Dehradun: YES BANK, India’s fifth largest private sector bank, along with YES Global Institute, organized the third edition of the YES BANK Natural Capital Awards today, awarding India’s leading natural capitalists, across seven categories, for their innovative and outstanding efforts at conserving the country’s natural wealth.
Hon’ble Union Minister for Science & Technology and Earth Sciences; Environment, Forests & Climate Change, Government of India, Dr. Harsh Vardhan was the Chief Guest.
State Governments of Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, Gujarat, Chhattisgarh, and Telangana were State Partners to the third edition of the YES BANK Natural Capital Awards. Other event partners included, TERI Council for Business Sustainability; Earth Matters Foundation; EcoTourism Society of India; The Climate Group; Bombay Natural History Society; UN Global Compact Network India; International Network for Bamboo and Rattan; and Earthwatch Institute.
Speaking at the event, Hon’ble Minister Dr. Harsh Vardhan said, “I congratulate YES BANK for organising this initiatives and extend my best wishes to all the winners. The world looks to India with a lot of hope to lead climate change mitigation. Every Indian can contribute to protecting our environment, the time has come from a big, high quality social and national movement to preserve our environment. Small interventions by all of us will help conserve nature.”
The third edition of the awards which recognize outstanding efforts by organizations, individuals and corporations dedicated to spearheading ecological conservation and environmental stewardship, received over 10,500 entries, including 522 corporate applications and 10,135 individual registrations.
Commenting on the initiative, Mr. Rana Kapoor, MD & CEO, YES BANK and Chairman, YES Global Institute said, “Mainstreaming Natural Capital Conservation and Sustainability is a vital pillar for sustainable global growth and development. YES Global Institute & YES BANK remain committed to promote multi-stakeholder engagement in this significant focus area. The Natural Capital Awards is a strategic platform to encourage and recognise efforts of individuals, environmentalists and industry towards natural capital conservation and environmental leadership. Going forward, it is imperative for India to play a prominent role in the global natural capital movement, towards ensuring a Green and Sustainable World for future generations.”
In the Eco-Corporate category, Ambuja Cements Ltd. was adjudged the Eco-Corporate of the Year in the Manufacturing Category, for their innovative efforts at water stewardship, in and around their plant; while the Mumbai International Airport Pvt. Ltd. won the Eco-Corporate of the Year in the Services Category, for adopting a methodical energy management approach and becoming a carbon positive airport.
National Institute of Industrial Engineering, Mumbai won the Eco-Campus of the Year, for adopting an integrated approach to water, energy and forest management in their campus; while the Eco-Tourism of the Year Award was won by Terra Ecotourism for setting benchmarks in responsible luxury by incorporating green design in buildings and using community sourced products and labour. This year also saw the introduction of a new special award category of Nature Leader of the Year, which was bestowed upon Mr. Chewang Norphel, also known as the Ice Man of India, for developing man-made micro-glaciers for water management and rural development. In the individual categories Shivang Mehta won the Pixel Perfect award for capturing a stunning image of a sub-adult tiger pouncing on its prey. And a team of three – Ritobroto Moitra, Shreya Singha Ray, and Rabindranath Sahu were awarded the Trailblazer award, for their touching photo-essay on the story of the vulnerable Olive Ridley Turtles, on the coast of Orissa.
The event witnessed multi-actor participation from some of the finest minds in natural capital conservation, including Mr. Inia Seruiratu, Hon’ble Minister for Agriculture, Rural & Maritime Development & National Disaster Management, Republic of Fiji; Mr. Ashok Chawla, Chairman, TERI; Mr. Daniele Violetti, Chief of Staff, United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change; Mr. Masood Mallick, MD, Environmental Resources Management (ERM), India; Dr. AK Bhattacharya, MD, National Green Highways Mission, National Highways Authority of India; and Mr. Nigel Topping, CEO, We Mean Business, United Kingdom, amongst others.
