IFMR Graduate School of Business (GSB) hosted the one-day Annual Research Symposium (virtual), focusing on ‘Inclusion’ and ‘Sustainability’. The symposium touched upon a wide range of topical issues and themes such as Financial Inclusion, Sustainable Finance, FinTech, and Digital Inclusion. Students, faculty, researchers and several attendees witnessed presentations and evidence-based research that answered burning questions on inclusion and sustainable development in our societies. Speakers from the United States of America, Singapore, London, United Kingdom, New Zealand, Switzerland and other parts of the world brought multiple perspectives to the discussion, exchanging ideas and sharing their point of view and ways to move forward. Senior practitioners from the Indian industry and academics from reputed Indian institutions like Azim Premji University and Indian School of Business also contributed to this thought leadership.
Vice-Chancellor of Krea University, Dr Sunder Ramaswamy, in his opening message, spoke about the relevance of hosting symposiums in today’s world and how it helps take the discussion forward. “The mission of Krea is to prepare humanity for an unpredictable world. When we designed it, we had no idea that 2020 would really test that mission statement. We’re in the midst of three crises – a health crisis, an economic crisis, and a social justice crisis. I think all of us are just waiting for 2020 to get behind us so that we can start the new year on a different note. Conferences and symposiums like this are critical in terms of finding solutions to the various facets of exclusion and the impact these facets have on sustainability,” he shared.
In addition to discussing policies and reforms in the country, the symposium also put the spotlight on various Indian government initiatives. Rama Devi Lanka – Director, Emerging Technologies, Officer on Special Duty, ITE&C Dept, Government of Telangana – shared her insights on the government’s contribution to inclusion in technology. In her session, she shared her experience of developing a strategy, toolkit and procurement guidelines to enable cloud adoption by various state and central government departments. With respect to Fintech in agriculture, in her session, Suniti Nanda – Fintech Officer, Government of Maharashtra – shed light on how multiple Fintech companies are gearing up to build businesses to support agriculture. Watch the recordings of the sessions here.