harnessing nature magazine | vol. 3 | issue 1 | september …

HARNESSING NATURE MAGAZINE | Vol. 3 | Issue 1 | September 2021

Official magazine of the IUCN CEM South Asia

Managing Editors: Deepu Sivadas, Shalini Dhyani, Madhav Karki

Cover photo: Riparian vegetation in the Western Ghats, India (Photo: Deepu Sivadas)

About IUCN IUCN is a membership Union uniquely composed of both government and civil society organisations. It provides public, private and non-governmental organisations with the knowledge and tools that enable human progress, economic development and nature conservation to take place together.

About IUCN Commission on Ecosystem Management IUCN Commission on Ecosystem Management (CEM) is one of the six commissions that unite over 10,000 volunteer experts from a range of disciplines. Together we assess the state of the world’s natural resources and provide the Union with sound know-how and policy advice on conservation issues.

Chair: Angela Andrade Deputy Chair and South Asia Focal Point: Madhav Karki Regional Chair: Shalini Dhyani

Bangladesh | Bhutan | India | Maldives | Nepal | Sri Lanka

Citation: Sivadas, D., Dhyani, S. & Karki, M. (2021, September). Harnessing Nature 3(1), 62pp. Retrieved from https://harnessingnatureblog.wordpress.com/harnessing-nature-magazine/

The articles appearing in this magazine can be cited as,Last, F. M. (Year, Month Date Published). Article title. Harnessing Nature 3(1), Page(s). Retrieved from https://harnessingnatureblog.wordpress.com/harnessing-nature-magazine/

Copyright: ©2021 IUCN, International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural ResourcesReproduction of this publication for educational or other non-commercial purposes is authorised without prior written permission from the copyright holder provided the source is fully acknowledged.Reproduction of this publication for resale or other commercial purposes is prohibited without prior written permission of the copyright holder.

Publication Policy: Harnessing Nature (HN) is committed to maintaining the highest ethical standards. In order to ensure the outcome of providing our readers with an magazine of high quality, HN follow a peer review. The authors should ensure that they have written entirely original works, and if the authors have used the work and/or words of others that this has been appropriately cited or quoted. Harnessing Nature uses plagiarism detection software. More details on the publication policy and editorial team can be had at https://harnessingnatureblog.wordpress.com/harnessing-nature-magazine/

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From the desk of Chair

Conservation of Threatened Species and Ecosystems through Landscape Approach

One Nature, One Future: Multi-stakeholder involvement in conservation and restoration efforts to address societal challenges in South Asia

Maharani speaks her mind for a safer, healthier world

World Conservation Congress 2021: Highlighting the role of forests, trees and agriculture in the South Asian region

Nature-based Solutions towards Circular Economy

Beyond net gain and net-zero: Holistic conservation of ecosystems and biodiversity

Challenges and opportunities for healthier societies and healthier ecosystems Post CoVID

Ecosystem Health for One Health: Changing the concept to reality

Mainstreaming biodiversity for food and health: Wild edibles as a case

Nature-based solutions for eco-restoration in Sundarbans

Enhancing Urban Biodiversity through Ecosystem Restoration and Rejuvenation of Waterbody at Jamshedpur

Maximum Sustainable yields, Marine trophic status and Nature-based Solutions – balancing the ying-yang of marine sustainability

BLUE ECONOMY: A pathway for inclusive growth and recovery

Ecorestoration of Degraded Sodic Lands: Introducing a success story at the start of UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration

Consuming high value tropical forests to fulfil growing Palm Oil demands in S. Asia: Native oil seeds can be a better option

Traditional farming systems—a way of life

AgroTEK for Sustainable Environment and Food Security: Choice or Necessity?

Unto Nature’s wilderness until harmonise our understandings to restore healthy ecosystems

Synthetic Fertilizers and Pesticides: A Tribal Nemesis

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DISCLAIMER

The presentation of material in this magazine and the geographical designations employed do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever by IUCN CEM South Asia concerning the legal status of any country, area or territory or concerning the delimitations of its boundaries or frontiers.

The views and opinions expressed in HARNESSING NATURE are not necessarily those of IUCN CEM South Asia or the organisations they are affiliated to and solely of the authors.

One Health TriadCC BY-SA 4.0

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World Conservation

Congress 2020Special Issue

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The IUCN World Conservation Congress is where the world

comes together to set priorities and drive conservation and sustainable

development action. IUCN’s 1300+ government, civil society and indigenous

peoples’ Member organisations vote on major issues, action which guides

humanity’s relationship with our planet for the decades ahead. IUCN’s

unique and inclusive membership gives the Congress a powerful mandate as it

is not solely government or non-government, but both together.

One nature, one future

Scan &

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From the desk of ChairI should like to use this foreword to draw the reader’s attention on the

themes compiled in the special issue of Harnessing Nature magazine (Volume 3, Issue 1) dedicated to the IUCN World Conservation Congress 2020 and focusing on the theme Ecosystem Health for One Health, during these challenging global times. Harnessing Nature is the official magazine of the South Asia regional network of members of the IUCN Commission on Ecosystem Management (IUCN CEM). CEM South Asia is a regional platform of regional relevance and global significance comprising experts, professionals, practitioners, indigenous and local community members and emerging leaders (young professionals). Commission promotes for contributions and sharing of knowledge of regional members and collaborators following an all-inclusive approach that has helped enhancement and development of existing knowledge related to the regional concerns, challenges and prospects of ecosystem management and promoting transboundary cooperation for conservation, sustainable use and restoration of ecosystems in the region.

South Asia region is home to diverse and high-value ecosystems and threatened species under diverse protection categories such as Protected Areas, Transboundary Sacred and Biodiversity Landscapes and seascapes, Community conservation areas, Biosphere Reserves and Key Biodiversity Areas (KBAs). The region has diverse mega biodiversity hotspots in different agro-climatic zones, Ramsar wetlands, shares several hydro-geological features in important topographic regions and ecosystems. Traditional and indigenous communities of the region have helped in shaping the conservation and management of natural resources of these sensitive and fragile ecosystems since time immemorial.

This special issue focuses on the theme “Ecosystem health for One health”. The magazine presents insights into diverse articles showcasing pertinent topics related to Holistic conservation of ecosystems and biodiversity in the region, challenges and opportunities to healthier ecosystems and societies, emerging challenges in the region and how we can realise and localise the concept of healthy ecosystems, to mention a few. As per the approved IUCN programme 2017–2020, South Asia was considered a region that requires the greatest conservation need among IUCN’s eight Statutory Regions and will be an important region requiring conservation priorities to reduce deforestation, degradation, loss of species and ecosystems even in Union programme for 2021–2024.

I am delighted that my colleagues in South Asia have mobilised the vast and diverse knowledge, experience, and insights of CEM members in the region for putting together this interesting special issue of the magazine to celebrate the regional efforts in the last four years of the Union programme during IUCN WCC, 2020 and are determined to make use of the next four years of Union programme post-IUCN WCC, 2020 in a much stronger and meaningful manner. I congratulate Shalini, Madhav and Deepu, along with the contributors of the magazine and editorial board, for their efforts in bringing out this special issue.

Angela AndradeChair, IUCN Commission on Ecosystem Management

3JUNE 2020

Commission Commission on Ecosystem Managementon Ecosystem Management

A network of professionals whose mission is to act as a source of advice on the environmental, economic, social and cultural factors that affect natural resources and biological diversity.

Angela Andrade Madhav Karki Shalini DhyaniChair,

IUCN CEMDeputy Chair, IUCN CEM

Regional Chair,IUCN CEM (South Asia)

The world is facing three major crises: biodiversity loss, climate change and the increasing frequency of zoonotic

pandemics. The causes of these crises are interrelated, as all are linked to the degradation of the world’s natural ecosystems and over-exploitation of its natural resources. Therefore, solutions to these crises also need to be interlinked multi-pronged. Even as we work to maintain and restore the health and diversity of ecosystems, we must ensure sustainable food and nutrition security for a growing world population. Situated at the intersection of these competing objectives of the Rio Conventions, landscape-based comprehensive management of both natural and human-managed coupled human-ecological systems can play a critical role in conserving threatened biodiversity at genetic, species and ecosystem levels and thus reduce the spillover of zoonosis vectors while contributing to climate change mitigation and adaptation and fighting land degradation.

