Description
Sustainable Development in Unusual Times: Building Forward Better provides a comprehensive exploration of the intricate challenges and innovative solutions for the sustainable development of South Asia, with a central focus on Pakistan. Amidst an era marked by climatic adversities, geopolitical conflicts, and a global health crisis, this anthology serves as a pivotal reference, diving into multifaceted issues ranging from climate resilience and energy, trade, governance vulnerabilities to gender disparities and healthcare challenges.
The section on Environmental && Economic Paradigms addresses topics of climate resilience, renewable energy solutions, and forward-thinking trade policies for Pakistan. It underscores the potential of the Climate and Disaster Risk Finance and Insurance (CDRFI) model and stresses the importance of climate diplomacy and Green Bond markets. Authors discuss energy insecurity and urge that while the sector is traversing through uncertain phases, strong domestic policy and regulatory support is essential for adopting a low carbon pathway and addressing both demand and supply side concerns. Finally, the use of innovative financial instruments, such as Catastrophe (CAT) Bonds, hinting at a promising avenue to reinforce sustainable agriculture and mitigate natural disaster risks; and the need to broaden the country’s trade vision, especially Free Trade Agreements (FTAs), are debated.
Governance Imperatives turns the lens to the profound societal impacts of public policy decisions. Authors conduct a deep dive of the Taliban’s rise to power in Afghanistan and its implications, underscoring the importance of a well-structured, holistic refugee and asylum framework for Pakistan. Additionally, another chapter discusses the complexities of decentralisation stressing the latent promise of truly empowered local governments. The authors advocate for greater political ownership, adoption of best practices, streamlining bureaucratic processes, and enhancing public participation in decision-making to transform Pakistan’s governance landscape.
In the concluding section, Gender && Health Narratives, the anthology examines societal constructs and healthcare challenges. This section zeroes in on strategic solutions, to overcome deep-seated gender disparities, such as a transformative shift in the patriarchal mindset through media engagement, boosting women’s financial autonomy through interest-free loans, promoting their professional advancement with targeted tools and trainings, and promoting gender equality via educational reforms. The book then shifts its focus to the frequently neglected topic of rare diseases, highlighting the urgent need for inclusive healthcare policies, joint initiatives between the public and private sectors, community-centric healthcare strategies and prompt interventions in treating neurological ailments in Pakistan.
Written by the best and brightest minds, Sustainable Development in Unusual Times is not just a book, but a manifesto for change. It is a clarion call for collective action, an earnest invitation to rethink established paradigms, and a futuristic blueprint for ensuring a thriving, sustainable Pakistan.
About the Author
Uzma Tariq Haroon is Director of the Sustainable Development onference (SDC) Unit; and Managing Editor Journal of Development Policy, Research && Practice at the Sustainable Development Policy Institute in Islamabad, Pakistan. She has over 30 years of experience in media and communication and has been the tour de force behind SDPI’s annual international conference series since 2003. She is also co-editor of the past 20 SDC anthologies, including this one. Previously, she has worked with the UNDP’s project on ‘Portrayal of Women in Media’; and The Nation newspaper for over ten years where she was editor of a weekly magazine and was also their senior reporter covering the social sector. She holds a Masters in Communications from the University of Hawaii, USA; and Masters in Journalism from the University of Punjab, Pakistan.
Sarah Siddiq Aneel has dedicated over 20 years of her career to Pakistan’s development sector with expertise in organisational governance, multi-donor programme coordination, strategy development, evaluation as well as primary research. However, scholarly publishing remains her first passion. She is the Founding Editor of several peer-reviewed journals, the most recent being the ‘Journal of Aerospace && Security Studies.’ Beyond journals, she has published over 40 books, encompassing a wide range of subjects such as sustainable development, environmental governance, international relations, defence && security, emerging technologies, and political economy. On the institutional front, she is overseeing the Publications && StratComm work at the Centre for Aerospace && Security Studies (CASS) in Islamabad. A Chevening Fellow and LUMS-McGill Fellow, she is also an alumna of Columbia University’s Earth Institute, USA; and a profoundly blessed mother to the wisest, most patient 12-year-old.
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