EMPRI, KSOU to collaborate on climate change initiatives

EMPRI and KSOU collaborate to promote environmental management, climate change research, and awareness in Karnataka through joint activities.

The State government’s Environmental Management and Policy Research Institute (EMPRI), and the Department of Studies in Environmental Science, Karnataka State Open University (KSOU) in Mysuru have entered into a MoU. It is to facilitate collaboration for promoting programs, research, knowledge sharing joint activities in the broad areas of environmental management and climate change in the State, and to create awareness in the public about environmental protection in sustainable manner.

EMPRI director general and senior IFS officer B.P. Ravi and KSOU registrar K.B. Praveena signed the MoU during a workshop held on the KSOU campus here on Wednesday. The three-day workshop on “Environmental Auditing: Building for a Greener Future” got off to a start on the KSOU premises.

After signing the MoU, Mr. Ravi gave a brief introduction on EMPRI and its activities, and the role it is going to play with the KSOU given the MoU. He spoke on the larger issues that need to be addressed, taking up research activities, and focusing on the action plans over climate change.

The MoU aims for knowledge support for implementing State Action Plan on Climate Change (SAPCC) recommendations, including support in the design of policies and projects, and the identification of financing mechanisms and sources. It also aims to strengthen the SAPCC by integrating new research findings, recent policy initiatives by the government, and Karnataka’s development priorities.

EMPRI and KSOU will promote joint projects in areas such as natural resources, water conservation, environmental protection, and climate change mitigation and adaptation.

EMPRI has proposed to further strengthen the climate change centre to make it a strategic knowledge centre on climate change for the State. The strategic knowledge centre for climate change will strive to harness the strengths in science with the participation of national and international research groups to understand climate change and to enable better assessments of the impact and vulnerability of different sectors for evolving effective policies for adaptation and mitigation anchored on values of sustainability, according to the MoU.

EMPRI has been designated by the State government as the nodal agency for providing technical support in conducting research, training and capacity building on climate change programs in the State.