Urgent Need for Effective protection of critical ecosystems and species

Experts have reported that fewer than half (43%) of 25,380 species assessed to date are covered under the protected area networks. How to protect and conserve the remaining key species and critical ecosystems, and what are the best available options to assure the conservation of vital species populations. In my view, a single option alone will not help conserve the species and their habitats. We need to address both the direct and underlying drivers of species loss and

ecosystem degradation by tackling the multiple crises our planet is facing, principal among which are: climate change, biodiversity loss, pandemic, land degradation and hunger, as well as poverty. Five approaches, all at the landscape level, can be applied. The starting point: According to the Global Landscape Forum (GLF), “the importance of landscape approaches to natural resources management is not well-reflected in the current zero draft of the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework”. In particular, the framework ignores the value of agricultural landscapes for conserving biodiversity although Target 1 of the Framework recognises the importance of protecting natural ecosystems but treat agro-biodiversity by devoting a small section it calls “meeting people’s needs” and aims to address the need for “reducing productivity gaps”. This approach is a continuation of CBD’s traditional treatment of agriculture biodiversity as “crop and livestock diversity” and ignores broader biodiversity conservation capacities of agricultural systems in the context of mosaic landscapes or socio-ecological production systems. Perhaps the following five approaches can address this gap in the current draft of the GBF:Agro-ecosystem conservation and sustainable use through agroecological approaches: agroecology can play a critical role by maintaining biodiversity, thus reducing the spillover of zoonosis while contributing to climate change mitigation and adaptation as well as fighting land degradation. As the FAO explains, “agroecology is the science

Message from CEM Deputy Chair & SA Focal Point

Conservation of Threatened Species and Ecosystems through Landscape Approach

Madhav Karki

September 2021 5

of applying ecological concepts and principles to manage interactions between plants, animals, humans and the environment for food security and nutrition.” Agroecology, such as different agroforestry systems, can be an innovative way to enhance agricultural sustainability while also supporting the health of ecological systems. IUCN’s landmark publication: “Common Ground”, explains how soil and landscape biodiversity can benefit society and help overcome major challenges of climate change, biodiversity loss and food and water insecurity.Resilient Food System through Water–Energy–Biodiversity Nexus Approach: Water, energy, and biodiversity are essential components for building a sustainable food system in developing countries. Green Revolution technologies and the package of practices largely ignored the role of ecosystem services, leaving a large population of small farmers, especially in South Asia, food and nutrition insecure. Biodiversity, especially, agro-biodiversity is in decline, and this vital cross-cutting element is less discussed and interlinked in nexus literature dominated by food, water and energy production. The building of a climate resilient food system has to strengthen the water–energy–biodiversity nexus. Therefore, it is essential to work at the landscape level through agroecological conservation for achieving a sustainable and resilient food system. It can ensure the vital structures and functions of the ecosystem on which food, energy, and water systems are dependent and can receive good protection from increasing socio-economic and climatic stresses.Satoyama initiative: Japan’s landscape-based socio-ecological system conserving International Satoyama Initiative (SRI) promotes the integration of conservation and the sustainable use of biodiversity in production landscapes outside of protected areas. The initiative has been supported and implemented by an international partnership of over 100 governments, civil society organisations, and indigenous peoples. The name “Satoyama” comes from a Japanese

term for the landscape that includes both human production activities, such as agriculture, forestry and animal husbandry, and natural habitats, where human influence is an essential aspect of the local ecosystem management. The Satoyama Initiative is based on the principle that such landscapes, when properly managed, can benefit biodiversity and human livelihoods, rather than these being in a state of opposition, thus leading to “society in harmony with nature”.New generation of integrated and participatory watershed management: The fourth approach to conserving vital species covering both natural and human-managed ecosystems I am proposing is a participatory and integrated watershed, development, conservation and management

by addressing underlying drivers of watershed degradation beyond the “watershed” boundary implementing interventions such as gully control through bio-engineering measures (e.g. check/brush dams, afforestation on vacant farmland patches, craves and corners) integrating hydrological, socio-economic and cultural factors through interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary approaches such as awareness building, different agroforestry and agroecosystem management knowledge and skill sharing etc. The main emphasis has to be on the integration of conservation with sustainable livelihood goals, technical and institutional capacity building of watershed user groups (in Nepal, it is well done with Buffer Zone Users Groups) that can effectively achieve the agroecosystem based watershed protection and management.

Panoramic view of the dynamic mosaic of ecosystems and land uses of the SAF-KBA (Photo: Sebastian Orjuela)

HARNESSING NATURE MAGAZINE6 VOL. 3 ISSUE 1

Incentive-based landscape and waterscape management mechanism: Under this, both market based and non-market-based initiatives such as Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES) and Rewarding Upland Poor for their Ecosystem Services (RUPES) and Multiple Conceptualisation of Valuation of Nature’s Contribution to People (NCP), as well as voluntary system of payment such as negotiated compensation of the crop and benefit loss suffered by the upland ecosystem service producer communities (e.g. clean drinking water) by downstream water users. Various models of PES and RUPES have been successful in Nepal, Vietnam, Indonesia, Bolivia and few other countries.

Climate change and associated land-use changes are anticipated to alter a range of habitat landscapes. Sites such as various models of protected areas (PAs) that currently protect a significant area of important wildlife habitat and support conservation of viable populations of species might no longer contribute to overall network connectivity if climate change eliminates habitat from one or both sites or landscape resistance between them inhibits movements. Likewise, new sites may facilitate connectivity in the future if land-use changes enable expanding into, or through, such favourable habitats. Studies in Europe have already shown that climate change and land-use changes could significantly alter the effectiveness of conservation networks. Various studies have attempted to quantify multiple sources of threat

such as human encroachment, infrastructure development (e.g. highways and railways) by providing evidence on the number of sites becoming unfavourable for species persistence. An effective conservation corridor initiative that monitors both habitat structure and function at the landscape level can mitigate the detrimental effects of both unsustainable agriculture land use forest land cover change and climate change. The five approaches proposed above can help protect vital species, ecosystems and prevent habitat fragmentation and degradation.

Shared and socio-ecologically managed landscapes can also lead to a significant reduction in human-wildlife conflicts. Constant and result and knowledge-based dialogue between the different landscape component users, e.g. agriculture and conservation communities, must be intensified at local, national and international levels. As a dominant form of landscape component, the agriculture sector needs improved information on the ecological and living nature of soils as natural capital. Conservation actors need a greater appreciation of sustainable agriculture as a solution for increasing biodiversity, and agriculture mainstreamed landscape management is an opportunity to expand global conservation area coverage. New or adapted institutions may be required to incentivise such interdisciplinary and trans-disciplinary actions and secure sustainability outcomes at the agroecosystem or landscape level.

Madhav Karki, PhD, is Executive cum Managing Director, CGED-Nepal, and Deputy Chair of IUCN Commission on Ecosystem Management

September 2021 7

From the Editor’s Desk

One Nature, One Future: Multi-stakeholder involvement in conservation and restoration efforts to address societal challenges in South Asia

The IUCN World Conservation Congress (WCC) 2020 is round the corner. One of the most relevant conservation congress

before CBD COP 2021–2022 that is going to happen in Marseille, France after being postponed for almost a year is an important opportunity for the global conservationists while, national governments across the world are having a keen eye on the important discussions going to happen here. Present IUCN WCC is significant event amid the multiple crises and challenges viz. pandemic, climate, biodiversity and pollution along with the growing poverty and hunger is further worsening the situation across the world. In the last few years, it is very clear that there is a growing disconnect between human-nature relations that needs reconnection by re-acknowledging the important and value of nature for human survival and wellbeing. We are truly living in the “New Normal” era of our civilisation dealing with complex crisis situations. There is urgency and necessity to make sure that we are able to face the challenge by reimagining the possibilities, reframing our conservation models and engaging in multi stakeholder partnerships to build greener, cleaner and sustainable ecosystems, resilient infrastruc-tures and healthy society all of which are interconnected and need to be pursued

Shalini Dhyani

synergistically. While, IUCN WCC decides next four years of IUCN programme and agenda it has been historically an important event that not only initiates brainstorming on rele-vant conservation, sustainable use and restoration issues and efforts but also decides future course of action to address crucial conservation challenges for the planet earth. Nature:2030 one nature, one future is going to be the large ambitious agenda of the Union that will be followed under the Union 2021–2024 programme. While “One Health” aspects are discussed globally it is important we not only think about ecosystem con-servation but also restoration and sustainable use to realise the benefits and goals of One Ecosystem-One Health that contributes to Nature:2030 programme.

