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Sustainability DialoguesThe Standing Committee on Energy and Environment of the Norwegian Parliamentary visited India last week. Our guest today is Nikolai Astrup. Nikolai is a MP, a Norwegian politician representing the Conservative Party. Astrup - the first person to hold the post as the minister of international development for in years. India is rapidly undergoing sustainable green transformation. Norway is the leader in the whole of Europe in terms of renewable energy. Ties between Norway and India have deep historical roots. We all know that developments in India will have a significant impact on how successful the world is in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals and global climate targets.Do listen to Nikolai’s experiences in India!

The government of India is hosting the 17th edition of the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas convention from January 9 to January 11 on the theme  - 'Diaspora : Reliable partners for India's progress in Amrit Kaal.' On this special occasion, NewsX presented a special one-hour telecast from 6 pm to 7 pm ist on Monday, January 9, to highlight the successes and achievements of the 17.9 million strong Indian diaspora community in the globe as well as to find new ways to harness their potential to innovate, invest and initiative their ideas in India. Through VaKu Diaspora Broadcasting Network - Diaspora Dialogue - NewsX has built a dedicated community-based ecosystem to connect India's brilliant and change-making diaspora with a large Indian audience by providing them a platform on the channel to narrate their storiesOur founder, Rina Sunder, beautifully presented her life journey in both the countries, India & Norway.

In light of the objectionable comments made by Pakistan's Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto against PM Modi, there has been outrage across India. We are conducting a live discussion. We are aiming to bring together Indian diaspora to share their views on how Indians across the world must rally against Pakistan's disrespect on international forums, are global protests the answer? Along with Rina Sunder, the founder of our NGO, Det Moderne India, other panel members in this discussion are:1 - PROFESSOR KISHAN Devani BEM - UK POLITICIAN, BUSINESS MAN2 - KULDEEP SINGH SHEKHAWAT - PRESIDENT OVERSEAS FRONT OF BJP, UK3 - DR RAVI GODSE - INTERNATIONAL AFFAIR EXPERT4 - DEEPAK KAVADIA - INTERNATIONAL AFFAIR EXPERT

Our built environment is also one of the largest sources of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and drives a significant  amount of air pollution in our cities. The ‘Clean Construction’ approach promotes the reduction of air pollutants from construction activities. The Government of India launched the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP), in 2019, that aims to reduce air pollution levels by 20-30% by 2024.In this episode we have invited a guest who represents the private sector: Kristin Sæterøy. She has hands on knowledge on clean construction. Kristin Sæterøy is the Managing Director of Aneo Build.This is how we attempt to drive the transition towards clean construction.

OSLO-the first city in the world that began with the first zero-emission urbanconstruction by using only electrified construction equipment. Oslo is also leading the Clean Construction Forum @ C40.New C40 research reveals that fossil gas use contributed almost as much as coal power plants to premature deaths in 2020 and current NDCs would result in 776,000 more premature deaths in C40 cities by 2050, compared to a 1.5oC scenario. In contradiction with their own inadequate NDCs, key nations are undertaking a gas expansion that will add 86% to gas use capacity in and around C40 cities by 2035, while a 1.5oC scenario would require a 30% decrease.While in the seven years since world leaders signed the Paris Agreement, no nation has developed 1.5°C-compatible plans, 62 C40 cities have done so, with more in the works. Three quarters of C40 cities are reducing emissions faster than their respective nation states. Thanks to the work of cities around the world, air pollution is down 5%.In this episode, we have with us Andre Aasrud, Senior advisor for the C40 Clean Construction Programme.Do listen to this latest informative episode of The Modern India Podcast!

