University, Bhubaneswar, with its philosophy of “Inspiring Futures”, was established in accordance with the Xavier University Act, 2013, and was inaugurated on July 07, 2014. The university has 13 Schools that offer world-class education in different fields. The schools include Xavier Institute of Management, School of Human Resource Management, School of Rural Management, School of Commerce, School of Sustainability, School of Human Settlements, Xavier Emlyon Business School, School of Communications, School of Economics, School of Computer Science & Engineering, School of Law, Centre for Humanities & Compassion Studies, and School of Government & Public Affairs. Xavier University, Bhubaneswar also hosts the Centre of Excellence in Fiscal Policy and Taxation, Centre for Humanities and Compassion Studies, Centre for Sustainable Ecological Systems, Centre for Business and Society, Centre for Corporate Governance, and Centre for Business Analytics and Digital Transformation.