There has been a formal launch for the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration 2021–2030 on World Environment Day, 2021. After a dedicated decade of Aichi Targets (2010–2020) to enhance awareness and follow up on short term targets of nature conservation that came to an end and many targets were still insufficiently addressed by many nations. Postponed CBD COP, 2020 to 2021 in Kunming, China to decide the next course of action known as Post 2020 Global Biodiversity Framework to stress on the urgency of setting up the priorities for restoration of degraded landscapes is going to take place in


September 2021 followed by physical meetings in 2022. It is very clear that all the global environmental organisations are emphasising and focusing on improving ecosystem health by accelerating the pace of ecosystem assessments across the world and rapidly implementing restoration projects and Nature based Solutions (Forest Landscape Restoration, Area based Management, Green Infrastructure, EcoDRR, EbA etc.). South Asia has many biodiversity hotspots (mountains, coastal areas, dry lands, islands etc.) that are threatened and are facing hidden collapse that needs immediate attention of global conservation agencies to undertake ecosystem health assessments to protect them from untimely collapse and loss of indigenous centres of biodiversity, ecosystems and cultural diversity. Coming four years are going to be particularly important for CEM as commission members are one of the important contributors to the success following our larger vision and mission by enhancing awareness at local, national and regional level but also trying diverse place specific approaches to integrate Nature based Solutions to solve societal challenges and most importantly larger challenges of disaster risk reduction, climate change adaptation and mitigation followed by land degradation and deforestation in the region. Following CEM’s mission of working “as a source of advice on the environmental, economic, social and cultural factors” to sustainable manage natural resources and biodiversity members have a greater role to play and take responsibility in re-imagining and redoubling our efforts by making sure how the ambitious plan of ecological civilization can be realised across the world and especially by developing and underdeveloped countries. We in South Asia plan have been largely involved in enhancing public awareness about the critical role of in our life by improved human wellbeing.

The pandemic crisis in last two years has very clearly brought to the fore the critical ne-cessity of maintaining ecological balance by protecting wildlife habitats so that animals do not spill over to humans. The IPBES report on Biodiversity and Pandemics released in 2020 end provided enough evidence on emergence of pandemics and spread of zoonotics due to massive land use land cover changes, deforestation and habitat

degradation for urbanisation, industrialisation, agriculture intensification followed by trafficking of threatened wild species and unsustainable use of wild species (NTFPs, hunting, timber extraction, commercial fisheries). Habitat destruction and unsustainable use of wild species have been recognised as major drivers of biodiversity loss as well as emergence of viruses causing more pandemic risks in future. While, climate change was considered one of the mega drivers of biodiversity loss, accelerated unsustainable land use change has exerted further more damaging, unforeseen impact on ecosystems resulting in many emerging threats to humanity. Pandemic and regular emergence of zoonotic diseases have thus became important point of discussions and yet another consequence of ecosystem degradation apart from land degradation, climate change, invasion and loss of rich diverse ecosystems and biodiversity. Since, the emergence of pandemic in early 2020, countries across the world - rich and poor - are struggling to cope with the crisis while, there is mounting risk of loss of lives, insufficient medical health care and also loss of livelihood opportunities leading to enhanced hunger and poverty. The devastation seen in terms of millions of infections, thousands of deaths, displacements of millions of migrant workers, and devastation of economies and immense loss of livelihoods is a huge shock even for rich economies. However, on the verge of these devastations are mostly developing and underdeveloped countries that are insufficiently prepared to withstand these severe effects and aftermaths. Millions are affected due to insufficient health care and food supplies in the region and the risk is going to be even more serious in coming years. South Asia is one of the most affected disaster hotspot where frequencies and intensities of natural and human induced disasters are increasing every passing year and hitting the marginalised communities really hard. We can safely say that the South Asia region faces multi-dimensional vulnerability that has been worsened because of economic fragility due to pandemic. This provides stark les-sons for all of us the cataclysmic consequences of wanton destruction of natural habitats and breaking down of ecological integrity.

South Asia regional countries need to form

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a better partnerships for knowledge sharing and transboundary cooperation under the umbrella of IUCN to mainstream sustianble, resilient and inclusive socio-ecological production systems wherein we not only address climate warming and habitat degradation but also contribute to accessible and quality health care and sustainable food and nutrition security. IUCN CEM knowledge base of NbS can help to address all the four crisis provided countries work in cross-scale and cross-disciplinary manner by engaging multi-stakeholders. UN has already dedicated 2021–2030 as a decade of restoration and IUCN CEM has already been spearheading Nature based Solutions (NbS) for addressing many societal challenges that after being recognised by CBD and also widely recognised by UNFCCC, UNCCD, Ramsar convention, Sendai Framework for DRR etc. Launch of global standards in 2020 and also regional launches in later part of the year have already generated sufficient momentum on NbS in the region. Corporates, Government, NGOs, Civil Society organisations are keen on the concept and have started discussing its wider applicability and potential to solve important societal and environmental issues (DRR, water issues, food security, safe habitat etc.). There is a growing need to mainstream NbS not only in policy planning but also strongly implementing these plans. We will need to develop more successful regional models of NbS for showcasing the potential for larger societal and ecosystem benefits.

IUCN CEM South Asia regional network in last four years of core programme aligned with CEM global vision and mission has tried best to enhance regional awareness on CEM core areas viz. IUCN Red List of Ecosystems, Nature based Solutions,

Sustainable and adaptive agriculture, and forestry. One of the important springer nature issue brought some of these successful cases from the region and discussed in detail the major opportunities, gaps and challenges in im-plementing NbS in natural and rural ecosystems and landscapes (https://www.springer.com/de/book/9789811547119). One thing was clear: different agro-climatic zones of the region have different requirements and potential and hence, customised location specific NbS can play a big role in restoring ecosystems and bringing the co-benefits and that is how people and communities can be engaged in nature conservation. Agroforestry practices developed by traditional communities across Asia are seen as another area to ensure restoration and conservation that helps in providing alternatives can also ensure realizing and localising many SDGs and Climate targets as promised in Nationally Determined Targets (NDC) of various countries. These are new ways and measures how many more can be involved in reimaging conservation and restoration. It has been very clear that restoration efforts can be better addressed by developing much-sophisticated understanding on contemporary trends (well highlighted by IPBES regional assessment and global assessments, 2018 and 2019) of

1https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007%2F978-981-15-4712-6_1

Climate Sensitive Restoration Planning for Transformative Changes1 © Shalini Dhyani


the subject with a multidisciplinary approach. Reimagining conservation and restoration demands linking all inclusive restoration efforts, multidisciplinary and transdisciplinary approach that can revolutionise restoration efforts and bring transformative changes1. Integrating and mainstreaming Agroforestry, urban forests, Tree outside forests can be a relevant to enhance local opportunities and partnerships to address global goals at local level.

Restoration efforts that are not only forced and implemented by governments but also involve communities, local people (urban and rural), corporates, students and researchers, youth in all disciplines have the potential not only to initiate but also implement and monitor to raise a more healthy and resilient ecosystem. Involving IPLCs can help in choosing the right species, and propagating them successfully, giving the local communities alternative livelihoods (seed collection, germination, propagation, plantations and monitoring them). An approach that ensures a place based attachment and develops nature connection that climate sensitive restoration planning can bring in. Restoration no longer should be a subject specific experts area of work and involvement; it is now an effort where multi stakeholder involvement will be required for ensuring larger success in conservation, sustainable use of wild species with a stress on access and benefit sharing (ABS) to ensure IPLCs get equitable sharing of benefits.

Let’s also not miss the loss of urban ecosystems and biodiversity that needs to be paused and

reversed in the new normal considering India and China in Asia are projected to be the centres of urbanisation in 2020. Loss of these green and blue spaces in the region is already alarming and let’s not forget the smaller countries like Nepal and Bangladesh that are facing the brunt already. If not sufficient attention is given it will be impossible to control the disasters (drought, groundwater depletion, heat islands, air pollution etc) in fast expanding urban areas of the region. These urban

green places were a great place of psychological solace in covid times hence to ensure there is no demand supply gap to access these green spaces and the cultural, regulating and provisioning benefits they should be well integrated not only in urban planning but also there should be sufficient financial support. Involvement of urban dwellers, youth, and citizen scientists can really improve the urban scenario and can improve how we reimagine conservation in the new normal.

