Day 1 of the International Sustainability Conference 2025 sets a decisive tone for ESG and climate action discourse
The three-day summit is jointly organized by IIMB’s Supply Chain Management Centre and Wipro Ltd.
24 April, 2025, Bengaluru: The International Sustainability Conference 2025: Advancing the Global Sustainability Narrative, jointly organized by IIM Bangalore and its Supply Chain Management Centre (SCMC), in collaboration with Wipro Ltd., convened global leaders from academia, industry, and policymaking to engage in critical dialogues over the course of the three-day summit from 24 to 26 April, 2025.
Pradeep Bhargava, Chairman, MCCIA Electronic Cluster Foundation, inaugurated the conference in the midst of Prof. Rishikesha T. Krishnan, Director, IIMB; P.S. Narayan, Global Head of Sustainability and Social Initiatives, Wipro Limited, and Managing Trustee, Wipro Foundation; Prof. P D Jose, Strategy area; Prof. Haritha Saranga, Chairperson, Sustainability Taskforce, Production & Operations Management (PoM) area; Prof. Sourav Mukherji, Organizational Behavior & Human Resources Management area; and Dr. Aditya Gupta, Chief Operating Officer (COO), SCMC.
Delivering the inaugural address, Mr. Bhargava reflected on the urgent need to reframe management education in a BANI (Brittle, Anxious, Non-linear, and Incomprehensible) world. He stressed the role of business schools in developing leaders who can act with empathy, foresight, and responsibility in an era marked by uncertainty and global challenges.
The architect of Wipro’s sustainability initiative since 2008, P.S. Narayan, addressed the gathering, saying, “Wipro and IIMB share a decade-old partnership that tries to address critical issues of sustainability in business. In the challenging times we live in, we think corporations and management institutes like IIMB can play a crucial role as constructive change-makers. This conference is part of this larger effort and underscores the importance of collaboration between academia and industry in navigating sustainability transitions”.
“We focus on sustainability not because we’re environmentalists, but because we are capitalists and fiduciaries to our clients.” With this quote from BlackRock’s Larry Fink, Prof. Viral Acharya, C.V. Starr Professor of Economics, NYU Stern School of Business, opened the second keynote at Day 1 of the International Sustainability Conference 2025, with a clarion call for private-enterprise-led climate action.
His talk, based on his recent research paper, ‘Strategic Commitments to Decarbonize: The Role of Large Firms, Common Ownership, and Governments’, laid out a strong case for the strategic role of large firms and institutional investors in catalysing the transition to a low-carbon economy. Through theoretical insights and empirical data, Prof. Acharya argued that firm-level Net Zero commitments, when backed by scale, influence, and common ownership, can spur green innovation, lower costs for smaller firms, and bolster the credibility of future government policies, especially where carbon tax regimes remain politically constrained.
The session on ‘ESG Disclosures—From Compliance Checklist to Catalyst for Change’, featuring Shruthi Goel, Managing Director – Sustainability, Accenture Strategy; Dr. Aditi Haldar, Director, GRI Regional Network South Asia; Nirav Patel, ex-KPMG partner, Uniqus Consulting; and Gyaneshwar Singh, former DG & CEO, Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs; and moderated by IIMB faculty Prof. Padmini Srinivasan, Chairperson, Centre for Corporate Governance and Sustainability, Finance & Accounting area, brought to light the evolution of ESG reporting, tracing its roots from voluntary principles to regulatory mandates like India’s BRSR framework. Panellists deciphered how disclosures can move beyond box-ticking exercises to become tools for internal reflection, leadership development, and long-term value creation.
The first breakout session on Environmental Sustainability, led by Shruthi Goel, brought forward discussions on industrial decarbonization, the effectiveness of disclosure mandates, and the potential impact of India’s proposed Carbon Credit Trading Scheme. The next session on Social Sustainability was delivered by Shekhar Prabhakar, CEO & Co-founder, Hasiru Dala Innovations. Participants addressed the challenges of reporting on subjective social data, navigating diverse stakeholder expectations, and implementing equitable practices around pay, sourcing, and well-being. The last breakout session for Day 1, led by Dr. Aditi Haldar, brought to light how governance frameworks can help organizations embed ESG into strategy, mitigate risk, and promote long-term resilience.
Paper Presentations
Meanwhile, the academic track of the conference saw 25 research papers presented across five parallel tracks on topics including ESG performance and reporting, green bonds, sustainable supply chains, and leadership, bringing a well-rounded perspective to sustainability inquiries, innovations, and challenges.
