The two-day DDA Green Expo 2026 concluded yesterday at Baansera with a powerful consensus among policymakers, urban planners, climate experts, industry leaders and grassroots environmentalists that India’s cities must move beyond conventional growth models and embed ecology, resilience and sustainability at the core of urban development.
Held under the theme “Beyond Growth: Reimagining Urban Futures”, the Expo brought together a diverse range of voices to explore how nature-based infrastructure, climate-responsive design, public health integration, circular economy models and innovative financing can collectively shape the future of Indian cities.
The Expo opened with the inauguration ceremony and welcome address, as well as unveiling of the DDA Green Logo and Yearbook, by N. Saravana Kumar, Vice Chairman, Delhi Development Authority. This was followed by an impactful keynote address from Hon’ble Lieutenant Governor of Delhi and Chairman of the Delhi Development Authority, Vinai Kumar Saxena.
The inauguration was followed by the signing of 5 key Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) with Delhi Technological University, Mathura-Vrindavan Development Authority, National Medicinal Plants Board, National School of Drama and WWF-India, aimed at strengthening research, ecological restoration, cultural engagement and citizen participation.
Across the two days, seven panel discussions addressed some of the most pressing urban challenges. These included Building Climate-Ready Cities Through Nature-Based Infrastructure, focusing on floodplains, wetlands and biodiversity corridors as essential urban systems; Responding to Urban Heat: Policy, Planning & Public Health, examining heat resilience as a recurring urban emergency; and Designing for Climate-Responsive Cities, which explored sustainable and energy-efficient urban design.
The conversation expanded into resource efficiency through Cross-Sector Collaboration for Urban Food Circularity, highlighting waste reduction and sustainable food systems, while Day Two opened with Development vs Conservation: Finding a Middle Path, addressing the balance between urban expansion and ecological protection. Financing sustainable cities took centre stage in Financing Green City – CSR & PPP for Sustainability, exploring green bonds, carbon markets and blended finance, before concluding with From Talk to Transformation, which focused on translating policy intent into on-ground implementation.
Complementing the panels were four masterclasses on Solar Innovations for Urban Infrastructure, Urban Gardening & Sponge City, Water Management Systems, and Carbon Sequestration, offering practical demonstrations of scalable climate solutions.
A special fireside chat titled Nature, Health and Behaviour Change: Healing Cities from the Ground Up featured environmentalist Swami Prem Parivartan (Peepul Baba) and Ramveer Tanwar, popularly known as the Pond Man of India, emphasising community-driven ecological restoration and individual responsibility in building resilient cities.
Throughout the Expo, experts consistently reinforced that ecological systems must be treated as core urban infrastructure. Discussions stressed the urgency of preserving water bodies, restoring floodplains, rethinking land-use planning, investing in climate finance and building institutional capacity to address escalating climate risks.
The closing session highlighted that collaboration across government, academia, industry and civil society is essential to move from pilot initiatives to large-scale, long-term urban transformation.
With strong participation from policymakers, researchers, corporates, students and citizens, the DDA Green Expo 2026 positioned itself as a landmark platform for shaping climate-forward urban development in India, reinforcing Delhi Development Authority’s commitment to creating a greener, healthier and more resilient capital.
The DDA Green Expo 2026 has firmly positioned Delhi as a climate-forward urban laboratory, reinforcing that the future of Indian cities lies in aligning ecological integrity, economic progress and citizen participation into a unified, resilient development vision.
