To address these fundamental issues, attention is now being directed towards greening the economy. In a green economy, growth in income and employment is driven by public and private investments on initiatives that:

• Decouple resource utilisation from economic activities

• Reduce carbon dependence

• Manage natural resources better

• Create dignified jobs that generate income and social security

In this regard, the New Economic Foundation’s (NEF) Global Transition Initiative (GTI) aims to build, through partnerships, a global civil society and stakeholder movement of actors and organisations from the global North and South, committed to the principles and objectives of transitioning to a sustainable economy. Development Alternatives (DA), with support from NEF, joined the movement to lend an Indian perspective to a global transition. This programme is referred to as the South Hubs Network Programme, which also includes a partner from South Africa providing an African outlook to a sustainable economy. DA’s project is known as Mainstreaming Alternative Perspectives – South Asia (www.map-sa.net).

In a diverse country like India, several alternatives already exist that help alleviate poverty and conserve the environment, while developing the economy. However, most of these solutions are currently operating on a very small scale and need to be scaled-up considerably to have a noticeable impact on a large country like India.

Mainstreaming Alternative Perspectives – South Asia (MAP-SA) aims to identify, promote and strengthen these on-ground practices that are equitable, build human capacities, boost sustainable production and consumption patterns and foster wellbeing for the people and the planet. Moreover, to catalyse the movement, it intends to become a knowledge sharing platform (through its online presence) for new economy actors to discover and replicate alternative models of development that support India’s transition to an economy which is socially just, environmentally sustainable, economically viable, inclusive and resilient.

Under this project, Development Alternatives, along with five other partners (Keystone Foundation, Udyogini, Chintan Environmental Research and Action Group and TARA) have been able to identify and document almost 120 such initiatives across sectors such as agriculture, construction, biodiversity, water and sanitation, energy, handicrafts and waste in India. Through the documentation process, an array of challenges emerged that are hampering the growth to a new green economy. The primary ones that were common to most initiatives were:

• Technological bottlenecks: Technology plays a crucial role in development. However, access to it in many parts of the country, especially rural, is limited. In areas where technology is available, people often lack the skills to operate the machines.

• Capital/Finance: Banks are apprehensive to give loans to economically weaker sections of the society due to the lack of credibility and assets. This is a barrier for any potential entrepreneur.

• Market linkages: Fortunately, the manipulative middlemen are no longer the market linkage for the rural producers. However, they have left a void and capacities of communities need to be built to create channels for their products to reach the larger market.

For India to successfully transition to a sustainable economy, it needs strong political will. If policy makers were to incorporate systems that overcome such barriers and help mainstream green economy initiatives, these could potentially contribute to the targets of the Sustainable Development Goals being proposed. Furthermore, the government will have to strengthen partnerships globally to adopt knowledge, expertise, technologies and financial resources to make headway in the development of a sustainable economy.

India is at a crossroad between business as usual scenario and green development. It must choose the right path now. q