Shillong, Aug 12: Soil and Water Conservation Minister Marcuse N Marak along with six other Meghalaya MLAs joined a delegation of 50 Indian legislators, including MLAs, MLCs and speakers of state legislatures from across the country, and attended the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) Legislative Summit in Louisville, Kentucky, USA.
Commenting on his visit, Marak said: “I was thrilled to attend this conference in the USA, which brought together MLAs, MLCs, and Speakers from across India. The platform created by Rahul Karad has been instrumental in expanding our understanding of global legislative practices. This summit has provided us with valuable insights into innovative approaches and solutions in governance.”
“By bringing together legislators from various regions and backgrounds, it has fostered a spirit of collaboration that is crucial for addressing our environmental and legislative challenges. I am excited to apply these learnings to advance sustainable practices and effective governance in Meghalaya,” Marak said.
The visit was a part of the collaboration between the National Legislators’ Conference (NLC) Bharat, an initiative by Rahul V. Karad and NCSL.
The NCSL Legislative Summit 2024 featured prominent Indian legislators who made significant contributions to global legislative discussions. Notable attendees included Shri AN Shamseer (Speaker of Kerala), UT Khader Fareed (Speaker of Karnataka), Thomas A Sangma (Speaker of Meghalaya), Kultar Singh Sandhwan (Speaker of Punjab), and RudrappaManappa Lamani (Deputy Speaker of Karnataka). They were joined by other esteemed figures, Alexander Laloo Hek, Marcuse N Marak, Charles Pyngrope, Dr Mohammed Mizanur Rahman Kazi, Rupert Momin and Wailadmiki Shyllafrom Meghalaya, Dr SukhatoAkhavi Sema from Nagaland and Vivek Gupta from West Bengal.
One of the highlights of the summit was the delegation’s visit to the Kentucky State Capitol Building, where they gained valuable insights into the legislative structures and processes of various US states.
The NCSL Legislative Summit 2024 hosted a series of insightful sessions, interactive workshops, and networking opportunities. A session titled “The Future of Education: Creating a Vision for Excellence” involved discussions around policies and practices that support future-ready students and schools. Highlighting the importance of the latest technologies, the session on “AI 101: Understanding the Opportunities and Challenges” helped participants gain a foundational understanding of this technology, its current applications, and the approaches states are taking to balance the opportunities and challenges AI presents.
Another session, themed “Building an AI-Ready Workforce,” featured experts discussing efforts to create career pathways for every student and promote quality non-degree credentials that lead to the jobs of tomorrow.
In the session “Communicating for Voter Confidence,” participants shared stories and strategies on effectively communicating accurate information about what happens before, during, and after elections.
Additionally, the session on “Cybersecurity: Expensive but Necessary” addressed the high risk of cyberattacks facing governments and schools, and the growing costs of preventing, insuring against, and recovering from them.
The Indian delegation’s involvement in these sessions undoubtedly enriched their legislative insight and contributed to their ongoing efforts to drive positive changes in their respective states in India.
The NCSL Legislative Summit 2024 also featured distinguished delegates, including Dr Aditi R Karad, Dr Ashok Joshi, Ashim Patil, Vinod Subramanian, Laxman Badime, Prof Gautam Bapat, Dinkar Kharat, and Subhash Jayswal.
