The Bengal Chamber of Commerce & Industry (BCC&I) and Ballygunge Society for Environment & Development (BSED) jointly organized an online interactive session on "Environment & Development in Present COVID-19 Pandemic" on 29th August 2020. The pandemic has exposed that gains made to address poverty, hunger, good health and well-being may face serious setbacks, unless the global community also urgently addresses the global environmental threats. Future-proofing sustainable recovery and sustainable development is only possible when sound environmental responses, plans and policies are given the importance they deserve. Diseases passed from animals to humans, zoonoses such as COVID-19, will continue to rise, as the world continues to see unprecedented destruction of wild habitats by human activity. Degraded habitats may encourage more direct animal-human interaction, rapid evolutionary processes and diversification of diseases, as pathogens spread easily to livestock and humans. To prevent further pandemic outbreaks both global destruction of the natural habitats for unsustainable farming, mining and housing must move to sustainable pathways. It is vital that governments, the private sector and civil society build back better by working with, not against the environment in order to manage and create resilience to future systemic threats.

In this webinar, respected Maharaj Swami Atmapriyananda, Pro-Chancellor, Ramakrishna Mission Vivekananda Educational and Research Institute (RKMVERI) to addressed the audience on the real situation and how we can overcome this through various activities. Dr. Sunitha Srinivas, Visiting Professor - Rhodes University & Member - Karuna Trust, A Public Health NGO in India delivered her speech on Social Stock Exchange (SSE) and its importance to NGOs during COVID and Post COVID phase. Mr. Agni Mitra, Regional Deputy Director-ER, Wildlife Crime Control Bureau, Ministry of Enviornment, Forest & Climate Change delivered his address on "Effect of COVID-19 pandemic on wildlife crime". Dr. Priyadarshini Chakrabarti, Post-Doctoral Researcher - Oregon State University also delivered her speech "Threats to bee pollinators and conservation efforts to ensure food security". The session was well attended by around 200 participants.