Norway India Sustainabilty DialoguesWe have with us: Kristin Skofteland, Chief Commercial Officer & Legal Counsel for Beyonder AS&Soumya Kukreti, CEO of Midwest Energy Private Limited.Beyonder designs and manufactures safer battery solutions based on Norwegian sawdust, with high power, fast charging and a long lifetime. Produced without cobalt and nickel using clean energy and energy-efficient methods, Beyonder batteries have the smallest environmental footprint possible. Beyonder´s high power battery cells can be fully charged and discharged in just a few minutes and is designed as power storage for renewable energy grids, heavy transportation and offshore energy infrastructure. Midwest Energy is engaged in  developing solutions to resolve the current impediments faced by the electric mobility and aid acceleration in its adoption bids to March towards Decarbonizing the environment with an aim to positively impacting the businesses and transforming lives.Beyonder and Midwest Energy have entered into an agreement to start planning giga scale battery production in India, based on Beyonder's unique and patented technology. The agreement was signed at Beyonder's Battery Centre in Sandnes, Norway a few weeks back. Listen to this informative episode!

Save Soil is a global movement launched by Sadhguru to address the soil crisis, by bringing together people from around the world to stand up for Soil Health. Furthermore, it supports leaders of all nations to institute national policies and actions toward increasing the organic content in cultivable Soil.Agriculture, deforestation, and other factors have degraded and eroded topsoil at alarming rates. Globally, 52% of agricultural land is already degraded. The planet is in crisis. If current rates of soil degradation continue, this would cause the end of life as we know it.We are happy that 250+ people enjoyed the debate we had at Arendalasuka. This was the first time we streamed an event from Arendalsuka. For this debate we have with us: •Heidi Bade, Norad•Katrine Sund-Henriksen, CEO, Norwegian Forum for Development and Environment•Torleiv Næss Ugland, CEO, Terramarine AS•Ashish Sahu, Marketing Manager, Cambi ASThe Panel discussion is led by Rina Sunder.We are extremely proud that we had with us Sadhguru JV and Erik Solheim at Arendalsuka. Listen to their conversation in episode #39 Saving Soil where Sadhguru was interviewed by Erik Solheim, published on India’s Independence Day, 15th August, 2022.

This episode is the speech by Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar at the International Climate Summit 2022 held in Bergen on 30-31st August.International Climate Summit 2022 is an initiative of the Indo-Norwegian partnership with a special focus on exploring ‘Opportunities for Green Hydrogen in India’. It aimed to present the next-generation opportunities for Bi-Lateral Trade, Joint Ventures, Technology Transfer, and International funding across the green hydrogen industry value chain in India.Greenstat, Arena H2Cluster, Det Moderne India and the Norwegian Hydrogen Forum represented the Norwegian Partnership, together with the Indian side represented by PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry and Invest India.

Save Soil on India’s Independence Day!!DMI and Norad are hosting a Save Soil debate at Arendalsuka.DMI is celebrating India's 75th Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav Independence Day at Arendalsuka to discuss Save Soil - a global movement launched by Indian spiritual leader Sadhguru JV.  Sadhguru is a yogi and a mystic a man whose passion spills into everything he encounters. Named one of India's 50 most influential people, Sadhguru's work has touched the lives of millions worldwide through his transformational programs. Sadhguru has a unique ability to make the ancient yogic sciences relevant to contemporary minds, acting as a bridge to the deeper dimensions of life. His approach does not ascribe to any belief system, but offers methods for self-transformation that are both proven and powerful.Do listen to this insightful and informative talk where Sadhguru is interviewed by Erik Solheim, Board Member of DMI.

Sustainability Dialogues Make in India is an initiative by the Government of India to make and encourage companies to develop, manufacture and assemble products made in India and incentivize dedicated investments into manufacturing. The Make in India initiative was launched by Prime Minister Modi in 2014. Cochin Shipyard Ltd has built two autonomous electric vessels for ASKO Maritime AS, Norway. The two vessels are central to ASKO’s passion for sustainability and for driving business efficiency. It currently has a fleet of some 700 trucks and trailers and aims to become carbon neutral in 2026. The construction project is partially funded by the Norwegian Government with the aim of setting up an emission-free transport of goods across the Oslo fjord. Plate cutting ceremony for both the vessels was held at Cochin Shipyard Limited, Kochi in the end of June. Do want to know more?Listen to this episode!