I am sure the special issue on One Ecosystem One health that covers some thought provoking and interesting insights from members’ research, projects and efforts on the theme will help showcase the regional efforts of CEM under the vision and mandate of the commission. With diverse topics ranging from diverse ecosystems, local efforts of conservation, restoration, wild species will attract a lot of global readers to this special issue. Due care has been taken to ensure the quality of the articles that are included in this special issue and I am sure feedback from global commission members will surely motivate the regional efforts in forthcoming years. This was not possible without never-ending support from our Global Chair Dr Angela Andrade and Global Deputy Chair Dr Madhav Karki who have been pillars of all these regional efforts. I also wish to thank Young Professional Lead Dr. Deepu Sivadas for his constant support to setup this newsletter and handle our official Harnessing Nature Blog.

Lastly, I wish all the regional members a

Benefits and co-benifits of Blue Green infrastructure © Shalini Dhyani

September 2021 11

Shalini Dhyani, PhD, is Senior Scientist with CSIR – National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI), Nagpur, India and South Asia Regional Chair of IUCN

Commission on Ecosystem Management

better learning through global discussions in IUCN WCC and see what are the relevant tasks and activities we can take up for next four years of Union programme to make more meaningful contributions not only for awareness generation but also to promote regional and transboundary cooperation. Our regional efforts should make sure to develop a healthy connection with nature that not only helps saving pollinators, threatened ecosystems and endangered species but also

by reducing our larger ecological, carbon and water footprint for reducing the loss of nature. Let this WCC be a larger opportunity for all of us for walking-the-talk by taking actions and contributing our best efforts on the frontline, discussing it with people around us and keeping the One nature One future vision of IUCN very much in our efforts and actions.


Ratul Saha and Subrat Mukherjee

Maharani speaks her mind for a safer, healthier world

For some reason, my herd calls me Maharani. Southwest

(SW) Bengal is my domicile, part of the eastern range of elephant population comprising habitats in the adjoining Jharkhand and Odisha. My mother and aunt have taught me to keep pace while moving from one isolated forest fragment to another. Our home range is usually 100–1,000 sq km, and we require a large foraging area with grasses, shrubs, tree leaves, roots, and fruits. Situations often reach flashpoints over resources around human settlements. Besides, agricultural fields and historical towns have left our habitats fragmented. My home does not look how it used to be earlier. We were abundant in the dense Sal forest of SW Bengal and its adjoining areas about a century ago and were considered a blessing to the local communities. We were known as Maharanis or the Queen of the forests. I derive my name from the cultural depiction of the community living in the region. It was believed that the crop yield at the elephant-sited areas would be much higher than the abandoned fields.

South West Bengal has undergone serious forest degradation in the recent past. Its forest cover improved only after the success of Joint

Forest Management, which started in the 1980s with reforestation. The trees were mainly – coppice Sal poles (Shorea robusta), Eucalyptus (Eucalyptus sp.), and Akashmoni (Acacia auriculiformis).

To my dismay, I often find myself amid negative interactions. More than 400 people and 55 elephants have died between 2014 and 2021, primarily because of electrocution, train accidents, accidental deaths, poisoning, poaching, and injuries. The numbers have always been a nightmare for the herd. We were ‘infamous’ for destroying acres of croplands because of these confrontations during this period. Experts of forest administration, wildlife biology, and climate change attribute various reasons to it.

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The Forest Department of West Bengal has introduced a slew of mitigation measures such as elephant movement coordination committee, installing community-managed solar power fencing, installing elephant proof trenches, driving back crop-raiding elephants into forests using kunkis (trained captive elephants) and advance wildlife squad vehicle, elephant dossier, rapid response teams, using bio-repellents like chilli, setting up of early warning systems, and introducing bulk-SMS warning systems. Physical barriers aimed at preventing conflict would not be sustainable in the long run as it is all about how we, as a herd, show respect to the respective interventions.

Though the stated interventions benefit us from potential conflict situations, they are only temporary fixes and do not address the causal factors. Similar to humans, we require high resources to support the energy requirements and provisioning of offspring. I find the Forest Department as one of my friends among the experts who understand our perspective well. Since the last decade, the West Bengal Forest Department has initiated interventions that consider human and animal motivations while engaging in potentially risky conflict-causing activities. The department collaborates with forest-dependent communities to enhance their livelihoods, restore forest ecosystems, and ensure biodiversity conservation through the sustainable use of local resources. The department has plans for transformational programs in sector development, including agribusiness, livelihoods, entrepreneurship development, micro, small and medium enterprises, human resource development, capacity building, institutional strengthening, and policy advocacy to economies in transition.

Usually, our herd avoids human contact in their range and is often intimidated from attacking, especially when it finds itself amid unfamiliar faces. Once, we were on National Highway, which lies right in the middle of some key wildlife movement corridors, where I was accompanying the matriarch of our herd. She looked at the traffic as if daring the convoy of cars to come forth. However, we moved ahead and crossed the road without any conflict. We realised later that it’s a safe zone for us, thanks to the forest department for taking a “coexistence” focused approach to managing conflicts between the humans and us.

The forest department has played a significant role in creating such safe zones. It anticipates that the strategy would help facilitate informed decision-making among the forest divisions in SW Bengal, emphasising overcoming landscape-level wildlife conflict and barriers. The concerted efforts would enable adequate policy measures across different levels of the government and aspire to bring together the Forest Department and other line departments to visualise the human-elephant conflict as a state issue and join hands to manage it.

It is great to see the state authorities continue their work towards coexistence for the benefit of both people and us (elephants). The transition (from conflict to coexistence) would require integrating a sustainable development perspective into biodiversity conservation while managing trade-offs. It would also help the world realise the global goals on life on land (SDG 15) and policymakers the emerging threats of human-wildlife conflicts. It might be an uphill climb, but the means to reach the goal already exist. Well, the world runs on hope, and so do I.

Ratul Saha is a wildlife expert and has over 18 years of experience in protected area management, adaptation to climate change, sustainable development, and nature conservation. He is also

member of IUCN Commission on Ecosystems Management

Subrat Mukherjee, PhD, is the present Principal Chief Conservator of Forest, Head of Forest Force of West Bengal Forest Department. He has over 35 years of experience in protected area

management and wildlife governance


Rajiv Kumar Chaturvedi and Himlal Baral

World Conservation Congress 2021: Highlighting the role of forests, trees and agriculture in the

South Asian region

The recently released Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Working Group 1 report has vividly

outlined the challenges posed by climate change. Global mean temperatures have already risen by more than 1°C since the pre-industrial times. This rise in global mean temperature is already impacting our natural and human systems. Our forests, croplands and cities are stuck by vagaries of heatwaves to unseasonal rains. The impact of climate change on forest ecosystems has been particularly devastating, particularly in the form of forest fires, as witnessed in Brazil, Australia, and the US in the past several summers. The south Asian region thankfully has avoided serious impacts from a forest fire on its forest resources so far. A global mean temperature rise of 2°C or even 1.5°C is considered the dangerous threshold of climate change. For example, it is projected that a 2°C warming would cause the collapse of the rainforest system in Amazon, replacing it with a Savannah ecosystem.

Provided this context, countries of the World are meeting in Glasgow, UK, later this year as part of the 26th Conference of Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP26) to discuss how to accelerate collective action towards stabilising warming below 2°C or even 1.5°C.

South Asia is a key global region that will be participating in COP26 in Glasgow, UK. Climate Change mitigation actions in the region are slightly complicated as policymakers in the region have to reconcile climate actions with poverty alleviation and provisioning of

employment and food security to its people. India is the largest economy in the region, and so far, it has been performed well on the matrices of climate action. India’s actual emissions remain at a low of 2.9 GtCO2

e in the year 2015. According to the Climate Action Tracker [CAT], India’s performance on NDCs has been rated as the best among the G-20 nations. CAT further suggests that India is set to overachieve its Paris Agreement climate pledge. It is the only country among the G-20 group of nations whose current and planned climate and energy policies are compliant to limiting global warming to below 2°C. In other words, if all other large economies of the World were to follow equivalent commitment levels, then global warming could be limited below the 2°C goal. Other countries in the region, including Nepal and Bhutan, are doing well in keeping their emissions under check. While the South Asian region’s near term climate pledges and actions are commendable, the region should also plan for 2050 and beyond as to how the region could help the global community in cutting emissions, and at the same time contribute to employment generation, poverty alleviation and ensuring food security for its people.

