Durham University joins Great North trade mission to India

Partnership, growth, opportunity 

More than 200 representatives of business, education, sport, and tourism joined The Great North trade mission, which visited Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, and Bengaluru.  

The mission focused on forming new and strengthening existing partnerships, delivering new investment, and creating a stronger platform for future growth between North East England and India. It was led by North East Mayor Kim McGuinness, who chairs The Great North, a partnership of mayors and leaders from the North of England.  

Professor Claire O’Malley, our Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Global), represented Durham University, and visited our partners at the Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT Madras), with which we have a strategic partnership and a Memorandum of Understanding spanning research, innovation, and entrepreneurship.  

Two green pioneers, continents apart, connected by Durham 

Also part of the delegation was Natasha Boulding, a Durham University graduate and co-founder of our spinout company Low Carbon Materials, which reduces carbon emissions in the construction industry by reimagining how materials are made.  

Natasha and North East Mayor Kim McGuinness met Rhea Dabriwala and Naveen Shivalingam, both Durham University graduates and the co-founders of Ground Up, an Indian start-up company that turns crop waste into biochar – a charcoal-like material that locks carbon away for hundreds of years. Biochar is used by Low Carbon Materials to produce its carbon-negative concrete additive, ACLA.  

Working together as equals 

We have long-standing partnerships with India that span research, education, and culture. In addition to our partnership with IIT Madras, we have more than 20 institutional partnerships across engineering, climate science, law, heritage, and education. Among our key partners are Delhi University, Symbiosis International University, and Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham (Amrita University).  

In February 2026, with Amrita we announced the International Joint Centre for Energy Resilience and Decarbonisation, an India-UK collaboration in sustainable energy research, climate resilience, and innovation. 

Find out more

- Explore Durham’s global connections. 
- Read more about North East England’s part in The Great North trade mission to India, and the involvement of northern universities.   
- Find out more about Low Carbon Materials and Ground Up.  

Pictures: Professor V Kamakoti, Director, Indian Institute of Technology Madras, and Professor Claire O'Malley, our Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Global).