Sustainability Dialogues The Klemetsrud CO2 capture and storage project will be the world’s first waste-to-energy plant with full-scale CCS by 2026. Our guest for this episode of Norway India Sustainabilty Dialogues is Jannicke Gerner Bjerkås. So much is happening in the Carbon capture landscape! (ONGC) Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Limited signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Equinor ASA, the Norwegian state-owned multinational energy company, for energy exploration and climate change mitigation options in March this year. And just a week back, Celsio - Oslo’s district heating company - who is also heading the Klemetsrud project secured its funding. Jannicke is Director CCS (Carbon Capture and Storage) in Celsio, Jannicke is heading the full-scale carbon capture project at Norway’s largest waste-to-energy plant since 2018. Please find the following addressed in this episode: Norway’s largest waste-to-energy plant has secured the funding. How did this happen? Let us take a step back. What is Carbon Capture and why is CCS important to Norway? What does it mean to be full scale CCS. How will you enable capture and storage of 400 000 tonnes of CO2 in practice? The City of Oslo plans to slash greenhouse gas emissions by 95 per cent by 2030. The Klemetsrud waste-to-energy CCS project provides a blueprint for cities across Europe on how to best deal with non-recyclable waste, while producing heat and electricity for city inhabitants.  What is it like to be a pioneer? Why waste-to-energy with CCS? Across the world, waste is an increasing problem, causing both local pollution to soil and groundwater and a climate issue as landfills are emitting large amounts of methane, contributing to climate change.  The carbon capture project in Oslo provides a range of innovative solutions that can be exported to other countries. Please elaborate. How do you collaborate with other countries and cities for knowledge sharing in regard to CO2 capture and storage? What does the carbon capture project means for Oslo’s climate targets - and what can cities like Mumbai learn from this project? Stay tuned!!

Sustainability DialoguesCities form networks, engage in dialogue with counterparts, facilitate public diplomacy, share best practices & encourage collaboration.Find answers to the following in this podcast- About C40 and its work. How does C40 use city diplomacy to help cities meet their climate ambitions?  Cities earn their membership through their actions and both of you work with two very different cities - Mumbai and Oslo   The kind of work being done by Mumbai to address the issue?  What are the key lessons that Mumbai can share with the world? What does Oslo do to align with C40's requirements?  What climate budgeting means? How does C40 facilitate this peer-to-peer knowledge sharing on climate budgeting, based experiences from Oslo What do you see as a priority for C40 in the coming years?  Where do you see C40 in the year 2050? Did you know that 3% of the total surface of the #planet is occupied by cities, and that they are home to more than half of the world's #population? 

Sustainability DialoguesOslo is the first city in the world that has developed a dedicated climate budget which serves as the governance tool for its climate work. Many cities are following Oslo’s climate leadership in action.Get to know our podcast guest: Heidi Sørensen Heidi Sørensen is the Director of the Climate Agency, City of Oslo. In her youth, Sørensen was an active environmentalist and was leader of both Natur og Ungdom and Friends of the Earth Norway. She was elected to the Parliament of Norway from Oslo in 2001. She became State Secretary to the Minister of the Environment between 2007-2012 and left national politics in 2013. Sørensen was a member of the Norwegian Consumer Council from 1997 to 2001, the Norwegian Board of Technology from 1999, the board of the Research Council of Norway from 2000, and the Norwegian School of Sport Sciences from 2013. She has also been a member of committees producing Norwegian Official Reports on energy and waste management. Did you know that The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) climate action cell will share its assessment results with the City of Oslo for a year-long program to develop the climate budget? 

