Madhur Jain

Madhur Jain is CEO of Varaha, a company incentivizing sustainable farming in South Asia and Africa by paying smallholder farmers to use regenerative practices that keep carbon in the ground. Varaha quantifies the emissions prevented by these practices, selling high-quality carbon credits on some of the world’s leading carbon marketplaces. With more than 80,000 farmers onboarded and 700,000 acres covered across India, Bangladesh, Nepal, and Kenya, Varaha estimates it has sequestered 1.7 million metric tons of carbon dioxide. In February it raised $8.7 million to expand its operations across Southeast Asia and East Africa.

What’s one sustainability effort you personally will try to adopt in the next year, and why?

I have been a wildlife photographer at heart for a considerable amount of time, and I have spent more of my personal resources on this hobby than I would care to admit. However, being so close to nature and being able to capture its beauty has been a privilege that has taught me a lot of things, of which one has been the concept of circularity. Be it the circle of life, the water cycle, or the rock cycle, circularity is ever present in nature. It is therefore my goal to implement circularity into the very hobby that brought me closer to the environment – photography. I have committed to not only focusing on purchasing second-hand equipment and recycling wherever possible, but also exploring the depth of reparability of camera equipment. I envision passing down my own equipment once I no longer need it, instead of throwing it away. My goal of bringing sustainability into my photography extends also to traveling to wildlife destinations. Whenever feasible, I shall endeavor to try to take as many trains as possible instead of traveling by air.

What is a climate solution (other than your own) that isn't getting the attention or funding it deserves?

Innovative technologies such as biodegradable geotextiles are being created to tackle the growing problem of landslides, but these technologies aren’t getting the attention they deserve as they are relatively new, low-cost solutions that aren’t particularly fancy to look at. Having been born and raised at the foothills of the Himalayas, I have seen my fair share of landslides. But there has been a disproportionate rise in both the number and intensity of these events due to increasingly erratic weather systems and anthropogenic pressure on the land. India this year experienced one of the worst landslides in its history at Wayanad in Kerala, with over 420 people killed. The effects of landslides are devastating and long-lasting, leading to not only a loss of human lives but also of property, infrastructure, and biodiversity.

Nonwoven biodegradable geotextiles are using natural fibers from bananas to prevent soil erosion and landslides by holding the soil in place. I love this innovation, as it adds a new element to a pre-existing concept, making it more environmentally and carbon friendly while maintaining effectiveness. Having worked in the field of agriculture for the better part of my life, it’s truly fascinating to see how these organic geotextiles are being utilized to not only prevent soil erosion, but also actually help enrich the soil’s fertility upon biodegradation. I strongly believe that they have the potential of saving and enriching lives while protecting the environment.

What's the most important climate legislation that could pass in the next year?

India’s forest areas are currently governed by the National Forest Policy of 1988, which has laid strong foundations for forest management. However, due to the increasing impacts of climate change and evolving impacts on ecosystems, a more holistic policy is now required. This new policy should focus on further strengthening the 1988 policy by clarifying definitions of forests while bringing in new mechanisms to deal with climate change that recognize the role forests play in climate sequestration. Additionally, India’s updated Nationally Determined Contributions in 2021 clearly mentioned the creation of an additional carbon sink of 2.5 to 3 billion tons of CO2 equivalent through additional forest and tree cover by 2030. A revised forest policy will be required to give direction to states on how to create these carbon sinks and better manage their forest land with regards to climate change. A few drafts for this policy have been discussed in the past, however, I believe India is at a critical juncture with respect to climate change and forest management. A new National Forest Policy is the need of the hour.