Arunesh Karkun spoke at a media professionals workshop on ‘Cutting Through the Haze: Transboundary Air Pollution, El Niño and Health Reporting in South and Southeast Asia’, hosted by the Sunway Centre for Planetary Health at Sunway University, Malaysia, on 13-14 July 2026.

His session, ‘Economics and the Political Economy of Air Pollution in South and Southeast Asia’, used India’s 2025 coal desulphurisation rollback as a case study to unpack the real costs of air pollution to health, labour productivity, and livelihoods, and the regulatory gaps that let them persist. He urged participants to track policy during quiet months, not just when smog is present. He also stressed on investigating the full lifecycle of industrial pollution, including long-term contamination, and the limited enforcement that allows violators to avoid accountability.

Thirty media professionals from across Asia attended the session.

Tamanna Dalal spoke in the panel, “Invisible Exposure: Rethinking Heat Metrics and Protection Pathways for Informal and Gig Workers”, at the Global Heat and Cooling Forum organised by NRDC on 21-22 April 2026. She pointed out how, if implemented well, many actions within the HAPs could be beneficial to the workers. For example, shade, public water points, and even long-term systemic actions like training health staff to treat heat illnesses. “A lot more needs to be done outside the ambit of HAPs through parallel occupational laws. Mainstreaming of heat in various Indian occupational laws, with stricter enforcement, will be needed to protect workers from heat”, she added.

Dr Purvi Patel spoke in the panel, “Invisible Exposure: Rethinking Heat Metrics and Protection Pathways for Informal and Gig Workers” at the Global Heat and Cooling Forum organised by NRDC on 21-22 April 2026. She highlighted the need for greater scientific rigour in heat–health research, particularly in assessing heat-related illnesses, and the need to involve medical and public health professionals. “There is no doubt about heat’s impact on both outdoor and indoor workers, particularly where high physical activity combines with inadequate cooling. However, the resulting vulnerability is less about heat itself and more about the absence of basic safeguards. Examining upstream drivers of risk and assessing the health impacts of long-term adaptation measures are critical”, she added.

Aditya Valiathan Pillai spoke in the panel, “Governance Pathways for Strengthening Heat Resilience in the Global South” at the Global Heat and Cooling Forum organised by NRDC on 21-22 April 2026. He said – “There is a need to be electorally salient to show that they are doing things to show visible action to merge it with other problems.  How do we write best-in-class policies that also drive incentives for implementation at the local level? Where can the incentives at the heart of our heat action plan be located? It is interesting to see the focus on mitigation funds. Incentives might come through the finance commission mechanism and they could also motivate action. Having accountability, compliance, and transparency through the judiciary and focussing on communicating visible actions to local elected representatives, and frontline bureaucrats  may also be helpful. Together, all of these might help move the needle quicker.”

The South Asia Hub of the Global Heat Health Information Network was formally launched at the NRDC Global Heat and Cooling Forum in New Delhi on 21 April 2026. It aims to connect local actors to inform policy, implement practical interventions, and reduce heat risks, particularly for vulnerable populations. At the launch, Bhargav Krishna underscored a critical gap as well as an opportunity in how we respond to extreme heat. He emphasised the need to deepen our focus on epidemiological, or health-specific heat thresholds, while bridging two essential priorities: advancing rigorous science and ensuring it meaningfully informs policy. “At the same time, progress cannot be measured by data alone. It must remain grounded in people’s lived realities, livelihoods, and well-being. This is the space we hope to build through the South Asia Hub: where science and policy come together, without losing sight of those most affected,” he said. The hub is being hosted at Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW) with partners – SFC, Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), BRAC James P Grant School of Public Health, and UNESCAP.

Mukta Naik moderated the panel ‘Policy Takeaways’ at the event, ‘Climate Justice for Home-Based Workers: Voices, Evidence, and Action’ organised by WIEGO and SEWA Delhi on 23 March 2026. She spoke on the importance of workers’ voices, especially home-based workers who are often invisible, in policymaking because heat impacts are very varied. Mukta also emphasised the need for robust data about how workers experience heat, its impacts on their household decisions, including on education and health, that influence vital human development outcomes, and what kind of interventions are beneficial to them.