Our Earth, the blue-green jewel of the solar system, sustains billions of lives encompassing millions of species. The planet has, unfortunately, been pushed beyond its natural regenerative limits over the last few decades. To combat this, USA Senator Gaylord Nelson celebrated the first Earth Day on April 22nd, 1970. Since then, every year, more than 193 countries commemorate “World Earth Day” on the 22nd of April, to raise awareness on industrial pollution, sustainability, and the climate crisis.
This year, on the occasion of World Earth Day, we sat down with Prof. Harini Nagendra, Director, School of Climate Change and Sustainability at Azim Premji University, to discuss issues of climate change, sustainability, and ecological commons. She is known for her work in forest conservation and is a frontrunner in climate and sustainability research over the last three decades. Additionally, she is also a non-fiction writer and an award-winning author.
The heart of our conversation focused on the theme of World Earth Day 2026, “Our Power, Our Planet”. For Dr Nagendra, the protection of our Earth lies firmly in the hands of the community. While national policies and global treaties are essential, the power of the local collective action is the most formidable force towards a lasting change, she notes.
Unleashing the Power of Commons
Sharing resources has forever been humankind’s culture. Imagine owning a shared space with your community. This forms the gist of the commons. The early notions of commons, applied to shared physical community spaces like streets, parks, playgrounds, waterbodies, including lakes/tanks, and such places. However, as the shared understanding advanced, ecological commons now encompasses common property resources, such as the air we breathe and the water we consume, as well as all biotic and abiotic components of the ecosystem.
Ecological Commons can also be considered natural or conceptual landscapes managed by the local community. The sense of ownership creates security and ensures sustainable development of the place. They are an essential and functional infrastructure, apart from being aesthetic adornments of the land.
According to Dr Nagendra, the functional revitalisation of these spaces depends on the shift in governance and mindset. Society benefits most when ecosystems are managed through empowerment rather than exclusion. A critical step towards this is fostering a psychological ownership among residents.
“Free entries, no restrictions, no bans, open at all times, would definitely make it accessible,” adds Dr Nagendra.
Dr Nagendra proposes a radical rethinking of the way urban spaces are used, especially in cities like Bengaluru.
“A simple yet effective way would be to open parks and green spaces as urban kitchen garden spaces. In Bengaluru, most parks are populated by ornamental greens. Instead, if these rich soils were considered as garden spaces, and trees and vegetable patches were grown, it would benefit the local community. Yes, there would be a problem with the improper distribution of the produce. However, in a way its good if somebody would benefit rather than nobody,” emphasises Nagendra.
By replacing decorative plants with edible vegetation and indigenous species, cities can tackle ecological degradation and promote strong connections between soil health and plant growth, ensuring that upcoming generations can still enjoy the commons. It is about shifting the paradigm from treating parks as viewing galleries to changing them into functional ecosystems.
Catching up with the speed of the climate crisis
With many nations facing the brunt of a changing climate, the reality of the climate crisis is no longer a distant threat. Dr Nagendra believes our national and state-level policies are not reaching the ground level.
“At the local governance states, including district and gram panchayats, the policies are not in action; additionally, there is also a lack of knowledge and awareness, which is not pushing the awareness progress at the speed we require.” The climate crisis is accelerating at a pace faster than we are currently able to match. “Our actions are too slow, given the severity of the crisis. So, I think building networks, creating communities, and educating the local people would be highly powerful,” adds Dr Nagendra.
The speed gap is evident in India’s changing forest landscapes. As the cities undergo urbanisation, there is a demand for infrastructure, which comes with the cost of losing natural ecosystems and large-scale deforestation. By employing research-based ecological solutions, we can minimise damage and achieve developed infrastructure, suggests Dr Nagendra.
“Yes, urbanisation is inevitable, but development should be centred towards protecting the ecology of the place; it's definitely possible to either reduce deforestation, or plan development around the natural ecosystem as much as possible,” highlights Dr Nagendra.
Ecologically-centred development would not see wetlands as foundation stones for high rises, but as a source of groundwater recharge. It is high time that we design cities that breathe with the land, rather than being stacked on top of it.
The power of the mighty commune: From Individual to Collectives
There is a common narrative that sustainability starts at home. Dr Nagendra adds that individual action is just a starting point. The scale of the climate crisis is so vast that lifestyle changes cannot lead to systemic changes. We must move from individual choices to collective movements. Group networks not only enhance education and empowerment but also become strong enforcers of strict laws and help design policies alongside the government.
Envisioning a green future
Despite the daunting challenges, we are building towards a better future. The climate action plans, grassroots community efforts, and individual commitments are a synergistic development towards a green future. Dr Nagendra remains optimistic and suggests that polycentric governance would aid collective coordination and that we would observe tangible changes. She strongly believes that pollution can be controlled.
“Pollution is still a planetary boundary, which has a fairly local carbon footprint. Thus, cleaning up our local neighbourhoods would definitely bring a change in our pollution levels”.
By reclaiming the Commons through the power vested in us to protect our Earth, we can ensure this blue-green planet continues to breathe life for billions of species.