Millions have watched Pose on HBO. In India, people don’t watch! Government acts!  While recognition of genders outside of male and female has only recently been discussed in Western societies, in the Indian society, people of non-binary gender expressions have played important roles for over 2000 years.India's Supreme Court has ruled that transgender people are created as a third gender in the country.  The decision is seen as a milestone in India. This was the first time in world history that a Supreme Court recognizes transgender people as a separate gender.Diversity campaigns and Pride flagging notwithstanding: Research indicates that it is difficult to be a trans person in working environments. According to the report "Sexual orientation, gender diversity and living conditions" from 2021, transgender people stand out in terms of mental health, life satisfaction and experiences of discrimination. Transgender rights matters!We have with us Celia Sandhya Daniels interviewed by Chisom Udeze.

Awesome conversation with the President of the Storting of Norway, Masud Gharahkhani.Mr. Masud Gharahkhani is the country's second highest ranked person, after the king. The President is what we would describe as a male ally: A man who will advocate for women even when there are no women in the room. We need more men like him, Men who walk the talk. He was elected as The President of the Storting in November 2021. 

Women will drive India´s future as India now officially has more females than males. In Norway, many high profile leaders have joined the Norwegian campaign #arnekampanjen. The information campaign is inspired by a Dutch LinkedIn campaign called Peter. There are more leaders in the Netherlands named Peter than there are female leaders in total.Among the 100 highest paid leaders in Norway, there are as many named Arne as there are women in total.As DEIB is in the core of DMI, we have decided to support #arnekampanjen.We are happy to share that we have invited Men who support women for International Women’s Day, March 8th conversation as we can not achieve any of the SDGs without gender equality.We have with us:1. Sindre Finnes, the husband of Erna Solberg. Erna was the Prime Minister of Norway till October 2021. His wife, Erna Solberg, was elected as Prime Minister in 2013 and re-elected in 2017, thus making her the second female to hold the position in Norway. From 2016 the Erna co-chaired the UN Secretary General’s Advocacy group for the Sustainable Development goals. Among the goals, she takes a particular interest in access to quality education for all, in particular girls and children.Norways First Man, Sindre Finnes, is a Norwegian economist and organizational leader in Norsk Industri.2. Christian Lund is an appeal court judge in Oslo. He is married to one of the most powerful business women in Norway: Kristin Skogen Lund. Kristin was EVP for Nordic activities within Telenor. She has been a member of the board of the Orkla Group. Skogen Lund has served as Director general of the Confederation of Norwegian Enterprise. Fortune cited Skogen Lund among the "Fortune 50 Most Powerful Women in Business». Kristin was featured on the "10 Global women on the rise" list. The  Norwegian business magazine Kapital has two years in a row put her on the top of the list of Norway's most powerful women.3. Parul Soni, Founder & Global Managing partner of Think Through Consulting. He has worked in over 54 countries with Fortune 500 companies, global alliances, industry associations,  international development organizations and knowledge institutions. Soni has driven many programs including women entrepreneurship across South Asia. Parul is also the founder and secretary general of Association of Business Women in Commerce & Industry (ABWCI).  It is a Virtual Global Chamber of  Commerce for Women.

India is a multi-religious, multi-lingual, multi-racial, multi-cultural country. Its secular status is, however, a heated topic for debate today.  India has a long and mostly honorable tradition of using soft power in its diplomacy. Religion plays a very central and definitive role in Indian society and culture. It can often be seen to influence businesses and the economy.We have with us Sadhguru interviewed by Erik Solheim.Sadhguru is a yogi and a mystic. A man whose passion spills into everything he encounters.  Named one of India’s 50 most influential people. Sadhguru’s work has touched the lives of millions worldwide through his transformational programs. He has initiated large-scale global initiatives, including the UNCCD accredited Isha Foundation, with 11 million volunteers in 300 centers worldwide. In 2017, Sadhguru also launched Rally for Rivers, a campaign to raise awareness about the dire state of India’s rivers, which was supported by 162 million people, making it the largest ever ecological initiative of its kind.  Erik Solheim was Executive Director of the UN Environment Programme between May 2016 and November 2018. Prime minister Narendra Modi recoqnizes Erik as a friend of India and wrote a letter to him last week on the Republic Day of India.Listen to this insightful conversation and stay tuned for our upcoming episodes.

