Organisations

Dr Rajendra K Pachauri assumed his current responsibilities as the Chief Executive of TERI (The Energy and Resources Institute) in 1982, first as Director and, since April 2001, as Director-General. TERI does original research and provides knowledge in the areas of energy, environment, forestry, biotechnology, and the conservation of natural resources to governments, institutions, and corporate organizations worldwide. Since August 1998 he has also been Chancellor, TERI University. In April 2002, Dr Pachauri was elected the Chairman of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, established by the World Meteorological Organization and the United Nations Environment Programme in 1988 (Re-elected in September 2008). IPCC along with former Vice President Al Gore has been awarded the “Nobel Peace Prize” for the year 2007. He was the Founding Director of the Yale Climate and Energy Institute (YCEI) from July 2009 till June 2012 following which he has been appointed as Senior Adviser to YCEI. He has been active in several international forums dealing with the subject of climate change and its policy dimensions.

Sunderlal Bahuguna is an Indian eco-activist and Gandhian peace worker, who has been one of the leaders of the Chipko movement, fighting for the preservation of forests in the Himalayas. Chipko means 'embrace' or 'tree huggers' and this vast movement has been a decentralized one with many leaders, usually village women, who have worked to protect the environment. Often they would chain themselves to trees so that loggers could not cut down the forests. These actions slowed down the destruction, but more importantly they brought the deforestation to the public's attention. In 1981 to 1983 Sunderlal Bahuguna led a 5000 kilometer march across the Himalayas ending with a meeting with Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, who then passed legislation to protect some areas of the Himalayan forests from clear-cutting. Sunderlal Bahuguna was also a leader in the movement to oppose the Tehri dam project and in defending India's rivers, and has also worked for women's rights and rights of the poor. In the tradition of Mahatma Gandhi, his work for change has always been done through peaceful resistance and other nonviolent methods. The Chipko Movement received the 1987 Right Livelihood Award, also referred to as the Alternative Nobel Prize, "...for its dedication to the conservation, restoration and ecologically-sound use of India's natural resources.”

Ashish Kothari began working on environment and development issues in his school days in 1978-79, as one of the founders of Kalpavriksh, an Indian environmental NGO. A graduate in Sociology, Ashish has taught environment at the Indian Institute of Public Administration in the 1990s, and been guest faculty at several universities, institutes, and colleges. He has been Co-Chair of the IUCN Inter-commission Strategic Direction on Governance, Equity, and Livelihoods in Relation to Protected Areas (TILCEPA) (1999-2008), and in the same period a member of the Steering Committees of the World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA), and IUCN Commission on Environmental, Economic, and Social Policy (CEESP). He has served on the Board of Directors of Greenpeace International, and currently chairs Greenpeace India’s Board. He has also been on the steering group of the CBD Alliance.

Anupam Mishra born 1948, is an Indian Gandhian, author, journalist, environmentalist, and water conservationist who works on promoting water conservation, water management and traditional rainwater harvesting techniques. He had been awarded the 1996 Indira Gandhi Paryavaran Puraskar (IGPP) award instituted by the Ministry of Environment and Forests, Government of India. He travels to villages across several Indian states, especially Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Uttar Pradesh, describing the value of time-tested systems of water harvesting. He advocates conservation of traditional water structures in India as well as abroad. He has written books, like Aaj Bhi Khare Hain Talaab (Lakes are still Standing, 1993) and Rajasthan Ki Rajat Boondein (Radiant Raindrops of Rajasthan, 1995), landmark works in the field of water conservation. He is a popular public speaker, especially on topics related to environment and water management.