This Community of Practice (CoP) aims to strengthen collaborative engagement and facilitate seamless knowledge exchange across the BIMSTEC member countries, which include Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and Thailand. The CoP is designed to enhance knowledge sharing on sustainable and resilient infrastructure planning, policies, and practices.

The primary objective is to catalyse discussions among stakeholders and foster collaborative solutions to the challenges faced by these countries. The CoP will also help in identifying and addressing training and capacity-building needs. Ongoing discussions around priorities, ambitions, and actionable points will be key components of the CoP’s work

The CoP will highlight that infrastructure resilience is a vital pillar of climate adaptation and can significantly enhance national efforts to achieve the Global Goal on Adaptation. The CoP will convene governments, experts, and infrastructure practitioners to develop actionable recommendations for embedding DRI within national adaptation strategies and planning processes.

The increasing frequency and intensity of extreme heat events is posing unprecedented challenges to educational infrastructure globally, particularly in urban areas and resource-constrained settings. By 2050, nearly 2.02 billion children—almost every child in the world—will be exposed to heatwaves (UNICEF, 2023). Children are physiologically more vulnerable to heat stress, and poor school infrastructure often exacerbates the issue. Extreme heat not only threatens the health and well-being of students but also undermines learning outcomes, exacerbates inequalities, and disrupts access to education. Recognizing the urgency of this challenge, CDRI is convening a Community of Practice to bring together global experts, practitioners, and policymakers. Over a four-month period, the Community will foster structured dialogue, document best practices, and develop actionable guidance to build heat-resilient school systems.