India and the US announce new programme supporting innovations to tackle climate & clean energy challenges.

Why in news?

• Recently, a programme to support India-US S&T-based entrepreneurial initiatives that address the development and implementation of next-generation clean and renewable energy, energy storage, and carbon sequestration was announced to tackle climate and clean energy challenges.

About the India and the US programme

• The programme titled ‘Technology-based Energy Solutions: Innovations for Net Zero’ constitutes a call for Ignition Grants by the United States-India Science & Technology Endowment Fund (USISTEF), in partnership with Social Alpha, a non-profit organisation promoting S&T entrepreneurship.
• It will identify and support technology showstoppers or promising joint India-US S&T-based entrepreneurial initiatives in this area.
• Climate Change is one of the biggest challenges facing our world today, spurring the call for global collaborations to tackle this crisis. The launch of the U.S.-India Climate and Clean Energy Agenda 2030 partnership in April 2021 reiterated the commitment of both nations to work together to achieve their ambitious climate and clean energy targets and to strengthen bilateral collaborations. The new program aligns with the goals of the U.S.-India strategic Clean Energy Partnership and will be administered by the bi-national Indo-U.S. Science and Technology Forum (IUSSTF). The IUSSTF is a bilateral organization under the Department of Science and Technology (DST), Government of India, and U.S. Department of State.