One of the areas where the region could contribute significantly to climate change mitigation is its forestry and agriculture sectors. IUCN’s World Conservation Congress, 2021, is scheduled from 03–11 September 2021 in Marseille, France. We take this opportunity to highlight and discuss the synergies between Agroforestry and forest conservation in the

September 2021 15

South Asian region and how agroforestry could simultaneously help in poverty alleviation and employment generation. These synergies will be highlighted and discussed through a side event

scheduled on the 06th of September, 2021, as part of WCC. Eminent scientists, policymakers, and practitioners from the region will be joining us in this side event.

Rajiv Kumar Chaturvedi, PhD, is Assistant Professor with BITS Pilani, Goa, India. He is also a member of IUCN Commission on Ecosystem Management

Look forward to having you there.

| Dr. Rajiv Kumar Chaturvedi and Himlal Baral8

collaboration between various scientific and administrative stakeholders in creating a strong network for forest ecosystem management.

Dr. Himlal and Dr. Rajiv took this opportunity to launch the Logo of the Forestry Specialist Group of IUCN/CEM, in the capacity of the core group members of the specialist group. Dr. Rajiv credited B.Tech students of BITS, Goa

Mr. Ankit Gautam and Mr. Saurav Diwan for assistance in designing the logo.

Dr. Himlal and Dr. Rajiv also announced that the forest specialist group of IUCN/CEM will be using this Logo for publications and communications of the specialist group from this day onwards. At this point a group photo was also clicked

Figure 14. New Logo for the Forest Ecosystems Specialist Group of CEM/IUCN

Figure 15. Group Photo of Dignitaries and Participants

Himlal Baral, PhD, is Senior Scientist with CIFOR, Indonesia. He is also a member of IUCN Commission on Ecosystem Management


Indu K. Murthy

Nature-based Solutions towards Circular Economy

The concept of 3R (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle) and circular economy is seen as enablers for improving resource efficiency,

sustainable use of resources, sustainable economic growth, and social benefits. Circular economy strategies are believed to hold the key to a resource-efficient, low-carbon, and inclusive future. Essentially, these strategies aim to improve the way we meet our current needs but through the use of lesser resources (particularly natural) and by reducing the environmental impacts, including greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.

The Climate Crisis Calls for Innovative Comprehensive Solutions

With the climate crisis intensifying, natural disasters are becoming more frequent worldwide. According to the sixth assessment report of the IPCC (2021)1, the world is likely to be warmer and wetter, with an increase in the frequency and intensity of hot extremes, agricultural and ecological droughts in certain regions, reduction in sea ice and snow cover and permafrost. In South Asia, while summer monsoon precipitation and interannual variability are projected to increase, heatwaves and humid heat stress are projected to be more intense and frequent during the 21st century1. Never ever than before, it is time we paused, pondered, and learnt from nature, which offers solutions to many of our emergent problems.

Nature-based solutions (NbS) offer an innovative tool in a new circular economy model—and can provide comprehensive solutions for addressing climate change—both mitigation and adaptation. The concept builds on the ecosystem approach, which aims to holistically manage land, water, and other natural resources so as to synergistically promote conservation, restoration, and sustainable use in an equitable manner. NbS provide multiple benefits and can be applied to diverse challenges, including carbon emissions, food and water insecurity, and improving human health and well-being. For instance, pro-nature management of ecosystems can help prevent the emergence of pathogens like COVID-19 as the destruction of biodiversity, habitat and domestication of wild species increases the probability of dangerous pathogens transmitting from wild animals to human beings.

NbS takes various forms, including green and blue infrastructure initiatives like forest and wetland restoration, climate-smart agriculture, agroforestry, and urban forestry. They provide an opportunity to combine the ‘grey’ (built) solutions with ‘green’ in hybrid initiatives. NbS provide a broad spectrum of applications—while they can be used to complement existent grey infrastructures, they are a means to establish ecosystems in the urban environment, forests, coastal wetlands and support the economy and

1https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/wg1/downloads/factsheets/IPCC_AR6_WGI_Regional_Fact_Sheet_Asia.pdf

September 2021 17

livelihoods of people—by provisioning fuel and food creating critical habitats for biodiversity, nurturing better health, creating jobs and providing recreation benefits. This makes NbS a vehicle to facilitate a transition to a circular economy that can support the sustainable management of the environment with a reduced carbon footprint.

NbS in International Agreements

NbS are relevant for multiple Sustainable Development Goals—the most obvious being those that directly address climate and ecosystems issues. They are also relevant for the Sendai Framework, wherein integrating NbS into disaster risk reduction strategies helps alignment with the framework goals. Importantly, NbS have profound relevance for the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change—both in terms of climate change mitigation and adaptation. An example of a formal mechanism relying on NbS for climate mitigation under the Climate Change Convention is REDD+ (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation)—a climate change mitigation measure. NbS also informs national adaptation plans and the Nationally Determined Contributions, drawn up under the Paris Agreement. Of the 189 intended NDCs submitted to the United Nations, 109 include ecosystem considerations, and 23 countries explicitly refer to ecosystem-based adaptation. While these are the main international Conventions that include decisions on both ecosystem-based adaptation and disaster risk reduction, there are others as well. For example, the Convention on Biological Diversity contains several decisions and a set of voluntary guidelines for the implementation of relevant measures. Further, the United Nations Decade of Ecosystem Restoration2 that comes in the wake of the Bonn Challenge calls for restoring 350 million hectares of the world’s deforested and degraded land by 2030. Finally, the United

Nations Convention to Combat Desertification includes elements related to sustainable land management3, a prime example of NbS.

The Paris Agreement addresses both climate change mitigation and adaptation by establishing targets for reducing harmful emissions on the one hand and increasing human well-being on the other. A good example of an initiative designed to support those targets is Europe’s Green Deal4, which promotes green jobs covering a range of activities, including recycling, green construction and the development, installation and maintenance of renewable energy sources, and restoration of ecosystems such as wetlands and forests. Indonesia is another country that announced a mid-term development plan5 for 2020–2024, aimed at improving the environment, increasing disaster and climate change resilience, and promoting low-carbon emission development. Another example is from Colombia, which has developed an ecosystem-based disaster risk reduction roadmap6.

Achieving Multiple Goals with NbS

Including NbS in national plans, strategies and policies can undoubtedly help countries align with and achieve the goals set out in multiple international framework agreements. However, enabling conditions that permit optimal implementation of NbS need to be created. This begins with ensuring that different focal points and departments within the government coordinate to take advantage of synergies. Alternatively, NbS could be facilitated through the introduction of regulatory and financial instruments like in Switzerland7, where the federal government incentivises implementation of NbS at the local level and includes laws relating to flood protection and water resource management, as well as avalanche and landslide protection through forest services and biodiversity management.

By integrating NbS into national policies

2https://www.iucn.org/theme/nature-based-solutions/initiatives/decade-ecosystem-restoration3https://wedocs.unep.org/bitstream/handle/20.500.11822/29988/Compendium_NBS.pdf ?sequence=1&isAllowed=y4https://bit.ly/3BqSSmx5https://www.unescap.org/sites/default/d8files/knowledge-products/WP-20-06_final.pdf6https://www.gfdrr.org/sites/default/files/publication/Analysis_of_Disaster_Risk_Management_in_Colombia.pdf7https://www.mdpi.com/2079-9276/8/3/121/htm#B52-resources-08-00121


and programmes, governments can advance their national Sustainable Development Goal agendas and meet multiple international reporting requirements. All of these could be achieved with multiple co-benefits as reported by the World Economic Forum’s New Nature Economy Report—an estimated USD 10 trillion of business opportunities and about 395 million

jobs by 2030. NbS thus offers an opportunity to evaluate present growth trajectories holistically so as to balance and regenerate the embedded natural and human capital. The circular economy approach provides the necessary framework and conditions that could be leveraged to attract investments for NbS.