India now officially has more females than males. There has been a demographic shift.  According to latest data released by the Indian government from the National Family Health Survey (NFHS), there are now 1,020 women for every 1,000 men. Women’s economic empowerment is highly connected to poverty reduction because women tend to invest their earnings into their communities and family’s development. According to World Bank estimates, India’s women in workforce contribute 17% to GDP, which is less than half the global average.  Norway was the first country in the world to put a 40% gender quota on boards of listed companies and public enterprises. Plan International is a development and humanitarian organisation that works to advance children’s rights and equality for girls. The Association of Business Women in Commerce & Industry (ABWCI), on the other hand, is an integrated platform dedicated to the economic empowerment of women in business.  DMI would like to present to you the panelists for our podcast: Isabelle Ringnes - Isabelle is the co-founder of Equalitycheck.com Parul Soni - founder of Association of Business Women in Commerce & Industry (ABWCI) Kari Helene Partapuoli - General Secretary, Plan Norway  Rina Sunder - Founder, DMI The conversation will be moderated by Ritika Dhall and Rina Sunder. Ritika is the Head of Gender Equality at Norad.  A few of the questions we will touch upon are:  What does it mean for India now that it has more females than males?  What lessons are there for India to learn from Norway?  What roles do health care, education, protection from violence, as well as empowerment and participation play for women in order to leverage their potential in a countrys growth? How can employers walk the walk regarding supporting women? Simply put — women are the key to unlocking the full potential of Indias economy and society. It’s critical that we pave pathways that allow women to soar. DMI is happy to collaborate with Norad on this seminar. 

It was fantastic to have Atle Vidar Nagel Johansen, EVP & CEO for Orkla Foods, with us for our upcoming podcast on ESG.(Environmental Social Governance)Atle has worked 25+ years in various leadership positions in the Orkla Group; - in finance, marketing and general management. He served on the Executive Management #Board of Orkla as EVP since 2012. In January 2021, Atle took on the responsibility as CEO for the merged Foods business area. Orkla Foods is the largest business area in Orkla, with operations in 15 countries in Europe and a strong food business in #India. Net sales in 2020 was NOK 18 billion, and Orkla Foods has in total 7,500 employees. Over the last two years, he has held, in parallel, both the positions of CEO for Orkla Care's business area and EVP for Orkla’s Group Operations and #Procurement, responsible for more than 100 factories around the globe, and sourcing for more than NOK 20 billion annually.Last year Orkla entered into an agreement to acquire 67.8 per cent of the shares in Eastern Condiments Private Limited (“Eastern”). With this move, Orkla will double its sales in India.In 2013, India became the first country to mandate corporate social responsibility with the Companies Act of 2013. 9 years down the road. How does India view ESG? Atle is sharing ORKLAs journey of establishing and growing their business, MTR Foods and  Eastern in India. 

At COP26 - UN Climate Change Conference, countries committed to new, ambitious targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions this decade. Delivering on these promises will rely on the development, financing and scale up of green technologies. China and India, the two biggest producers, consumers and importers of coal, sparked the last-minute drama at the COP26 talks by forcing a compromise that led from "phase out" to be changed to "phase down."What does this mean? And what about Norway and Norways role at COP26? We invited: - Stig Traavik, Director of Climate & Environment in Norad - the Norwegian Govt Agency for Development Cooperation-Truls Gulowesen, Managing Director of Naturvernforbundet. - Surbhi Singvi, manager for energy at World Business Council For Sustainable Development (WBCSD) for an update on COP26.