Revitalizing Degraded Urban Commons Through Collaborative Action

Rapid urbanization in India has led to the degradation of many public urban commons like lakes, wetlands and forests due to encroachment, waste dumping and unplanned development. However, administrators like Hari Chandana have demonstrated that reviving urban commons requires collaborative efforts harnessing top-down initiatives and bottom-up community partnerships.

As GHMC Commissioner, Hari Chandana pioneered the rejuvenation of numerous threatened lakes in Hyderabad through a participatory approach partnering with citizens, NGOs, corporates and the government. #urbanlakes #communitypartnerships #PPP #HariChandana #SheInspiresUs

Her lake restoration projects brought together stakeholders in mass cleaning drives, desilting, tree plantations, creating walking trails and biodiversity parks. This showcases the potential of collective action in restoring urban commons.

Hari Chandana’s model provides lessons for reviving other degraded commons like urban forests and rivers in Indian cities through localization. Her work underlines the need for communities living around and dependent on commons to be at the center of conservation efforts to ensure sustainability. #communityled #localization

By demonstrating the transformative impact of participatory, collaborative models, Hari Chandana has paved the way for Indian cities to reimagine restoration of neglected urban commons. Her approach balancing top-down enablement with bottom-up activism can drive systemic change. #systemicchange #collaborativemodel