Indu K. Murthy, PhD, Principal Research Scientist with Center for Study of Science, Technology and Policy, Bangalore, India, and a member of IUCN Commission on Ecosystem Management

September 2021 19

Anushree Bhattacharjee

Beyond net gain and net-zero: Holistic conservation of ecosystems and biodiversity

The natural world is at a very precarious point at present. Every scientific report released recently has documented the

accelerated species declines, unprecedented decline of nature, and disturbing human-induced climate change effects on the planet. Even without the Covid-19 pandemic, we are much beyond the business-as-usual scenario. The future remains bleak if concrete and ambitious actions are not immediately adopted for biodiversity conservation and ecosystem restoration, reversing both climate change and extinction rates while ushering in an era of true sustainability.

The world had failed to fully achieve the twenty Aichi Targets adopted in 2010 under the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), with only six of the targets being partially achieved by the 2020 deadline, while the rest were largely missed. Presently, a new Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) is being drafted to be adopted at the next CBD Conference of Parties (COP), planned to be held in China. The first draft of the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework1 has been made available on the CBD website and is being reviewed and

discussed by various international organizations and the various Parties to the CBD. While the framework has four long-term goals for 2050, each goal has accompanying milestones that will be assessed in 2030 to measure the progress towards each 2050 goal.

It is heartening to note that the first goal begins

with the objective of enhancing the integrity of all ecosystems, aiming for an increase of at least 15% in the area, connectivity, and integrity of natural ecosystems. It is obviously not feasible to ensure protection and conservation of biological diversity without affording the same to the ecosystems and landscapes wherein the biodiversity is found. The Protected Planet Report 20202 reported that protected areas cover

1https://www.cbd.int/doc/c/914a/eca3/24ad42235033f031badf61b1/wg2020-03-03-en.pdf2https://livereport.protectedplanet.net/

Myriad wildlife in wetland ecosystem of arid Rajasthan, India © Anushree Bhattacharjee


approximately 16.64% of the planet’s surface. Since there are synergies in global issues of biodiversity, land degradation, and climate change, the three global conventions have also been working synergistically and engaging in collaborative actions. This seems to have also meant a borrowing of terminologies across the conventions.

I was interested to note that the first milestone under Goal A of the GBF was ‘net gain in the area, connectivity and integrity of natural systems of at least 5%’. While the net gain in biodiversity is not a new concept, it was interesting to note the net gain of natural systems as a significant 2030 milestone in the GBF. This is along the same lines as the net zero emissions target of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). While in theory, the net gain of natural systems sounds promising, even though the target of 5% seems too low, in practice, this has the danger of being relegated to that of a mere greenwashing exercise if one is not careful. Net gain could become an exercise in offsetting the loss of ecosystems and biodiversity instead of ensuring that all biodiversity-rich ecosystems and landscapes are afforded protection, especially those harbouring endemic species of flora and fauna.

In India, we have already seen the effects of such practices with the popular practice of compensatory afforestation that accompanies all developmental projects in the country. However, as ecologists and conservation scientists are quick to point out, a forest is more than just a collection of trees but a complex ecosystem comprising of species that have evolved over hundreds, often thousands, of years. Equivalent tree plantation and afforestation will not compensate for the loss of ecosystem services and complex ecological systems. Ecosystems are also unique with atypical

characteristics. Therefore, it will not be feasible to offset the possible loss of ecosystems and biodiversity in, say, the Himalayas by carrying out suitable plantations in the Central Indian plains. The same is true for all other unique ecosystems such as grasslands, rainforests, mangrove forests, coastal dunes, island ecosystems, etc.

It would be preferable to move beyond milestones that focus on net-zero loss and net gains in natural systems and biodiversity to ones that predominantly have their focus on absolute protection and conservation of important biodiversity areas and ecosystems while working towards full recovery of natural systems by 2050. Nature-based Solutions (NbS), such as forest landscape restoration (FLR)3, among others, can play an important role in achieving these goals and milestones as it has at its heart the conservation of existing natural forests and ecosystems and is more than just planting trees. Instead, it is the ongoing process of regaining ecological functionality and enhancing human well-being across deforested or degraded forest landscapes.

While various governments and industries may welcome having a net gain target under CBD, similar to the new zero goals under UNFCCC, it can be hoped that all the goals and milestones that will be finalized at the CBD COP 15 in China will continue to have a strong focus on restoration, protection and conservation of all important ecosystems, landscapes and species, with a specific focus on unique ecosystems and endemic species across the planet. This is especially relevant in light of the ‘One Health’ approach that all countries should adopt as the world grapples with the Covid-19 pandemic and other extreme events that have degradation of nature and climate change as possible causal effects.

3IUCN and WRI (2014). A guide to the Restoration Opportunities Assessment Methodology (ROAM): Assessing forest landscape restoration opportunities at the national or sub-national level. Working Paper (Road-test edition). Gland, Switzerland: IUCN. Available at: https://www.iucn.org/downloads/roam_handbook_lowres_web.pdf

Anushree Bhattacharjee, Natural resource management and biodiversity specialist, and member of IUCN Commission on Ecosystem Management

September 2021 21

Oindrila Basu and Shubhashree Chakraborty

Challenges and opportunities for healthier societies and healthier ecosystems Post CoVID

To stay alive during a global transformation influences us as individuals and communities in

enormous ways. 2020, a year the earth got locked down. An invisible virus shook humanity across all boundaries. Historically compared to the bubonic plague causing black death in mid 14th century, which had worse impacts, the ‘draconian control measures’ during CoVID 19 pandemic on people across the world stalled the human civilization for months1, marking the beginning of a new era in our history. Many contrasting phenomenons suddenly emerged and unveiled the imminent shortcomings of the Anthropocene and opened new horizons for a better future.

1https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s13280-020-01447-02https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/apr/11/positively-alpine-disbelief-air-pollution-falls-lockdown-coronavirus3https://www.wri.org/insights/distance-clean-air-post-covid-194https://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/nature-liberated-by-lockdown.html5https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-020-1237-z6https://www.pnas.org/content/117/32/18984

During the early lockdown period with all except essential services being in halt, reports flooded from all around the world about landscapes previously clouded from pollution

being clearly visible2,3, cities becoming quieter4, wild lives freely venturing into human landscapes undeterred with scanty human traffic5.

While humanity got restricted, nature breathed respite as Nitrogenous and particulate matter air pollutants were reduced by 60% and 31% annual averages in 34 countries6. However, the demands of growth for recouping the pandemic loss continued driving the commercial tropical

Post lockdown Quetness in UK4

Animal sightings in UK during lockdown4


7https://ceobs.org/assessment-of-recent-forest-loss-in-conflict-areas/8https://news.mongabay.com/2020/12/how-the-pandemic-impacted-rainforests-in-2020/9http://pure.iiasa.ac.at/id/eprint/16870/1/ENGLISH-FULL.pdf10https://www.thethirdpole.net/en/nature/poaching-spikes-amid-lockdown-in-south-asia/11https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S000632072100188912https://www.bbc.com/news/world-5123510513https://blogs.worldbank.org/opendata/updated-estimates-impact-covid-19-global-poverty-looking-back-2020-and-outlook-202114https://www.oxfam.org/en/press-releases/mega-rich-recoup-covid-losses-record-time-yet-billions-will-live-poverty-least

deforestation and loss of biodiversity7,8,9, clearing avenues for emerging infectious diseases (EIDs), carbon emission, loss of ecosystem services denying the dependent local communities. There was a sharp increase in illegal wildlife traffic in unmonitored forests of South Asia10,11 during the lockdowns.

This zoonotic pandemic is a result of a much longer human-induced disruption to the earth’s ecological rhythm9, resulting in mayhem as more than 196.6 million people have been affected, with a death toll of more than 4 million lives to date12. As if

suffering from the disease were not enough, lockdowns came hard on the poor communities with multiple other adversities ranging from loss of jobs, forced migration, hunger, access to digitally divided education, and loss of dignity13. As a stark contrast of inequality, while the wealth of the world’s top 10 richest men increased by 540 billion US$ between March to December 202014, enough to

Lockdown ground-level air pollution anomalies relative to weather benchmarks for NO2 (A),

O3 (B), and PM

2.5 (C)6

Illegal Pangolin trade seizure in India during lockdowns11

CoVID 19 induced poor in 202013

September 2021 23

vaccinate the entire world, millions were pushed into the abyss of multidimensional poverty that

would require more than decades to address15. World Bank estimates suggest that globally number of poor people increased from 175 million in June 2020 to 225 million by December 2020, South Asia accounting for 60% of them15.

