- Home >
- Thought Leadership SoulAce
Senior CSR & ESG heads and professionals at some of India’s leading organizations came together in Mumbai at the India Water Sustainability Forum to drive forward the agenda of water sustainability in India while addressing the critical intersection between corporate social responsibility and sustainable water resource management. The gathering, organized by SoulAce and chaired by CSR & ESG leaders and experts, was held at the Jio World Convention Centre on 10th September, 2024. The Forum witnessed insightful discussions and expert contributions from leading minds in areas of watershed management, lake rejuvenation, innovative drinking water initiatives, climate resilience and groundwater recharge.
"Water sustainability is not just an environmental priority, it’s a business imperative for organizations globally. As business goals become more aligned with CSR and ESG, water security has emerged as a top priority for long-term growth and sustainable community development. By investing in water stewardship, companies not only protect this vital resource but also drive innovation, reduce risk, and create lasting value for both society and shareholders. The India Water Sustainability Forum was our effort to spotlight the important role that CSR can play in helping India to meet its commitment to SDG 6,” says Adarsh Kataruka, Managing Director, SoulAce.
The speakers who inspired the audience and sparked meaningful discussions included Ms. Dhanalakshmi Ramachandra, CSR Business Partner, Bayer; Mr. G Chandra Shekhar Gowda, Head-CSR, Sun Pharmaceuticals; Ms. Rema Mohan, CEO, NSE Foundation; and Mr. Shiv Santra, Head-CSR, Ultratech Cement, Aditya Birla Group who were part of the panel discussion on Watershed Conservation Initiatives and its Livelihood Impact. Moderated by Dr Pooja Prasad, Assistant Professor at IIT Delhi, the panel discussed community-based models in watershed protection and decision-making, challenges such as changing rainfall patterns, increasing droughts and floods that impact watershed initiatives.
The session on Innovative Drinking Water initiatives in CSR was moderated by Mr Adarsh Kataruka, Managing Director, SoulAce and the speakers on this panel were Ms. Arshiya Mecklai, Lead-CSR & Employee Volunteering, Tata Trent, Mr. Sandeep Kumar, General Manager - CSR, Indo Count Industries, Ms. Shilpashree Muniswamappa, Director-ESG & Communications, Colgate-Palmolive, and Ms. Sunita Sule, Director - Country Development & Government Relations, BASF India. While the speakers talked about the drinking water projects they are successfully steering in their respective organizations, they also discussed the challenges such as community involvement, infrastructure, government support, the linkage between safe drinking water and sanitation, and the impact of these initiatives in the lives of women of the community.
Mr. Vishwanath S, Director, Biome Environmental Solutions, during his expert session, gave a reality-check about the grim situation of availability of clear drinking water in the urban areas of India and the wide demand-supply gap that exists in large pockets of the indo-gangetic plain. He made a strong case for the government - industry collaboration to deal with the growing drinking water crisis and disappearing lakes and water bodies in India.
The panel discussion on Urban Water Security through Lake Restoration further emphasized on the historical and cultural significance of urban lakes, the urgent need for recharging groundwater, and the role that CSR is playing in supporting lake rejuvenation programs across India. Moderated by Mr Vishwanath, the speakers on this panel included Ms. Ashwini Deodeshmukh, Head-CSR, Godrej & Boyce; Mr. Himanshu Nivsarkar, Senior EVP and Head-CSR & ESG, Kotak Mahindra Bank; Ms. Pallavi Barua, Director-CSR, Tata Communications; and Mr. Subrato Roy, SVP-Communications, PR & CSR, HDFC Life.
An expert session on an Innovative Approach to Sustainable Water Conservation and Resource Management by Mr Sriram Raghavendran, Director at the Heartfulness Institute focused on a series of rainwater harvesting techniques that the Institute has implemented at its campus.
Mr Manish Kumar, Head - ESG & CSR, ICICI Bank; Dr Pooja Prasad, Assistant Professor, IIT Delhi; Mr Santos Verma, HSE Culture and Performance Coach, Sanofi; Mr Vijay Vardhan, General Manager, Social Investments Programme, ITC came together for a panel discussion on Water and Climate Resilience.This discussion was moderated by Mr Siddharth Agarwal, Founder, Veditum India Foundation. The panelists agreed that climate change is a reality, and its risks were becoming increasingly clear every day. As a result, the linkages between water and climate were playing out in our fragile ecosystem having a large-scale impact on biodiversity. The discussion steered towards adopting a systems approach to water conservation besides leveraging the knowledge being generated through advanced machine learning and artificial intelligence capabilities.