For the Day 2 and Day 3 agenda, please visit: https://www.iimb.ac.in/Intl-sustainability-scm-conference/images/Conference-Schedule.pdf
Click here for photo gallery
Day 1 of the International Sustainability Conference 2025 sets a decisive tone for ESG and climate action discourse
The three-day summit is jointly organized by IIMB’s Supply Chain Management Centre and Wipro Ltd.
24 April, 2025, Bengaluru: The International Sustainability Conference 2025: Advancing the Global Sustainability Narrative, jointly organized by IIM Bangalore and its Supply Chain Management Centre (SCMC), in collaboration with Wipro Ltd., convened global leaders from academia, industry, and policymaking to engage in critical dialogues over the course of the three-day summit from 24 to 26 April, 2025.
Pradeep Bhargava, Chairman, MCCIA Electronic Cluster Foundation, inaugurated the conference in the midst of Prof. Rishikesha T. Krishnan, Director, IIMB; P.S. Narayan, Global Head of Sustainability and Social Initiatives, Wipro Limited, and Managing Trustee, Wipro Foundation; Prof. P D Jose, Strategy area; Prof. Haritha Saranga, Chairperson, Sustainability Taskforce, Production & Operations Management (PoM) area; Prof. Sourav Mukherji, Organizational Behavior & Human Resources Management area; and Dr. Aditya Gupta, Chief Operating Officer (COO), SCMC.
Delivering the inaugural address, Mr. Bhargava reflected on the urgent need to reframe management education in a BANI (Brittle, Anxious, Non-linear, and Incomprehensible) world. He stressed the role of business schools in developing leaders who can act with empathy, foresight, and responsibility in an era marked by uncertainty and global challenges.
The architect of Wipro’s sustainability initiative since 2008, P.S. Narayan, addressed the gathering, saying, “Wipro and IIMB share a decade-old partnership that tries to address critical issues of sustainability in business. In the challenging times we live in, we think corporations and management institutes like IIMB can play a crucial role as constructive change-makers. This conference is part of this larger effort and underscores the importance of collaboration between academia and industry in navigating sustainability transitions”.
“We focus on sustainability not because we’re environmentalists, but because we are capitalists and fiduciaries to our clients.” With this quote from BlackRock’s Larry Fink, Prof. Viral Acharya, C.V. Starr Professor of Economics, NYU Stern School of Business, opened the second keynote at Day 1 of the International Sustainability Conference 2025, with a clarion call for private-enterprise-led climate action.
His talk, based on his recent research paper, ‘Strategic Commitments to Decarbonize: The Role of Large Firms, Common Ownership, and Governments’, laid out a strong case for the strategic role of large firms and institutional investors in catalysing the transition to a low-carbon economy. Through theoretical insights and empirical data, Prof. Acharya argued that firm-level Net Zero commitments, when backed by scale, influence, and common ownership, can spur green innovation, lower costs for smaller firms, and bolster the credibility of future government policies, especially where carbon tax regimes remain politically constrained.
The session on ‘ESG Disclosures—From Compliance Checklist to Catalyst for Change’, featuring Shruthi Goel, Managing Director – Sustainability, Accenture Strategy; Dr. Aditi Haldar, Director, GRI Regional Network South Asia; Nirav Patel, ex-KPMG partner, Uniqus Consulting; and Gyaneshwar Singh, former DG & CEO, Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs; and moderated by IIMB faculty Prof. Padmini Srinivasan, Chairperson, Centre for Corporate Governance and Sustainability, Finance & Accounting area, brought to light the evolution of ESG reporting, tracing its roots from voluntary principles to regulatory mandates like India’s BRSR framework. Panellists deciphered how disclosures can move beyond box-ticking exercises to become tools for internal reflection, leadership development, and long-term value creation.
The first breakout session on Environmental Sustainability, led by Shruthi Goel, brought forward discussions on industrial decarbonization, the effectiveness of disclosure mandates, and the potential impact of India’s proposed Carbon Credit Trading Scheme. The next session on Social Sustainability was delivered by Shekhar Prabhakar, CEO & Co-founder, Hasiru Dala Innovations. Participants addressed the challenges of reporting on subjective social data, navigating diverse stakeholder expectations, and implementing equitable practices around pay, sourcing, and well-being. The last breakout session for Day 1, led by Dr. Aditi Haldar, brought to light how governance frameworks can help organizations embed ESG into strategy, mitigate risk, and promote long-term resilience.
Paper Presentations
Meanwhile, the academic track of the conference saw 25 research papers presented across five parallel tracks on topics including ESG performance and reporting, green bonds, sustainable supply chains, and leadership, bringing a well-rounded perspective to sustainability inquiries, innovations, and challenges.
For the Day 2 and Day 3 agenda, please visit: https://www.iimb.ac.in/Intl-sustainability-scm-conference/images/Conference-Schedule.pdf
Click here for photo gallery