Guwahati, March 15: A senior conservation biologist from the Northeast, Alolika Sinha has been nominated by the US Department of States to attend a professional exchange programme on global climate crisis.
Sinha, who is a senior biologist of biodiversity conservation organisation Aaranyak, has been attending “The Climate Crisis: Working Together for Future Generations”, an initiative of the International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP), USA.
IVLP is the U.S. Department of State’s premier professional exchange programme.
The ongoing three-week exchange is an inter-regional project for the Indo-Pacific and Central Asia.
As part of this programme, Sinha has interacted with the representatives from different departments of federal and state governments, as well as non-profit organisations and visited different sites to understand and share knowledge on addressing the climate crisis through climate mitigation and adaptation.
The programme entails visits to four US cities – Washington D.C, San Francisco, New Orleans and Miami.
Sinha, along with three other participants from the Indo-Pacific and central Asia cohort, was a part of a special delegation that visited the White House and interacted with high officials from the Council of Environmental Equality (CEQ), executive office of the President.
The CEQ advises the US President and develops policies on climate change, environmental justice, wildlife conservation, among other areas.
The interactive sessions undertaken by Sinha and her colleagues in this climate crisis cohort included discussions on cooperation and working effectively to mitigate and adapt climate change, Net-zero Government Initiative of U.S, investing in green energy, forest management, partnership for protected lands, among others.
The resource persons represented academia, local environmental activists, city administration and researchers.
“I have used this opportunity to observe, learn and understand how the federal and state governments, non-profit organisations, academicians and researchers in the US are working effectively for sustainability and climate resilience by creating alliances and coalitions.” Sinha said.