The Forum culminated with SoulAce launching a new report - The Impact of CSR Initiatives on India’s Water Security. The report is based on extensive research conducted by SoulAce, which includes over 100 impact assessment studies of CSR water programs.
CSR leaders from some of India's leading organizations came together at two interactive workshops aimed at enhancing our understanding of CSR compliance requirements and effective fund utilization strategies. The CSR Compliance and Fund Utilization Review Workshops were organized by SoulAce in Gurugram and Bengaluru in June and August 2024.
Led by Mr Adarsh Kataruka, Managing Director, SoulAce and Mr S K Kejriwal, an expert on CSR Compliance and Audit, the participants discussed a host of topics including:, The expanding role of the Board and the CSR Committee, Inclusions, restrictions and exclusions with respect to CSR expenditure, The three modes of implementation, the types of implementation agencies, and CSR implementation in association with another company, and The difference between the term “utilization” and “spending”; what constitutes utilization review.
These workshops are a reflection of our collective commitment to transparency and impactful change. By discussing the issues that concern the CSR community, we empower each other to not only meet compliance standards but also deepen the impact of CSR initiatives." says Adarsh Kataruka, Managing Director, SoulAce.
SoulAce partnered with IFC for The Shared Value Summit at The Leela Kempinski, Gurugram. The agenda of the summit was to deliberate on lessons from experiences of participating companies in their journey of creating shared value and present an interactive learning platform for the Indian enterprises. It had keynotes and plenary sessions discussing strategies of implementing shared value business models in practice.
The chief Guest of the Summit was Shri Suresh Prabhu, Union Minister of Railways, India. The honorable guest for the event were Mr Bibek Debroy (Member Niti Aayog), Prof Anil Gupta (Professor, IIM Ahemdabad) and many other delegates from Corporate, Government and Development Sector.
SoulAce as a platform partner collaborated with Economic Times to bring out ‘ongoing trends and future of CSR’ at Hotel Leela Palace, New Delhi. The chief guest of the event was Shri Ravi Shankar, Minster of Law and Justice and Information Technology. The event was attended by more than 150 delegates comprising of CXOs, Government o icials and Development Sector Professionals.
SoulAce in association with Indian Chamber of Commerce organised Eastern India CSR summit. The agenda of the summit was to share success stories on CSR and deliberate on future opportunities in the sector.
The chief guest for the summit was then Union Minster for Sports & Youth Affairs, Mr. Sarbananda Sonowal and Guest of Honour: Mr. Krishan Pal Gurjar, Union Minister for Social Justice & Empowerment Minister of India. The summit also had keynote address by the founder of Sulabh International, Dr Bindeshwar Pathak. The summit was attended by 180 delegates from top MNCs and PSUs.
SoulAce in partnership with IFC organized Social Enterprise Summit at the Lalit, Mumbai. The agenda of the summit was to deliberate on how Conscious Capitalism is gradually emerging as a strong and viable form of doing business with a conscience. There is a growing network of global organizations and social enterprises, which are looking beyond the narrow focus on economic pro its or philanthropy towards the whole business idea of creating shared value. The summit was an attempt to bring together the minds, businesses and social enterprises who believe in conscious capitalism and shared value as a way forward for sustainable economic growth and wider social impact. The event was attended by more than 100 delegates across Corporate, Government and Development Agencies.
SoulAce partnered with IFC for the Sustainability Summit “Creating Social Impact through Corporate efforts” at The Leela Kempinski, Gurgaon. The Key Note address was delivered by Mr. Ashok Pavadia, Adviser & Addl. Secretary, ISCS, Government of India (Instrumental in framing CSR law)
Special address was given by Dr. Nipun Vinayak, Deputy Secterary, Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation, Government of India. (Heading Swacch Bharat Abhiyan). The Summit had participation from more than 100 CXOs from leading companies including Yes Bank, Essar, Jubilant Life Sciences, PVR, Welspun Energy, Religare, Microsoft, DLF, Panasonic, Jindal Steel & Power, NBCC etc