By Dr. A. R. Khan
Climate change has moved from being a distant scientific forecast to a lived reality that shapes how we think about survival, development, and justice.
Its impact is both global and deeply local, altering the very foundations of economies, cultures, and ecosystems. Among the places where these effects are most starkly visible is the Himalaya— a region where I spent years of research during my Ph.D. on sustainable development. What I observed there was not just environmental fragility, but also the resilience of people and ecosystems, and the critical lessons they can offer for sustainability.
The Himalayas are sometimes called the “Third Pole,” home to the largest storehouse of ice outside the Arctic and Antarctic. These glaciers feed rivers such as the Ganga, Brahmaputra, and Indus, which together support nearly one-fifth of humanity. Yet, rising temperatures are driving glacial retreat, creating unstable lakes prone to bursting, and disrupting hydrological cycles. Mountain agriculture, which depends on predictable rainfall and snowmelt, is suffering from shifting patterns and new pest outbreaks. Communities that have lived in harmony with forests and alpine pastures for centuries now face an erosion not only of their environment but of their traditional ways of life.
And yet, these same communities show remarkable adaptive strategies: terrace farming that minimizes erosion, mixed cropping that maintains soil health, water-harvesting tanks that secure supplies during erratic monsoons, and local forest councils that regulate use without external enforcement. Their practices reveal that sustainability is not only about technology but also about cultural continuity and community-led governance.
The legal system in India has also begun to acknowledge the urgency of this crisis. In a 2024 judgment, the Supreme Court recognized that the right to be protected from the adverse effects of climate change flows directly from the Constitution’s guarantee of life and equality. This decision reframed climate resilience as a fundamental right, putting India at the frontlines of environmental jurisprudence globally. By explicitly connecting climate change to justice and equity, the Court underlined that those most affected — indigenous people, subsistence farmers, fisherfolk — must not be left behind in the nation’s development story.
India’s policy approach has long been shaped by the idea of balancing growth with ecological responsibility. At the global level, it has signed on to the Paris Agreement, committing to reduce the emissions intensity of its GDP and to generate half of its electricity capacity from non-fossil sources by 2030. At home, this has translated into a wide range of programmes: the National Action Plan on Climate Change, with missions on solar energy, enhanced energy efficiency, sustainable agriculture, and sustaining the Himalayan ecosystem; the Green India Mission to increase forest cover; the National Electric Mobility Mission to push adoption of electric vehicles; and flagship projects such as the National Innovations in Climate Resilient Agriculture, which develops drought-tolerant crop varieties and climate-resilient farming systems.
These efforts are supported by a vibrant network of institutions. The Energy and Resources Institute in New Delhi has been a pioneer in renewable energy research, energy efficiency solutions, and green-building standards. The G.B. Pant Institute of Himalayan Environment and Development generates valuable knowledge about fragile mountain systems. The National Environmental Engineering Research Institute focuses on clean technologies for air and water. Academic institutions such as the TERI School of Advanced Studies and the Indian Institute of Forest Management are shaping the next generation of sustainability professionals. Collectively, these centres provide the science, policy advice, and trained human capital needed to steer India through the sustainability transition.
International experience shows the potential of policy innovation. The United Kingdom, for instance, has introduced low-emission zones in its cities, restricting the entry of polluting vehicles. This has measurably reduced levels of nitrogen dioxide and fine particulates in urban air, offering a model that India’s cities — which rank among the most polluted in the world — could adapt to local conditions. Other examples include Germany’s Energiewende, which combines public investment and regulatory reform to accelerate the transition toward renewables, and Costa Rica’s strategy of forest regeneration, which has turned it into one of the few countries to reverse deforestation.
India can learn from such models, but it must also chart its own course, given its scale, diversity, and development needs. For instance, while adopting electric vehicles and clean energy is essential, equally important are decentralized solutions suited to villages and small towns — micro-hydropower plants, rooftop solar panels, community biogas plants, and agroecological farming systems. Equally critical is urban redesign: creating compact, walkable cities with robust public transport, waste segregation and recycling systems, and emission-based road-use charges.
In my field research, I saw how the local blends seamlessly with the global. A Himalayan village introducing rainwater-harvesting tanks is not just solving its water scarcity but is also contributing to climate adaptation at a micro-scale. A national mission promoting energy efficiency is not merely lowering bills but is also cutting emissions that affect the entire planet. And when the Supreme Court declares freedom from climate harm a constitutional right, it joins a global conversation that treats climate action as a matter of human rights.
Of course, the challenge lies in ensuring that these efforts are not fragmented but are integrated into a coherent long-term strategy. Climate change requires us to think across disciplines: hydrology, law, economics, agriculture, sociology, and ethics. It also demands that we see sustainability not as an obstacle to development but as its foundation. Without ecological balance, no economic progress can endure.
The Himalayan lessons are instructive here. Nature has a carrying capacity, and exceeding it inevitably leads to collapse. Sustainability means respecting thresholds: limiting emissions, preserving biodiversity, and maintaining the regenerative capacity of ecosystems. It also means equity — ensuring that those who contributed least to the problem are not the ones to pay the highest price. It requires us to mainstream technical concepts like carbon sequestration, climate-resilient infrastructure, demand-side management, and circular economy into everyday policy discourse.
There are reasons for optimism. India has already installed more than 170 GW of renewable energy capacity and is among the fastest-growing markets for solar and wind power. Green hydrogen is being piloted as the next frontier for decarbonizing heavy industry. Cities are experimenting with clean mobility solutions. Courts are expanding the scope of environmental rights. And youth movements are demanding stronger climate action.
But optimism must be coupled with urgency. The Himalayan glaciers will not wait for policy debates. Each year lost brings greater risks of water insecurity, migration, and ecological collapse. The time to act is not tomorrow but today — with every investment decision, every urban plan, every agricultural policy.
Climate change is the defining challenge of our era, and environmental sustainability is the only viable pathway forward. From the heights of the Himalayas to the crowded streets of our cities, the message is clear: development and ecology can no longer be seen as adversaries. They are, in fact, inseparable. The question is not whether we can afford sustainability, but whether we can afford to live without it.