Highlighting its commitment to mainstreaming natural capital thinking in India, YES BANK launched two knowledge reports at the event –
- ‘Valuing Natural Capital: Applying the Natural Capital Protocol’: The report aims to evaluate natural capital impacts and dependencies by demonstrating application of the Natural Capital Protocol (an internationally accepted framework) through a case study on an archetypal beverages company in India. The case study dives deeper to find the true cost of water and its impact on operations and revenue. Key findings of the report conclude:
- Water is not accurately priced in India currently
- As the concept of internalizing externalities slowly gains ground, incorporating factors of societal and environmental costs in the final industrial water price will raise the water risk premium significantly
- For the archetypal company in Chennai, India:
- The real water price was found to be 18 times the current cost
- 98% of the potential revenue is at risk because of water quantity risk
- Companies need to take measures to avoid risks due to volatility in water prices, and reduce their dependency on external sources water and innovating for higher resource efficiency
- Water intensive industries such as Thermal power plants, Engineering, Pulp and paper, Textiles, Steel, Sugar, Fertilizer, and Beverages are at highest risk, and need to proactively manage their water use for long term sustainability
- ‘Natural Capital Mapping – Towards Achieving SDGs’: The report aims at mapping the financial value of India’s forests & the ecosystem services they provide, and analysing its contribution towards the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The report highlights the following key findings:
- India’s forests and forest ecosystems services contribute significantly to the achievement of multiple SDGs – resulting in significant opportunity costs – the additional amount India would have to invest towards achieving these SDGs, if the forests were lost:
- Clean water and sanitation (SDG 6): Forests provide critical water recharge and cleaning services, and these contributions are relatively more in watersheds with minimum human interference (value provided estimated at INR 89.77 billion per year)*
- Responsible consumption and production (SDG 12): Forest sustain local communities by providing basic amenities like fuel wood for cooking and fodder for their cattle (value provided estimated at INR 1.63 trillion per year)*
- Climate action (SDG 13): States with older and richer forests have higher carbon stocks and sequestration potential (value provided estimated at INR 5.42 trillion per year)*
- Life on land (SDG 15): Forests play a crucial role in supporting a variety of flora and wild fauna, and this service of forest becomes more relevant than even carbon sequestration in areas of high human population density (value provided estimated at INR 3.07 trillion per year)*
*These are opportunity costs, estimated for 12 ecosystem services, mapped to the most relevant SDGs.
YES BANK also announced seven new alliances at the event:
- The Bank signed a charter with Quality Council of India (QCI), SIDBI – India SME Technology Services Ltd. (ISTSL), Foundation for MSME Clusters (FMC) & Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India (EDII), to impact 1 Lakh MSMEs by 2020, as a part of its flagship Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative, ‘Say YES to Sustainable MSMEs in India’, through environmental sustainability, occupational health and safety & financial literacy interventions
- YES BANK signed a charter with The Climate Group and the Government of Uttarakhand to explore and pilot a sub-national working group, with an aim to catalyze climate action at the regional level
- YES BANK signed a Letter of Intent (LoI) with Office of ICT, United Nations, New York, for the establishment of a United Nations Technology Innovation Lab (UNTIL), and utilize advanced technology in pursuit of achieving SDGs.
The YES BANK Natural Capital 2017 awardees were selected by an eminent jury panel of legendary Indian naturalists, industry stalwarts, photographers and environmentalists including Mr. Damandeep Singh, Director, CDP India; Dr. Deepak Apte, Director, BNHS; Ms. Gargi Rawat, Journalist; Dr. Gobind Sagar Bhardwaj, Former Officer, Indian Forest Service; Dr. Kirit Parikh, Chairman, IRADe; Dr. Madhu Verma, Professor, IIFM; Mr. Mark Gough, Executive Director, Natural Capital Coalition; Dr. Nick Robins, Co-Director, UNEP Enquiry; Mr. Pranay Lal, Renowned Author; Mr. Priya Ranjan Sinha, Country Representative, IUCN; Mr. Rajesh Bedi, Wildlife photographer; Mr. Steve Borgia, Founder Member & President, Eco-Tourism Society of India; Mr. Vijay Samnotra, UNEP India; and Mr. Vishvesh Prabhakar, Managing Director, Accenture Strategy & Sustainability.
