Central University of Punjab inaugurates International Conference EDUCON 2025 on Climate, Sustainability & Humanistic Education

Central University of Punjab inaugurates International Conference EDUCON 2025 on Climate, Sustainability & Humanistic Education

Bathinda/Chandigarh 2 December ( Ranjeet Singh Dhaliwal ) : The Central University of Punjab (CU Punjab), in collaboration with the Global Educational Research Association (GERA), inaugurated the International Conference EDUCON 2025 on Tuesday. The conference is being held on December 2–3, 2025, under the patronage of Hon’ble Vice-Chancellor Prof. Raghavendra Prasad Tiwari, on the theme “Education for Sustaining Climate and Resilience: Humanistic Perspectives,” with the objective of fostering global dialogue on integrating education with climate sustainability, resilience, and human values. Addressing the inaugural ceremony as Chief Guest, Prof. Pankaj Arora, Chairperson, NCTE, emphasized that climate responsibility is not merely a scientific or technical concern, but a human responsibility rooted in empathy, ethics, and compassion. He asserted that climate action can succeed only when individuals actively participate and acknowledged that NEP-2020 beautifully blends humanistic and ecological values. Praising the Central University of Punjab for emerging as an institution “with vision, collective purpose and global commitment under the dynamic leadership of Prof. Tiwari,” he called upon higher educational institutions to integrate Indian Knowledge Systems with global perspectives and nurture climate-sensitive, socially responsible citizens. The keynote address was delivered by Prof. Vasudha Kamat, Former Vice-Chancellor, SNDT Women’s University, Mumbai, on the theme “Classrooms to Climate Action: Reimagining Education.” She highlighted the growing threat of global warming and described UN SDGs as survival tools, emphasising the need to foster innovation, scientific literacy, critical thinking and community engagement in education to build climate-resilient societies. Inspiring examples of youth-led climate action—including water conservation, wetland restoration, clean-up drives and waste management initiatives—were presented to highlight the transformative power of student-driven environmental leadership. In his inaugural address, Prof. R.K. Wusirika, Deain Incharge Academics, stated that environmental sustainability and climate education are key to shaping responsible future generations. He described the dialogue-based format of EDUCON 2025 as an effective model to connect education, science and community responsibility. Prof. S.P. Malhotra, President, GERA, and Prof. S.K. Bawa, President, GERA Headquarters, also shared insights on GERA’s vision of collective wisdom and dialogue-based academic collaboration. A major highlight of the ceremony was the presentation of the Lifetime Achievement Award to Prof. Jagtar Singh Dhiman, Pro-Vice Chancellor, GKU, for his distinguished academic and professional contributions. The award was conferred by Prof. Pankaj Arora, accompanied by Dr. Bhupender Singh, CEO – Infotech’N’tainment Inc., who also addressed the delegates on the occasion. Delivering the vote of thanks, Dr. Vijay Sharma, Registrar, reaffirmed the CU Punjab’s strong commitment to campus sustainability through optimum utilisation of resources, reduction-reuse-recycling practices, and the adoption of green habits for safeguarding future generations. EDUCON 2025 brings together leading academicians, policymakers, researchers, educators and young innovators from across India and abroad. The two-day hybrid-mode conference (December 2–3, 2025) aligns with SDG-4 (Quality Education) and SDG-13 (Climate Action) and will feature academic deliberations by eminent speakers representing Canada, Nepal, Bhutan, the United Kingdom, Thailand, the United States, Bangladesh and Switzerland. The programme is being co-ordinated by an enthusiastic team led by Organising Secretary Dr. Shamshir Singh Dhillon (Head and Dean, Department of Education), Organising Secretary Prof. Deepak Chauhan (Dean, School of Legal Studies), Joint Organising Secretary Prof. Vipan Pal Singh (Head, Dept. of English), and Joint Organising Secretary Dr. Sanjeev Kumar (Head, Dept. of History). Over the span of two days, participants will engage in technical sessions, expert lectures, panel discussions, e-dialogues and student-centric activities, culminating in the valedictory session scheduled for Wednesday.