UPSC foundations · Note 120
The International Solar Alliance: India as founder of a solar institution
Study context: GS II — India and its neighbourhood — relations; bilateral, regional and global groupings and agreements involving India and/or affecting India's interests; effect of policies and politics of developed and developing countries on India's interests, Indian Diaspora.
The International Solar Alliance, or ISA, was launched by India and France on 30 November 2015, alongside the Paris climate conference, known as COP21. Its original idea was to bring together sunshine countries, lying wholly or partly between the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn, to promote solar energy, reduce dependence on fossil fuels and mobilise finance and technology for solar deployment. Membership was later opened to all member states of the United Nations, following an amendment to its framework agreement.
The ISA is a treaty-based intergovernmental organisation, and its headquarters are at the National Institute of Solar Energy campus in Gwal Pahari, Gurugram, Haryana. It is described by the Government of India as the first treaty-based intergovernmental organisation headquartered in India. Its work includes aggregating demand for solar equipment, supporting solar applications such as solar pumps and mini-grids, building capacity and helping member countries develop solar policies and projects, with a focus on least developed countries and small island developing states.
The ISA has also promoted initiatives such as One Sun One World One Grid, which envisages connecting solar power across regions so that sunshine in one part of the world can meet demand in another, and a World Solar Bank concept for financing solar projects. These ideas illustrate a distinctive approach to climate diplomacy: rather than only negotiating emission targets, India has sought to create institutions that pool demand, lower costs and share technology, with India as host and co-founder.
The ISA's record is still being written. Its membership is large, but translating membership into financed projects, installed capacity and lower costs depends on finance, grid infrastructure and national policies that the ISA does not control. For civil studies, the ISA is useful as an example of institutional diplomacy: a country can shape global governance not only by joining existing bodies, but by founding a new one and hosting it.
Key takeaways
- The ISA was launched by India and France on 30 November 2015 alongside the Paris climate conference, COP21, for sunshine countries between the Tropics.
- Its headquarters are at the National Institute of Solar Energy campus in Gwal Pahari, Gurugram, Haryana, the first treaty-based intergovernmental organisation headquartered in India.
- Membership was later opened to all UN member states, and the ISA promotes demand aggregation, capacity building and initiatives such as One Sun One World One Grid.
Why it matters for civil studies
The ISA shows a different kind of climate leadership: founding and hosting an institution that pools demand and finance, rather than only negotiating targets.
Think it through
Should climate diplomacy be judged by the institutions a country founds, or only by the emissions its own economy cuts?
From the Public Notes companion study collection. Editorial context and corrections.