Sustainable materials key for a future worth living: GNDU VC

A two-day international conference on emerging materials and technologies for sustainable development (EMTSD-2026), held recently at Guru Nanak Dev University (GNDU), brought together the world’s leading scientific minds to address one of the most pressing challenges of our time: harnessing advanced materials for a sustainable and resilient society.

Organised by the department of physics under the RUSA 2.0 (Centre for Sustainable Habitat) initiative, the conference aimed to serve as a critical platform for translating cutting-edge research into tangible solutions for clean energy, environmental protection, and public health.

GNDU Vice-Chancellor Karamjeet Singh, in his address, said the future of our civilisation was intrinsically linked to the materials we developed.

“If knowledge tells us how to build, it is wisdom that must tell us if we should build at all. We must not let our capabilities outpace our consciousness. Our goal must be to seek harmony with nature, innovating materials that reduce our ecological footprint and serve a future worth building,” he said.

The conference’s societal relevance was brought into focus by DK Aswal, Member, National Disaster Management Authority, Government of India.

Drawing from his experience as former Director of CSIR-NPL, New Delhi, Aswal delivered an address on “Materials for sustainable development and disaster risk reduction”.

Aswal said traditional methods were no longer sufficient to address the scale and complexity of today’s environmental and industrial challenges.

He opined that we must urgently evolve, employing cutting-edge tools such as ones that use artificial intelligence, arguing that our ability to safeguard communities now depended on embracing new technologies for early detection and rapid response.

Anindya Dutta, Director, Institute of Nano Science and Technology (INST), Mohali, in his lecture on “Exciton dynamics in semiconductor nanocrystals”, traced the journey of fundamental quantum physics — specifically how light interacts with matter at the nanoscale.

The conference’s first day featured a series of high-impact technical sessions chaired by international dignitaries, including Mohamed M. Chehimi (University of Paris, France) and Manish Kashyap (Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi).

While exploring the immense potential of nanomaterials, quantum materials, and green technologies, the discussions also acknowledged the responsibility to innovate materials that are safe and sustainable by design — addressing the full lifecycle from synthesis to recycling to preventing unintended consequences for human health and the environment.