Mahindra World City Jaipur is the first Asian project to receive this recognition from the C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group, a global network of large cities taking action to address climate change
IndiaCSR News Network
NEW YORK: Mahindra World City Jaipur, one of India’s premier integrated business cities, today became the first project in Asia to receive Stage 2 Climate Positive Development certification from the C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group (C40). The Climate Positive Development Programme is a performance-based framework designed to create models for how cities can grow in low carbon ways.
The Mahindra project, which is also the largest project in the world (by population) to reach this certification, is being recognized for its Climate Positive Roadmap detailing its plans and commitment to achieve a net-negative carbon emissions outcome. In recognition of this milestone, President of the C40 Board and UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for Cities and Climate Change Michael R. Bloomberg presented a commemorative plaque to Anand Mahindra, Chairman, Mahindra Group at Bloomberg LP in New York City. Stage 2 Climate Positive recognition is given to those developers who have successfully created detailed plans for how they will reduce energy, waste and transportation related carbon emissions onsite and expand the impact to the surrounding community in order to achieve a Climate Positive outcome.
Anand Mahindra, Chairman, Mahindra Group, said, “Sustainability is an integral part of our ‘Rise’ philosophy and we are committed to driving sustainable practices across our businesses. My congratulations to Mahindra World City Jaipur for their pioneering work that has led to this global recognition. The C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group has contributed greatly towards implementing meaningful and sustainable policies and programmes that address the issue of global climate change. We as a Group are honoured to have received this certification.”
C40 Board President and UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for Cities and Climate Change Michael R. Bloomberg said, “The partnership between the Mahindra Group and Jaipur is a great example of how cities can grow and provide opportunities for people without polluting the planet or worsening the risks we face from climate change. It’s essential for cities to find ways to do that – including in India, where cities are growing rapidly and living standards are increasing, along with demands on energy and other resources. Innovative projects like this can help us avoid the worst impacts of climate change while also improving many people’s lives, and I applaud the Mahindra Group, C40, and the city of Jaipur for their leadership.”
C. S. Rajan, Chief Secretary, Government of Rajasthan and Chairman, Mahindra World City, Jaipur said, “It is a proud moment for Mahindra World City, Jaipur as we have become Asia’s first and only participant in Stage 2 of the Climate Positive Development Programme of C40 cities. Such Programmes encourage developers to take a leadership role in ensuring that new cities are sustainable. The project has committed to a long-term roadmap which includes strategies and tactics that will be adopted to achieve net negative operational Green House Gases (GHG) emissions. Given the increasing importance of climate change mitigation in a rapidly urbanizing country like India, Mahindra World City, Jaipur could serve as a model for development across emerging economies.”
The Climate Positive Development Programme (CPDP) was created to meet the pressing dual challenges of rapid urbanization and climate change. Part of the C40’s Sustainable Communities Initiative, the Programme was originally developed in partnership with the Clinton Climate Initiative and the U.S Green Building Council. It aims to create large-scale models and global good-practice examples of urban development that help mitigate climate change by reducing carbon emissions in an economically sustainable manner.
CPDP developers seek to meet a ‘climate positive’ emissions target of net-negative on-site, operational greenhouse gas emissions.
C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group (C40)
The C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group, now in its 10th year, connects more than 75 of the world’s greatest cities, representing 500+ million people and one quarter of the global economy. Created and led by cities, C40 is focused on tackling climate change and driving urban action that reduces greenhouse gas emissions and climate risks, while increasing the health, wellbeing and economic opportunities of urban citizens. The current chair of the C40 is Rio de Janeiro Mayor Eduardo Paes; three-term Mayor of New York City Michael R. Bloomberg serves as President of the Board.
Mahindra World City Jaipur Ltd
Mahindra World City, Jaipur – Transforming urban landscapes by creating sustainable communities. – Pioneered by Mahindra Lifespaces, Mahindra World Cities (MWCs), are integrated business cities through developments in Chennai and Jaipur. These developments cover 1862 hectares (4,600 acres) and house over 125 reputed global companies, providing an integrated environment for Life, Living and Livelihood. Our business is driven by our mission of sustainable urbanization woven around a strategic business plan that aims to bring about a positive change for customers, stakeholders and community.
Mahindra World City, Jaipur is located in the Delhi-Mumbai Corridor and is spread across 3000 acres, being developed in partnership with Rajasthan State Industrial Development Corporation (RIICO), an agency of the Government of Rajasthan. Situated 25 kms from Jaipur airport, it houses facilities for more than 64 corporates like Infosys, Wipro, JCB, Perto, Rexam etc across its SEZ and DTA facilities. It is the first city in India which is pre-certified SEZ with Gold certification under the Indian Green Building Council (IGBC). In addition, the Evolve IT Park situated within MWC Jaipur is a LEED platinum certified Green Building.
Mahindra Lifespaces Developers Ltd.
Mahindra Lifespaces Developers Ltd., the real estate and infrastructure development business of the $16.9 billion Mahindra Group, is a leader in sustainable urban development, through the creation of residential and integrated large format developments across nine Indian cities, namely Mumbai, Pune, Nagpur, Gurgaon, Faridabad, Jaipur, Chennai, Hyderabad and Bangalore. The Company’s residential and commercial development footprint includes over 0.8 million sq.m. (8.92 million sq ft) of completed projects and over 1.0 million sq. m. (10.38 million sq. ft.) of ongoing and forthcoming projects.
Mahindra Lifespaces is the first real estate company in India to release its triple bottom-line focused Sustainability Report that is based on the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) framework and received an A+ rating indicating the highest levels of disclosure and transparency.
In 2014, Mahindra Lifespaces has been recognised as a Regional Sector Leader for Asia by the Global Real Estate Sustainability Benchmarking (GRESB).
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