World Environment Day celebrated at SNU with seminar on energy & food security
Kolkata: World Environment Day 2025 was celebrated at Sister Nivedita University (SNU) with a thought-provoking seminar on the theme “Energy and Food Security on a Sustainable Basis – An Indian Perspective”, organised by the department of Applied Nutrition and Dietetics. Held on June 4, the event aimed to foster awareness, dialogue and action towards sustainable environmental practices.
The one-day seminar brought together undergraduate and postgraduate students and faculty members from different departments to engage in meaningful discussions surrounding India’s pressing environmental and nutritional challenges. The seminar opened with an inaugural address by the vice-chancellor, Prof Dhrubajyoti Chattopadhyay, who highlighted the interconnectedness of energy and food security in the context of climate change, population growth and resource depletion. The event featured a keynote address by Prof Sanat Kumar Saha, a renowned energy, environmental and agricultural scientist, educationist, corporate leader and socio-cultural worker. Prof. Saha is presently an Emeritus Professor at the Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology, Odisha.
Prof Saha provided a comprehensive overview of India’s energy consumption trends and their implications for food systems. He emphasised that sustainability is not merely a global goal but a critical necessity for India’s future and noted that the agriculture sector accounts for a significant share of India’s energy use, making the shift to renewable energy not only an environmental imperative but also a path to food resilience. An interactive session with the students formed a central part of the seminar. The dialogue focused on how academic institutions can serve as hubs for environmental education and community outreach. A thank-you address at the end of the seminar was given by Dr. Moumita Das, Head of the Department, Applied Nutrition and Dietetics, expressing gratitude to everyone involved, acknowledging key contributions and summarising the event’s success.