World Food Programme pointed out the plausibility of an increase in the total number of global undernourished by 83 to 132 million people depending on the economic growth scenario during a pandemic16. A World Bank indicator17 revealed

15https://oxfamilibrary.openrepository.com/bitstream/handle/10546/621149/bp-the-inequality-virus-250121-en.pdf16https://doi.org/10.4060/ca9699en17https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/agriculture/brief/food-security-and-covid-1918FAO, IFAD, UNICEF, WFP and WHO. 2020. The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2020. Transforming food systems for affordable healthy diets. Rome, FAO.29https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/aepp.1307920https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/06/covid-19-food-waste-mountains-environment/21https://academic.oup.com/fqs/article/4/4/167/589649622https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7430241/23https://wedocs.unep.org/bitstream/handle/20.500.11822/35281/AWBBB.pdf

that nearly 2.37 billion people (or 30% of the global population) lacked access to adequate food in 2020 - 320 million people more in just one year from 2019. While poor countries are already burdened with a higher cost of nutritious food than rich countries18, during lockdowns, our social anxiety led to overstocking, conspicuous consumption wastes19 coupled with stalled supply chain losses9,20,21 further increased the social-ecological divide, and created new sources of wastes to pollute our system. Biomedical and single-

use plastic wastes are now heavily littering our

land and water-scapes22, while food wastes from longer supply chain disruptions bring out new

Changing Biodiversity intactness index over century9

Post Harvest food loss9

Green, neutral, and dirty recovery spending announced by the G20 countries, as a percentage of 2019 GDP23


questions. Amidst this chaos, the weaknesses in planning, management, and handling the challenges from individual to governments lie naked23.

Even in the gloomy picture, there lie bright horizons of opportunities. When the world maintained physical, social distancing, even with the threats of ‘infodemic’24, social media brought the world closer than ever before, being a platform for people around the globe to share their happiness, sorrows, their stories, their journeys with each other across boundaries during the pandemic lockdowns25,26. Virtual meeting software and apps revolutionized the

world of conferences, seminars, professional examinations in the new normal ‘Work from home’ –with reduced carbon footprints, and opening new opportunities for students, professionals from developing countries to have a voice, who otherwise are left out from financial constraints27. Online workshops of hard and soft skills with accessible price caps led to individual capacity development, driving opportunities of small local entrepreneurship for the struggling youth, creating a scope of growth of localized market systems28. According to the latest survey by PWC, 40% of respondents benefitted from skill development, and 49% claimed to get upskilled for achieving their own entrepreneurial ambitions from online learning during lockdown28. Social media and awareness through digital mediums also have strong scope for creating eco-conscious communities29,30.

Socio-economic and digital divide with unequal access to food, education, healthy and hygienic living space, clean environment is standing as the tall barrier in achieving a healthy social and ecological system31,32,33. The wealthiest people on earth who hold higher access to all amenities of life also account for the highest consumption and carbon emission stakes and pay lesser taxes evading their social responsibilities34.

24https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-020-73510-525https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.554678/full26https://doi.org/10.1007/s13278-021-00744-0 Accessed at https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s13278-021-00744-027https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-021-00513-1 28https://www.pwc.com/gx/en/issues/upskilling/hopes-and-fears.html29https://www.mdpi.com/2078-2489/11/9/44730https://www.pwc.com/gx/en/industries/consumer-markets/consumer-insights-survey.html31https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/004723952093401832https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/9/4786/htm33https://www.bbc.com/news/world-south-asia-5400930634http://hdr.undp.org/en/2020-report

Perceptions towards virtual meetings27

Potential transformational changes to reduce inequality34

move some countries closer to the Sustainable De-velopment Goals pathway, while pushing others farther away from it. As in any crisis, the drivers of positive societal change are playing out. The expan-sion of social registers is part of it, as in Angola and Nigeria, and the same holds for higher public health spending, including capital spending, partly because of long-lasting scrutiny of Covid-19’s resurgence, as in Senegal and Tunisia. A structural transformation is under way in Uganda, where the government pro-vided additional funding to the Uganda Development Bank, recapitalized the Uganda Development Coop-eration and accelerated the development of industri-al parks while boosting funding for agriculture.18 Fiji raised its Import Substitution and Export Finance Fa-cility by FJ$100 million to provide credit to exporters, large-scale commercial agricultural farmers, public transportation and renewable energy businesses at concessional rates.19

Making the Covid-19 recovery an opportunity for countries to harness the transformation called for by the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Sustainable Development Goals is a crying emergency. Lack of financial resources, policy coor-dination and knowledge put the fragile momentum for building back better at risk. In order to maximize policies’ effectiveness at reaching interdependent sustainable development goals, we must increase understanding of how social and environmental

impacts of stimulus and recovery packages are play-ing out and could be magnified.

To this aim, we propose a socioenvironmental poli-cy assessment matrix, narrowing environmental pol-icy to sustainable energy for all, and identify from the deep decarbonization literature three broad pathways to achieving sustainable energy for all: increasing energy access and efficiency, decarbonizing existing energy carriers and switching to low-carbon energy carriers (table S5.3.2).20 To design the matrix, each pathway considers whether specific environmental policies might affect inequality by looking at the inci-dence of impacts at the bottom, middle and top of the income distribution, following the economic inequal-ity literature.21

The matrix enables mapping of what transforma-tive decarbonization measures were taken or planned in Covid-19 responses, what kind of inequality is af-fected and, as important, what complementary measures could be envisaged to ensure that the re-covery phase genuinely supports the Sustainable De-velopment Goals. Our takeaway from the Covid-19 response trackers is that, the Euro Area/European Union aside, most green measures fall in the ener-gy access and efficiency pathway (in bold). Progres-sive funding measures are still not considered at this stage. This leaves ample room to innovate and experi-ment with recovery packages in meeting the sustaina-ble development challenges of our times.

Table S5.3.2 A matrix of environmental and inequality reduction policies, with a focus on energy transition in developing countries

Pathway to low-carbon and inclusive energy systems

Increase energy efficiency and access Decarbonize energy supply

Large-scale switch in end uses (building, transport, industry)

What kind of inequality is impacted?

Bottom → Cash transfers → Clean cooking solutions → Rural electrification (solar)

→ Decentralized off‑grid/mini‑grid → Green bus rapid transit

Middle → Overhaul of power distribution → Energy‑efficient buildings → Electricity bill relief

→ On‑grid renewable energy deployment

→ Railway development → Circular economy

Top

→ Wealth taxes (to finance the above)

→ Removal of fossil fuel subsidies

→ Carbon‑based corporate taxes → Wealth taxes (to finance the

above)

→ Energy‑positive buildings → Electric vehicles subsidies → Carbon‑based flight (business)

ticket taxes → Wealth taxes (to finance the

above)

Source: Authors’ creation.

2 1 6 HUMAN DEVELOPMENT REPORT / 2020

September 2021 25

A greener path would need to address the underlying social, ecological, and economic inequities and injustices to ensure sustainable developments34. Experts have long been suggesting decentralized collective actions towards ecosystem-based governance, promoting healthier diet choices, localized market systems, and circular economies34,35,36,37, this is the best time to transform towards future and embrace them through adaptive governance38,39. Experts suggest

levying heavy affluence taxes34, stringent eco-taxes37, supporting greener startups and MSMEs with incentives38, subsidizing green research40, and embracing transformative changes9,18,34,36,39 to develop localized smaller value chains, participatory, decentralized governance, and reducing inequality towards a greener recovery34.

Studies suggest the unaware and recently aware elder generations are more frequent in

35https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/global-environment-outlook-geo6-healthy-planet-healthy-people/8FE2F127F310561C679B620F1D2EDBA636https://www.globalhungerindex.org/pdf/en/2020.pdf37https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-16941-y 38https://unece.org/sites/default/files/2021-02/IBC%20Env%20Green%20post-pandemic%20measures%2031.1.21.pdf39http://pure.iiasa.ac.at/id/eprint/16550/40https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/WEO/Issues/2021/03/23/world-economic-outlook-april-202141https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/6/328342https://www.ibm.com/thought-leadership/institute-business-value/report/covid-19-consumer-survey43https://www.capgemini.com/research/how-sustainability-is-fundamentally-changing-consumer-preferences/?utm_source=pr&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=cprd_none_link_pressrelease_none&utm_campaign=CPRD_cri_cpr44https://www.mdpi.com/2673-4060/2/2/2045https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11625-021-00940-z

embracing sustainable choices from economic concerns while aware younger generations are not so sustainable in their practices41. Though affluent consumers drive consumption pattern, post covid new patterns of aware eco-conscious consumerism is emerging across the world, including South Asia creating new potentials for locally and sustainably produced goods42,43.

