Hello everyone,
What are we learning from conversations on the future of India’s cities? From urban water management to data-driven planning, here are a few takeaways our teams brought back from two recent urban forums.
Jana Urban Space Foundation at the Urban Waters Forum 2026
What does it take to make water management in our cities more sustainable, local and collaborative?
From 1–3 September 2026, Diksha Jain, Senior Associate – Urban Design at Jana Urban Space Foundation, attended the Urban Waters Forum 2026, hosted by WIPRO Foundation and the Centre for Water Research at IISER Pune.
The forum brought together practitioners, researchers, civil-society organisations and institutions to explore how rapidly growing Indian cities can manage water more sustainably and work together across communities and institutions.
Key takeaways from Diksha Jain:
Think local: Water challenges need solutions rooted in the realities of neighbourhoods and local ecosystems.
See the bigger picture: Surface water, groundwater and springs are interconnected, so interventions in one can affect another.
Put communities at the centre: Local knowledge and community stewardship are essential to protecting ecological areas.
Work across disciplines: Water challenges need people with different skills and expertise working together.
️Give institutions the power to act: Expertise can only go so far when communities and institutions don’t have the authority or resources to act on it.
Restore, don’t just beautify: River rejuvenation should focus on ecological health and function, not just appearance.
Turn awareness into action: Environmental education needs pathways that help people, especially young people, turn knowledge into sustained action.
Recognise inequity: Water access and vulnerability are shaped by structural, historical and local realities.
Ultimately, water governance is about coordination bringing communities, governments, institutions and different areas of expertise together to work towards healthier and more resilient cities.
Jana Urban Space Foundation at Connect Karo 2026
How can better data, stronger institutions and long-term planning help India’s cities prepare for rapid urbanisation?
On 9 –10 September 2026, Shraddha Parikh, Associate – Urban Policy at Jana Urban Space Foundation, attended Connect Karo 2026, hosted by WRI India at the India Habitat Centre, New Delhi.
Key takeaways from Shraddha Parikh:
Rethink what we call “urban": India’s urbanisation is not limited to statutory towns. Growing urban outgrowths also need to be recognised and planned for.
Make decisions with better data: Urban planning needs open, accessible data including demand-side insights and local, India-specific measures to move from reacting to problems to planning ahead.
Plan for the long term: Cities need comprehensive frameworks to assess needs, prioritise action and guide investment as public and private funding for urban development grows.
Build change into institutions: One-off initiatives and conversations are not enough. Lasting change requires strong institutions, regulatory capacity and dedicated bodies that can carry the work forward.
One message stood out: better cities need better systems to plan, understand and act on the challenges of urbanisation.