The step wells of Gujarat or the 'Jharokhas' of Rajasthan speak of a tradition that is rooted in 'care for nature' and ardent endeavor for resource conservation. India has been blessed with examples of climate and environment responsive urban and building forms that speak of preparedness to address resources constraints. However, the rapid increase in Indian population and growth of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) has given rise to an enormous demand for buildings with a subsequent pressure on availability of resources. With an anticipated 500 million people living in urban India by 2020 (when the present world population is about 7000 million), the challenges of greenhouse gas emissions from electricity use in new and existing buildings, and building material manufacturing and water consumption are likely to spike up significantly. Solid waste management is another critical issue in cities. Over the last few decades and years we have experienced cities transitioning from resource sufficient entities to ones with unsustainable urban growth. Congestion, pollution, shortage of power and water is a common issue that most of the cities are grappling with.

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