Event Recap — Advancing Disability-inclusive Disaster Risk Reduction and Climate Action at the Mangaluru Design Summit 2026

We at **Poornamidam | पूर्णमिदम | పూర్ణమిదం and [The Sangyan | द संज्ञान](https://linktr.ee/sangyan) are elated to share that we had an incredible opportunity to showcase our collaborative research, advocacy, and campaign work on “Disability-Inclusive Disaster Risk Reduction and Climate Action” at the YI Mangaluru stall during the Mangaluru Design Summit 2026.**

Alt Text (Visual/Image Description) — An event recap poster with logos at the top for The Sangyan, Build Forward Better campaign, Infinity Loop, SDG Infinity, and Poornamidam. The title reads “We Were At” alongside the Mangaluru Design Summit logo, followed by the theme “Designing Futures, Honouring Heritage.” The main text reads, “We at Poornamidam | पूर्णमिदम | పూర్ణమిదం and The Sangyan | द संज्ञान showcased our collaborative research, advocacy, & campaign work on ‘Disability-Inclusive Disaster Risk Reduction and Climate Action’ at the YI Mangaluru stall during the Mangaluru Design Summit 2026.” Event details include dates (7–8 March), collaborators (Young Indians (Yi) Mangaluru — Accessibility), and location (St. Aloysius (Deemed to be University), Mangaluru, Karnataka, India). The poster features a photograph of the displayed creatives and infographics. The footer includes stylised, high-contrast illustrations of Mangaluru landmarks, including the Mangaluru Junction railway station.

The summit was held on the 7th and 8th of March 2026 at St. Aloysius (Deemed to be University) in Mangaluru, Karnataka (India) and brought together architects, designers, innovators, researchers, and policymakers around the theme “Designing Futures, Honouring Heritage.” Over two days, the conversations explored sustainability, cultural heritage, and urban growth with a focus on building resilient, liveable, and inclusive futures, especially for coastal cities.

We are grateful to Young Indians (Yi) Mangaluru Accessibility Vertical, especially Ms Anjali Rao, and the Chapter Leadership, for inviting us and providing us with the platform to share our work and spark some meaningful conversations on the convergence and intersectionality of inclusion and sustainability. We are also thankful to the diverse participants, especially the youth and students, who engaged with our resources and resonated with our mission.

At the stall of the Young Indians (Yi) Mangaluru — Accessibility, we showcased and presented our research, advocacy, and campaign materials (including awareness posters, creatives, infographics, and interactive memes) to create awareness, disseminate information, and sensitise people around how climate change and its induced disasters and extreme weather events disproportionately impact every aspect of the lives of persons with disabilities, among other vulnerable communities, and how inclusive, sustainable, and universally accessible designs can change that reality.

We thank all the involved stakeholders, and we look forward to building on these conversations through continued collaborations and partnerships that strengthen disability-inclusive disaster risk reduction and climate action, moving us closer to intergenerational equity and climate justice.

We remain hopeful that our collective efforts will translate into meaningful consequences by catalysing, nudging, and triggering inclusive, equitable, and sustainable changes, mindset shifts, and solutions. We are optimistic that the spirit of Mangaluru Design Summit 2026 will translate into tangible change through inclusive and sustainable designs, thoughtful planning, and collective action that enable and empower persons with disabilities, their families and caregivers, and the wider community, reflecting the ‘Curb Cut Effect’ in practice.

At the end, we would like to reiterate that together, let’s reaffirm our commitment to address the “Common Concerns of Humankind” (planetary crisis, polycrisis, and threat multipliers) by collectively ‘Building Forward Better' (climate-resilient, just, and sustainable), where ‘We All Belong' (inclusive, equitable, and universally accessible).

Authored by —

Adv. Abhishek Kumar, Founder and Curator of **The Sangyan | द संज्ञान and the ‘Build Forward Better’ campaign, and Ar. Kavya Poornima Balajepalli, Founder and Curator of [Poornamidam | पूर्णमिदम | పూర్ణమిదం](https://linktr.ee/poornamidam)**, and ‘We All Belong’ campaign.