World Sustainable Development Summit 2027: Curtain Raiser

The World Sustainable Development Summit (WSDS), the flagship annual multi-stakeholder platform of TERI, has evolved since its inception in 2001 into a leading global forum for dialogue and action on sustainable development, climate change, and environmental governance. Originally established as the Delhi Sustainable Development Summit (DSDS), the event has grown into an international platform firmly rooted in the perspectives and priorities of the Global South.

Over the past 25 years, WSDS has convened an influential community of Heads of State and Government, Ministers, Nobel Laureates, business leaders, researchers, civil society organisations, youth, and practitioners worldwide. By its 2026 Silver Jubilee edition, the Summit had hosted 61 Heads of State and Government, 155 Ministers, 13 Nobel Laureates, more than 2,200 business leaders, 4,000 speakers, and 44,000 delegates.

The legacy of WSDS lies not only in the scale of its participation, but in its shift from agenda-setting dialogue toward solution-oriented engagement, knowledge generation, and collective action. Over the years, the Summit has provided space for stakeholders to deliberate on issues ranging from climate change, energy transitions, and sustainable finance to biodiversity, resource security, resilient infrastructure, and inclusive development. Its distinctive strength remains its ability to bridge global commitments with the realities of ground-level implementation, particularly across the Global South.

WSDS 2027

The 26th edition of WSDS, to be held in 2027, builds on this legacy under the umbrella theme “Converging Commitments: Collaborative Actions for a Resilient Planet.” This theme recognises that the interconnected challenges of climate change, biodiversity loss, land degradation, resource insecurity, and socio-economic vulnerability cannot be resolved through isolated interventions. Instead, they require convergence across governments, communities, Indigenous peoples, civil society, academia, industry, and financial institutions, alongside deeper collaboration across sectors and governance levels.

WSDS 2027 will place particular emphasis on moving from commitments to implementation and from deliberation to measurable impact. It will explore how diverse knowledge systems, technologies, finance, institutions, and partnerships can converge to accelerate pathways toward an equitable, sustainable, and resilient future.

Connecting Regional Action with Global Dialogue: WSDS 2027 Curtain Raiser

The Curtain Raiser at the National Conference on Indigenous Traditional Knowledge, Clean Energy, and Climate Resilience in Assam and Meghalaya offers a critical opportunity to link the rich experiences of India's North Eastern Region with this broader global discourse.

Assam and Meghalaya represent ecologically diverse, climate-vulnerable landscapes where communities have long sustained locally adapted systems to manage forests, agriculture, water, and common property resources. These practices illustrate how traditional wisdom, community institutions, and grassroots innovations drive biodiversity conservation, climate resilience, and sustainable livelihoods. Supported by the GEF Small Grants Programme – Operational Phase 7 (SGP OP7), the National Conference convenes community practitioners, civil society, innovators, researchers, and policymakers to document these approaches and integrate them into institutional frameworks.

By integrating the lived experiences of Assam and Meghalaya into the WSDS ecosystem, the Curtain Raiser exemplifies the core proposition of WSDS 2027: building a resilient planet demands alignment between global ambition and local action, traditional wisdom and contemporary innovation, and high-level policy and real-world implementation. The event serves as a vital bridge, ensuring grassroots solutions from the North East directly inform scalable pathways for global sustainable development.