GIZ has partnered with Cluster Pulse, a not-for-profit, economic development agency in Ahmedabad for handholding the small and medium enterprises (SMEs) through cluster development initiatives and methodology.

On Saturday, the three organisations met in Gandhinagar to impart training to a few potential trainers for the workshop, to be held in Delhi on December 6. These trainers will work with industry associations and SMEs in Gujarat and some other states to make them aware about the dangers of climate change and adaptation measures.

From Gujarat, Gujarat Technological University, Pandit Deendayal Petroleum University, Indus University and Charusat University are sending their environmental engineering professors to the training so that these professors can in turn train and teach their students.

Jagat Shah, founder, Cluster Pulse calls it an effort to link industry with academia. "The professors will then carry out consulting assignments for industry associations and SMEs on climate change. The students of these universities will carry out their industrial projects in SMEs on climate change. This way, the industry, university and the students will benefit," said Shah.

Gujarat is the fourth government in the world and the first in Asia to set up a separate climate change department. Through the training initiative, SMEs in Gujarat can improve their competitiveness by starting to think about climate change as a business opportunity in order to reduce cost and increase sales by taking lessons from Germany, which saw high energy costs and loss of revenue owing to climate change in the country 10 years ago.