Aaran R Patel

The science is clear: trees cool cities, stabilise ecosystems, save lives. Yet, across India, amid record-breaking heat that is about to get worse, millions of trees are being removed, turning a climate crisis into a public health emergency, writes @iyerkavi article-14.com/post/amid-a-re…

At the @Mumbai_Climate members advocating for the Mumbai Coastal Forest along the open spaces which are yet to be developed along the Coastal road, used the platform to spotlight their vision for the city’s coastline, setting up a stall at the exhibition venue. They showcased alternative, nature-forward ideas for the Mumbai Coastal Road. The group presented detailed visual renderings of how open spaces along the coast road could be transformed into green, publicly accessible areas rooted in ecological restoration. Their displays were accompanied by sounds of birds chirping through a music system at their stall to allow visitors to understand how a forest could attract birds of all kinds creating a biodiversity that Mumbai also needed.

Replug | “If mangroves were lost, 15 million more people would be flooded annually across the world.” Mangroves in #Mumbai alone protect more than 150,000 people from flooding every year, the study found. scroll.in/magazine/10041… By @aaranrpatel

If you had to read one thing about India's development policies this week, consider this excellent piece on 20 years of the NREGA by Jean Dreze and Rahul R. I learnt so much! ideasforindia.in/topics/poverty…

“Despite growing public and policy awareness, the way we represent #heat—both visually and through data—hasn’t kept up. It remains stuck in abstraction and is often portrayed as ambient and impersonal, through red thermometers, empty roads, or people splashing water over their heads. This, in turn, informs how policies and practices around heat are formulated and implemented. As communicators and practitioners working to map heat risk, we must rethink how we see and show heat. This guide offers practical tools to change that—from more grounded photography to better use of satellite imagery, maps, and data visualisation—and outlines how donors can help move the needle” - @notsonalii writes for @idr_online. Read: idronline.org/article/climat…

If you thought the impacts of extreme heat were limited to economic loss and a higher death toll, you thought wrong. Severe heatstroke can cause rare neurological side effects that can last a lifetime 1/4: india.mongabay.com/2025/06/surviv…

It’s time to embrace a new kind of public space. A native forest grows richer and more self-sustaining over time, encourages biodiversity, and actively improves the air quality & flood resilience while reducing heat. It is what Mumbai needs. @mybmc

Do read: Mumbai’s coastal road has been a boon for commuters in private cars ; now the city needs a coastal forest to manage rapidly changing climate patterns. Cc @Dev_Fadnavis @AUThackeray indianexpress.com/article/opinio…

.@shloka83 & I have been working w an inspiring group of citizens & experts on @MumCoastForest — currently an imagination of our west coast, but if good sense prevails, an important choice to prepare our city for the climate challenges of this century 🌳🌊 indianexpress.com/article/opinio…

Fixing Mumbai’s annual flooding crisis requires systemic solutions, not band-aids. We’ve reclaimed land for the Coastal Road. Now, it’s time to give back to our city by building a coastal forest. Brilliant piece by @aaranrpatel @shloka83 today. indianexpress.com/article/opinio…

🌿 Join us for Greening Mumbai: A Blueprint for Urban Renewal Featuring: @deespeak | Nyrika Holkar | Deepti Talpade | @radhagoenka | @aaranrpatel Moderated by @richapintoi Register here: forms.gle/2D8kPuDQUMEt2P…

NEW PUBLICATION: Our report assesses India’s readiness for the extreme #heat of a +1.5 degree world. We examine the implementation of extreme heat policies in 9 major Indian cities - Bengaluru, Delhi, Faridabad, Gwalior, Kota, Ludhiana, Meerut, Mumbai, and Surat - which are among the most at risk from future heat (as per our climate models), collectively covering over 11% of India’s urban population. Our major finding: While all cities report implementing short-term response measures to prevent heat wave-related deaths, there was a significant gap in their long-term preparedness for future heat. Inconsistent and weakly targeted long-term actions suggest that India will likely face heat waves with higher mortality in the coming years. This is the first systematic multi-city analysis of heat action implementation in India. Report co-authored by @aditya_vpillai (SFC),@tamannadalal99 (SFC),@ikukreti (SFC), Alexandra Kassinis, Lucas Vargas Zeppetello (@ESPM_Berkeley), @EscanditaTewari (SFC), @NavrozDubash (SFC & @PrincetonSPIA, @PrincetonEnviro). Detailed findings and recommendations in thread:

Siddarth Shrikanth is both clear eyed about the challenges associated with biodiversity loss and our rapidly heating world, and also hopeful about the role this new paradigm could play in addressing these twin crises. Read full interview here: scroll.in/article/107748…

Such a pleasure to interview my dear friend @siddshrikanth about his book “The Case for Nature”. Our conversation touched upon some of the tensions between the intrinsic and instrumental approaches to ecology. #NaturalCapital scroll.in/article/107748…

Research shows #forestfires in India vary by region, requiring tailored strategies. Frequent fires, attributed to climate change and land-use changes, hinder forest regeneration. Read on: indiaspend.com/climate-change…

We now have a coastal road in Mumbai but could we have a coastal forest too? Do read: indianexpress.com/article/opinio… @Dev_Fadnavis @mieknathshinde @AUThackeray

Wonderful op-ed by my colleague Yaashree Himatsingka on Bombay’s once in a generation opportunity to create a coastal forest that could improve our quality of life and bolster climate resilience. indianexpress.com/article/opinio…

At #Porambokkiyal2024, prawn pickers from villages around #mangrove forests, Pulicat lake described their traditional occupation, now disappearing. Tremendous knowledge of medicinal plants & local ecology - city dwellers unaware! @tmkrishna @WRIIndia @aaranrpatel @IUCN @WWFINDIA

#HTInsight | Most Indians have endured hot summers all their lives. But what we are experiencing now is an annual living nightmare of unbearable and deadly heat that barely abates when the sun sets. (Writes: @deespeak) hindustantimes.com/ht-insight/cli…

We outline a new paradigm for mangrove conservation entailing 🔢 quantifying ecosystem services (to reverse the trend of nature being under-valued) 🌿 building community stewardship 🔬 citizen science initiatives to give us a more holistic understanding of urban nature’s health