JGU works directly with national and state governments, public bodies and international agencies to develop and test policy for the Sustainable Development Goals. Our faculty and research centres produce evidence, methods and recommendations that decision-makers can use, and we stay engaged after a study ends so that its findings shape practice. The work below spans climate, labour, justice, enterprise and democratic institutions.
Indo-German Support Project for Climate Action in India (with Oxford Policy Management India)
Germany’s Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action commissioned this project under the International Climate Initiative (IKI). In India, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) implements it with GIZ India. The project addresses a knowledge gap by developing methods to assess the climate co-benefits of development work in three areas: circular economy, resource efficiency, and forests and biodiversity. These methods measure the climate impact of India’s single-use plastics ban and of its urban forestry and wetland programmes. The wider aim is to help national and state decision-makers find new ways to implement India’s Nationally Determined Contributions and climate policy. The project focuses on Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu, runs from 2021 to 2026, and has the MoEFCC as its political sponsor.
“When the Earth is Too Hot to Handle” (with the International Growth Centre, LSE)
Extreme heat is now one of the most serious risks for India’s outdoor workforce, including construction and brick-kiln labourers, street vendors and delivery riders. This JGU study, supported by the International Growth Centre at the London School of Economics, builds experimental evidence on which workplace measures actually protect outdoor workers from heat stress. The measures tested include changes in work timing, rest and shade, hydration, and income protection. State and city governments can build the results into heat action plans and labour rules.
“Women Behind Bars” (with the Haryana State Commission for Women)
This assessment, carried out with the Haryana State Commission for Women, looks at the conditions and rights of women held in Haryana’s jails. It examines:
- living conditions
- health and hygiene, including menstrual and reproductive care
- access to legal aid, and the length of undertrial detention
- contact with families
- arrangements for children who live with their mothers
- skills and rehabilitation support
The findings and recommendations went to the Commission to inform its inspections and its advice to the state government on prison reform for women.
MSME Competitive (LEAN) Scheme (with the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises)
The Government of India relaunched this scheme in a revamped form in March 2023 to help MSMEs adopt lean manufacturing. Enterprises take a “Lean Pledge” and then work through three levels: Basic, Intermediate and Advanced. Any MSME registered on the UDYAM portal can take part. The scheme aims to raise productivity, competitiveness and efficiency, and lean methods do this by cutting waste of materials, energy, space and time. That makes the scheme as much about resource efficiency as about competitiveness.
Expert advice on democracy and the rule of law in Europe (Dr. Max Steuer, Jindal Global Law School)
Dr. Max Steuer, Associate Professor at Jindal Global Law School, advises European policy and judicial bodies on democracy and the rule of law. In 2026 he was a member of the Expert Network on “The Free Mandate of Members of the European Parliament”, coordinated by the Centre for European Policy Studies for a study commissioned by the European Parliament. On 2–3 October 2025 he presented at the XIV Constitution Days, organised by the Constitutional Court of the Slovak Republic, to an audience that included constitutional and apex court judges. He also co-convened a symposium on the rule of law in Slovakia and beyond. Its report, “Rule of Law and the Future – The Victory of Minimalism in Slovakia?” (with A. Drusková), was published on I-CONnect in December 2025.
How this work continues
JGU will continue to take on policy research with government and public bodies where its expertise can help. It will share findings with the agencies that commissioned or hosted the work and report on these relationships each year in its Sustainable Development Report.
