Exploring co-production in redirecting climate urbanism

Intensifying climate change and its impact on urban areas has led to the emergence of the climate urbanism model that advocates action at the intersection of urban development and climate change. The model has presented itself varyingly across geographies. While offering an opportunity for inclusionary development in some, in others it has exacerbated social injustice. In India, it echoes the flawed top-down, largely context-blind approach to urban planning, thus exacerbating urbanisation induced exclusions. Drawing on our involvement in the evolution of Community-based Climate Action Plans in Bhopal, India, the paper advocates for co-production as a pathway to inclusive climate urbanism. Given the ability of co-production to democratically improve services for and agency of the marginalised, the paper evidences the efficacy of co-production on (a) an equal acknowledgement of the strengths and limitations of the co-production partners, thereby facilitating negotiations on how and who would bridge these limitations; (b) negotiations that allow for the resolution of challenges and embedded power hierarchies between stakeholders; (c) the integration of climate and development actions as against a mere superimposition of the former onto development agendas; and; (d) the crucial role of decentralized local area engagement, one that affords the marginalized an agency to plan for themselves.