Mihir R Bhatt
Born
Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India
EducationUndergraduate in architecture at CEPT, Ahmedabad

Postgraduate in Urban and regional planning at the School of Planning and Architecture, Delhi

Postgraduate Urban studies at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA.
OccupationDirector of all india disaster mitigation institute (aidmi)
Known forFounding of All India Disaster Mitigation Institute (AIDMI)
SpouseReema Nanavaty
Parent

Mihir R Bhatt is an Indian architect, researcher and urban planer based in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India. He is the founder and director of the All India Disaster Mitigation Institute (AIDMI), an organization dedicated to mitigating the impact of disaster in India. Mahir Bhatt actively involved in various initiatives and projects aimed at reducing risks and enhancing disaster preparedness and has extensive publications on topics related to vulnerability and disaster.[1][2][3]

Early life and education

Mihir Bhatt was born in Ahmedabad, India from his social entreprenur mother Ela Bhatt and his father Ramesh Bhatt, a Professor of Economics.[4][5][6] Studied his undegraduate in architecture at CEPT University, Ahmedabad. And his post-graduate in Urban and regional planning at the School of Planning and Architecture, Delhi. Where he was awarded goldal medal for his excellence. He won scholarship for Urban studies at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, US.[4]

Personal life

Mihir Bhatt married to Reema Nanavaty, director of SEWA (Self-Employed Women's Association of India). They have two sons, Somnath and Rameshwar.[7]

Career

Following his completion of postgraduate studies in Delhi, Mihir engaged in various projects aimed at improving different aspects of communities. These projects included the revamping of street markets to better serve vendors and hawkers, the establishment of day-care centers catering to the children of rural laborers, the development of innovative designs for watershed management, and the construction of a new township in Punjab. Later he went to Boston, USA to pursue his education at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. While he was in US he teamed up with two others and started a business enterprise, Global View Inc., to promote international television programming, which Mahir later sold it and returned to India.[4]

Upon his return, Mihir R. Bhatt joined Habitat and Environment in Pune, where he introduced projects in urban governance that received funding from the World Bank. In 1990, he founded the Disaster Mitigation Institute in his hometown of Ahmedabad with only three staff members. The institute has since expanded and currently employs 83 staff members, focusing on disaster mitigation and management.[8][2][4]

Mihir R. Bhatt's contributions extend to international platforms as well. He served as a member of the panel responsible for selecting Humanitarian Coordinators for the United Nations. Additionally, he holds an advisory role in the Climate Development Knowledge Network, concentrating on climate-compatible development in nine Indian states, particularly in the areas of urban resilience, green finance, and renewable energy at the subnational level. And also, he chairs Duryog Nivaran, a South Asian network that fosters alternative thinking on disaster risk reduction.[9][10]

In his position as CDKN's Country Engagement Leader for India, Mihir R. Bhatt uses high-quality evidence and tools to incorporate climate challenges into India's national economic policies, plans, and practices.[11] He is also an advisory member of GRRIPP South Asia, contributing to the planning of projects, programs, and strategies that address the interlinkages between gender, intersectionality, and disaster risk reduction in South Asia. Furthermore, Mihir played a founding role in Sphere India, an organization dedicated to developing and contextualizing minimum humanitarian standards in collaboration with affected populations. He has also played his role in strengthening the humanitarian system in India through his work with Sphere India and the World Food Programme.[12]

Currently, Mihir R. Bhatt serves as a fellow at the FXB Center for Health and Human Rights, Harvard School of Public Health, and the Salata Institute.[3][9]

Awards and recognition

  • Eisenhower Fellowship for promoting local leadership[2]
  • Ashoka International Fellowship for designing social enterprise for micro-insurance for disaster victims.[2]

References

  1. ↑ "Mihir Bhatt Founder and Director". Retrieved 18 November 2023.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 "Mihir Bhatt, MA FXB Affiliate". harvard. Retrieved 18 November 2023.
  3. 1 2 "Mihir Bhatt". ihsa. Retrieved 18 November 2023.
  4. 1 2 3 4 "Mihir Bhatt". ashoka. Retrieved 18 November 2023.
  5. ↑ "Bhatt, Ela Ramesh – Biography". rmaf. Retrieved 18 November 2023.
  6. ↑ "Dr. Ramesh Bhat Vice Chancellor NMIMS Deemed-to-be University". nmims. Retrieved 18 November 2023.
  7. ↑ "Reema Nanavaty". business-standard. Retrieved 18 November 2023.
  8. ↑ "Who We Are". aidmi. Retrieved 18 November 2023.
  9. 1 2 "Mihir Bhatt Director, All India Disaster Mitigation Institute (AIDMI), India". sagepub. Retrieved 18 November 2023.
  10. ↑ "Duryog Nivaran". duryognivaran. Retrieved 18 November 2023.
  11. ↑ "Climate and Development knowledge Network". cdkn. Retrieved 18 November 2023.
  12. ↑ "Core Humanitarian Standard". corehumanitarianstandard. Retrieved 18 November 2023.
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