Arisecitiesforum – ARISE — Adaptive, Resilient, Innovative, Sustainable, and Equitable — is the flagship urban resilience forum of local governments, led by ICLEI South Asia.

8-9 October 2025

New Delhi, India

About the Forum

ARISE — Adaptive, Resilient, Innovative, Sustainable, and Equitable — is the flagship urban resilience forum of local governments, led by ICLEI South Asia. Under the theme “From Bharat to Belém: Ideas to Implementation,” ARISE Cities Forum 2025 will amplify voices from South Asia and the Global South, to shape a bold urban resilience agenda.

The forum promises two transformative days of dialogue, innovation, and collaboration with 100+ speakers and 200+ delegates. With a focus on pressing urban challenges, ARISE provides a unique platform for knowledge exchange and collaboration.

The deliberations will culminate in the ‘Delhi Declaration’ — a collaborative outcome document which will be handed over to the COP30 Presidency in Belém, Brazil, as a collective statement of urban ambition and commitment to accelerated climate action.

Speakers

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Delegates

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Cities

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Countries

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Ministers & Mayors

Hon’ble Minister of State Tokhan Sahu

Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, Govternment of India

Hon’ble Ugyen Dorji

Mayor, Thimphu City Corporation, Bhutan

Hon’ble Uttar Kumar Rai

Mayor, Phuentsholing Thromde, Bhutan

Surinder Chauhan

Hon’ble Mayor, Shimla, Himachal Pradesh

Hon’ble Adam Azim

Mayor, Male City, Maldives

Government of India Officials / Ambassadors / International and Multilateral Institutions / Development Banks

Ajit Kawade

Deputy Secretary and Mission Director PMAY-2, Housing Department, Government of Maharashtra, India

Aloke Barnwal

Thematic Lead for Urban and Infrastructure, Global Environment Facility

Amit Prothi

Director General, Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure, India

Andreas B. Schei

Counsellor, Climate and Environment, Royal Norwegian
Embassy in New Delhi

Anamika Ramesh, IAS

Joint Commissioner Municipal Administration, Directorate of Municipal Administration,Tamil Nadu, India

Other Experts

Aditi Agrawal

Lead, Narrative Building, Dasra, India

Anuja Sirohi

Senior Manager, Councillor Leadership Development Program, Janaagraha

Anurita Bhatnagar

City Planning and Engagement Lead, Climate Projects Preparation Facility, National Institute of Urban Affairs, India

Bijal Brahmbhatt

Executive Director, Mahila Housing Trust, India

Prof. Ashish Verma

Convenor, Indian Institute of Science – Sustainable Transportation Lab (IST Lab) & Professor of Transportation Systems Engineering, India

Corresponding Event

August 20, 2025

Cities Forum Conference 2025

Publications

Annual Report

Building Climate Resilience In Indian Cities

Promoting Electric Vehicles In Hilly Regions

EV Readiness Framework For Himachal Pradesh

Supporting Partners

Endorsing Partners

Photo Gallery

Explore moments from our events, workshops, and conferences through our gallery

Videos