Welcome to the March 8th podcast episode. 

The world as we know it is changing rapidly & getting smaller with communication, business, innovation & travel. For the March 8th we wanted to invite a woman.

Rolee Aranya was our first choice as she was rewarded NTNUs award for internationalization in 2022. Also because she is a global Indian and one of the drivers of Brand NTNU around the world. 

The topic for this conversation is: Capacity building for better cities

Rolee Aranya is a Professor in Urban Planning at the Faculty of Architecture and Design at NTNU, Trondheim. 

She has been working at NTNU since 2006.  Her main fields of interest at partnerships based approaches to climate transition, urban governance, inclusive and just transitions and impact based innovation for sustainable urban development.  In her career she has worked actively with promoting institutional partnerships between academia, civil society and bi/multilateral agencies across the globe 

We asked her the following:

1. Congratulation on being awarded the award for internationalization What is International Award?
2. What are the common challenges when it comes to implementation of smart cities in cities in Norway and cities in India?
3. How do cities build capacity building competence in India? What is required to build competence?
4. How are cities in India adapting to slow change to rapid change society
5. What is the impact ofcComplex multi-level governance structures  to knowledge-based urban development
6. At 1°C global change, coastal regions are already facing the brunt of climate change with increasing intense cyclones, storm surges, and heavy rainfall events that lead to coastal flooding. By 2050, the global temperature change will be close to 2°C, and these cyclones and heavy rains are projected to intensify further, putting the coastal cities in danger. How can these cities build ‘resilience’ if they were to manage such scarcity?
7. You have been part of making NTNU internationally outstanding. Where are you heading for the next decade?

Listen to the conversation here