ISET Platform Lecture: Building The Green City of Future

ISET-Nepal started ISET Platform Lecture series from 2014. Eminent personalities from across Nepal and South Asia will be invited to deliver the lecture.

Lecture I

The first lecture of the series was delivered by Professor Sudharshan Tiwari in September 2014 on Building the Green City of Future: Inclusive Technologies and Materials.

Summary
Cities are a main source of economic activity and productivity. Today, almost half of the world’s population lives in cities and this number is growing. In Asia alone, every day more than 100,000 people move to cities seeking a better life. It is estimated that within the next 15 years, 60 percent of the world’s population will live in cities, most of them in Asia. To accommodate all of them, it is clear that citites will have to function within the means of environment and its resources. If cities are to be the foundation of human wellbeing, they must maintain clean air, clean water, and green land as the key ingredients of livability. In a rapidly urbanizing future, how can the ecology of a particular city be balanced with the socio-economic development of that city? The pathway to livable green cities should be charted on a shared vision that brings together the wisdom offered by both western and eastern system of knowledge.

Professor Tiwari studied architecture and earned Bachelor’s degree from School of Planning and Architecture, University of Delhi in 1973. He took his Master’s degree in Architecture from the University of Hawaii, USA in 1977, specializing on housing in tropical countries. He received his PhD from Tribhuvan University for his dissertation on ancient settlements of the Kathmandu Valley in 1995. He served in the faculty of Tribhuvan University’s Institute of Engineering Department of Architecture for almost 40 years, and was Dean of the institute of Engineering between 1988 and 1992. Among his published work are: The Brick and the Bull: An account of Handigaun, the ancient capital of Nepal (2001) and Temples of Nepal Valley (2009)

Lecture II

Prof. Dr. Imtiaz Ahmed, Professor of International Relation, Dhaka University delivered the second ISET Platform Lecture on March 1, 2015. The lecture “Dhaka City: Stressed but Alive” highlighted rapid changes in capital of Bangladesh. Situated on the delta formed by Ganga and Brahmaputra river, modern day Dhaka faces many stresses while functioning as a gateway and opportunityshed for millions of Bangladeshi nationals. In the past, the city has endured many devastating disasters including floods exhibiting an unique capacity to survive. How the stresses and opportunities play out in the future harmoniously will depend on how Dhaka residents reinvigorate the city’s dependence on rivers. Dr. Ahmed suggested that for a sustainable future, the city has to rebuild relationship with water. The programme started with recitation of ISET Platform Lecture Anthem “Shristi Bachos” followed by welcome speech by Mr. Ajaya Dixit, Executive Director of ISET-Nepal. Mr. Kamalraj Pandey, Chairperson of ISET-Nepal formally introduced Dr. Ahmed.