IIT-H researcher leads pollution study THE RESEARCHER is leading the air pollution governance study on Indian cities. The study will characterise a city’s air pollution governance style. THE CITIES chosen for the study include Beijing, Bangalore, Houst

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A researcher with IITHyderabad, Dr Aalok Khandekar, is part of a global initiative aimed at understanding and governing air pollution.

The researcher is leading the air pollution governance study on Indian cities in the initiative funded by the US National Science Foundation and Azim Premji Foundation.

The cities chosen for the air pollution study are Beijing, Bangalore, Houston, Philadelphia, New York City, Albany, Delhi, Hyderabad, Chennai, Pune and Los Angeles.

Explaining the aim of the study, Dr Khandekar said, “We hope to characterise a city’s air pollution governance style as an effect of the ways different communities involved in the city (local and beyond, including city, state and national government actors, residents, environmental activists, scientists in different disciplines) come together, prioritising some things while discounting others.

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Our hope is that comparative perspective on air pollution governance styles will advance both fundamental understanding of environmental governance and practical work on the ground.”

He further adds, “We want to understand how actors in different communities identify problems, produce and use relevant data, interpret and think creatively about that data, and are moved to action.”