Workshops and Webinars

In light of the devastating floods in Nepal and Tibet, we discussed the role of green remittances sent by South Asian migrants in Australia. As climate finance from wealthy countries like Australia falls far short of what is needed, remittances are increasingly helping communities recover from climate disasters and build resilience. The discussion also explored Australia’s climate responsibility and its fair share towards vulnerable countries like Nepal.

The Himalayas are warming and glaciers are rapidly melting, increasing the scale and intensity of Glacial Lake Outburst Floods (GLOFs). These devastating floods threaten communities and ecosystems both upstream and downstream across the Himalayan region. Hear from Nidhi Jamwal, India-based Independent Climate Journalist Dr. Radha Wagle, Biodiversity and climate adaptation specialist and Kyinzom Dhongdue, Tibetan human rights advocate, as they talk about human-driven changes contributing to glacier lake outbursts and flash floods, and the range of measures needed to address them.

This gathering brought together South Asians in Australia and friends of Sapna from across South Asia and beyond to share ideas, reflect on the challenges we face, and explore how we can build a stronger climate justice movement together. Whether you're already part of our community or are just discovering Sapna, we hope this conversation gives you a sense of who we are and the movement we're building together.

How can comparative research strengthen climate justice and solidarity across the Global North and South? In this conversation, Dr Ruchira Talukdar discusses approaches to comparing politics and resistance to coal extraction across Australia and South Asia. The discussion explores environmental justice, Indigenous land rights, people's movements and the role of comparative research in advancing justice and solidarity across different contexts. Hosted by the University of Technology Sydney's Climate, Society and Environment Research Centre (C-SERC). Speakers: Dr Ruchira Talukdar, Director, Sapna South Asian Climate Solidarity Professor Heather Goodall, Professor Emeritus of History, whose research focuses on Indigenous histories, environmental conflicts in Australia, and intercolonial networks between Australia, India and the Indian Ocean.

What can Australia and South Asia learn from one another in the fight for climate justice? In this conversation, Dr Ruchira Talukdar explores the politics of coal, energy transitions and climate justice across Australia and India. The discussion examines the different political, social and historical contexts that shape climate movements, Indigenous resistance to extractive industries, and the challenges of building solidarity across the Global North and South. Hosted by the Climate Action Network Australia as part of its Brown Bag Lunch series. Speakers: Dr Ruchira Talukdar, Director, Sapna South Asian Climate Solidarity Professor Kristen Lyons, Professor and Director of Indigenous Engagement, School of Social Science, The University of Queensland

In this workshop with the Australian climate movement, we delved into the case of Bangladesh, one of the world's most climate vulnerable countries. We established awareness amongst climate campaigners about Bangladesh's world leading program of climate resilience that is led by women and local communities. We established support in the climate movement for advocating that Australia assume climate responsibilities towards vulnerable South Asian communities through the loss and damage mechanism.

In this workshop with the Australian climate movement we delved into the case of India’s climate performance and how we can approach it from a justice perspective. Each year during COP, the global North-South blame shifting continues, and the rhetoric of net emissions versus per capita emissions takes centre-stage. What is often ignored is the need of the most affected communities, especially in the global South, and a discussion on what just international actions are necessary for them. Cutting through the political rhetoric of emissions this workshop brought campaigners to the South Asian justice discourse on climate action.

We coupled the launch of the Sapna report with a workshop to discuss the report’s recommendations around building a climate movement where migrant communities can bring their stories and actions. In the workshop we heard from South Asian and other people of colour climate leaders in Australia, discussed the structural and cultural barriers for migrant community participations in climate action in Australia, and concluded with actions for inclusivity.