A healthy ecosystem and healthy society can only be achieved when governments are willing

to walk the hard road of equity, justice, and sustainability through collaboration and keep the socio-ecological systems approach at the heart of it9,34,36. We gained many insights and lessons from this pandemic crucial for green recovery, and while as individuals we have started choosing a better future, the governments still require us to take meaningful actions44,45. As civil societies, we should influence, encourage, promote research and support the emerging transformational changes. Every time the human

world has been shaken by a sudden socio-ecological disruption like this pandemic, they have paved the way for revolutionizing the contemporary systems1. The Anthropause at the beginning of this decade of restoration might be the best opportunity to restore ourselves back in the circle of nature and embrace transformative changes to ensure a healthier future for all living beings.

Changed pattern of consumerism post CoVID 1943

Oindrila Basu, is Junior Research Fellow with School of Oceanographic Studies Jadavpur University, Kolkata, India and a member of the IUCN Commission on Ecosystem Management

Shubhashree Chakraborty, is pursuing PG Diploma on Sustainability Science from IGNOU, India and a member of the IUCN Commission on Ecosystem Management

53%

24%

43%

36%

50%

26%

49%

28%

60%

17%

48%

14%

39%

24%

61%

12%

59%

17%

66%

37%

USGlobal UK Sweden France Germany Netherlands Italy Spain India

Share of consumers who have switched to lesser-known brand(s)/organization(s) whose products/practices they perceive as more sustainable

Share of organizations which say their consumers are willing to switch from a well-known brand(s) to unknown brand(s) that they perceive as sustainable

Source: Capgemini Research Institute, Sustainability in Consumer Products and Retail Survey, March–May 2020, N=7,520 consumers; N=750 consumer products and retail organizations.


Deepu Sivadas

Ecosystem Health for One Health: Changing the concept to reality

One Health initiative coined about one and half decades back as a holistic and transdisciplinary approach to

enhance the health of humankind, animals and ecosystems is still in its infantry and has a long way to go to achieve what it means. As the silo still exists, the concept is still struggling on finding a way to break down the interdisciplinary barriers separating human and veterinary medicine from ecological, evolutionary, and environmental sciences. Though it was developed as an overshoot of the ‘One Medicine concept’, it succeeded in recognising the ecosystem and its significance over time, appreciating the fact that none of the biotic or abiotic components can exist on its own and all are complementary..

The concept is so entwined with human ecology and the niche of Anthropocene—Anthropogenic biome (Anthomes) as we create entirely new arrangements of ecosystems as a source of matter. Homsapiens in the keystone species of the system and our disruption of the ecological mechanisms will determine the system’s sustainability, which we are also a part of. Nature is a resilient system; however, nonrandom disruption caused by Anthomes had pushed Eath’s ecosystems to their resilient thresholds and had already crossed three planetary thresholds—biodiversity loss, climate change, and nitrogen cycles.

Looking into the demand on and supply of Nature, it is estimated that humanity is having a

high ecological footprint, which currently uses 74 per cent more than what the planet’s ecosystems can regenerate. The recent independent, global review on the Economics of Biodiversity by Professor Sir Partha Dasgupta also emphasises this vital point. Also, it underscores that overshoot is not only driving down biodiversity but also the human economy.

Anthropocentric needs and the environment’s capacity have been in continuous tension over decades to accommodate those needs and support basic human welfare1. Nature provides an array of ecosystem services that feature tangled links between humans, their health and the ecosystems. This reveals that EcoHealth and One Health overlaps considerably. EcoHealth and One Health are two major approaches broadly aimed at understanding the links

1https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare4030061

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between human, animal, and environmental health2. Ecohealth brings in a third component, social justice, into the interconnections between ecosystem health and human health. Though both of these overlap at the conceptual level, there is still no convergence between these two. In practice, biodiversity conservation and ecosystem dynamics have often received less attention3.

As we traverse the challenges of the post-COVID-19 era, WHO and IUCN are creating an expert working group (EWG) on Biodiversity, Climate, One Health, and Nature-based Solutions. The purpose of which is “to develop tools and methods for identifying co-benefits and trade-offs for human and ecosystem health, strengthening social and ecological resilience, and supporting a healthy, green, and just recovery from Covid-19”. Responding to the

current call, the programme of the IUCN for the next intersession (2021–24) gyrates on ‘One Nature One Health’. The very first sentence of the programme shows the IUCN commitment to finding a solution to the problem “The future of life on earth depends on the choices we make and the way these decisions are implemented over the coming years”. Recognising this, the programme is the beginning of the IUCN decadal timeframe (2021–30)—The Nature 2030 IUCN programme4.

The ‘guidance on integrating biodiversity considerations into one health approach’ by CBD5, also calls for developing policies, plans, programmes and research aligned with One Health approaches, with a more balanced consideration of biodiversity and ecosystem dynamics and management. Though this was in 2017 and received less attention, the current pandemic and the recently released IPCC AR6 report will make the global fora think of the significance of ecosystem health. But this all, to an extent, depend on the outcome of COP-26 as to whether it will put us on a course that leads to a safe future. But a question still remains in apprehension is the governments are ready to endorse emergency measures.

The Sustainable Development Goals 2030 and the targets of The post-2020 global biodiversity framework can only be achieved if we recognise the significance of Ecosystem Health, thereby reversing the loss of Nature and achieve the vision of “living in harmony with Nature by 2050.

A more imperative, constructive approach is needed for the convergence of Ecohealth and One Health and should think about developing global standards on this.

2https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envint.2019.1050583https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2014.09.0474https://www.iucncongress2020.org/files/iucn_programme_2021_2024_0.pdf5https://www.cbd.int/doc/c/501c/4df1/369d06630c901cd02d4f99c7/sbstta-21-09-en.pdf

Conceptual map illustrating the connections among nonhuman nature, ecosystem services, environmental ethics, environmental justice, and public health1.

Deepu Sivadas, PhD, is Post Doctoral Fellow with Jawaharlal Nehru Tropical Botanic Garden and Research Institute, Kerala, India and a member of the

IUCN Commission on Ecosystem Management


Sandeeep Rawat, Vikram S. Negi and Indra D. Bhatt

Mainstreaming biodiversity for food and health: Wild edibles as a case

Global food and nutritional security face the challenge of increasing food demand for exponentially increased

population, decreased productivity, mediated by climatic uncertainties, competition of land for infrastructural development, utilisation of cereals as biomass for fuel production, etc. Around one billion people worldwide are undernourished, and the majority (98%) are from developing countries1; however, the covid pandemic has increased 70–161 million additional people to hunger. Three major crops contributed more than half the caloric requirement, and the major 30 crops fulfilled 95% energy requirement. However, 2.37 billion peoples are away from access to a regular healthy diet causing nutrition deficiency. For instance, one-third population of reproductive females around the world is suffering from anaemia, 22% of children under five years are stunted, 6.7 % of children under five years are suffering from wasting, and 5.7% % of children under five years are overweighed2. In South-Eastern Asia, approximately half of the population of Hindu-Kush Himalaya are malnourished, and among them, women and children are most vulnerable. South Asia is home to more than 45% of economically

deprived peoples away from access to a healthy diet, leading to 58 million children with stunted growth. The Himalayan region shelters 75 million populations with low nutritional status. South Asian countries like Nepal, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, and Bangladesh suffer severe micronutrient deficiency than other parts of the world3.

Sustainable Development Goal (Particularly Goal 2) has prompted scientists and practitioners to think of innovative ways of increasing the supply of adequate quantities of safe and nutritious food for current and future generations without undermining the environment as possible by 2030 to achieve the target of Zero Hunger. In India, as per capita, fruit and vegetable consumption has been estimated as 160 g/day in rural areas and 184 g/day in urban areas far below 400g/day recommended amount by WHO4. Thus, mainstreaming local biodiversity for food and nutrition security attracted attention due to cost-effectiveness and region-specific approach. Several UNGA Resolutions have recognised this, including the World Health Assembly considering that biodiversity constitutes an important source of livelihood for millions of people across the world5. Among others, wild edible plants form

1https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/06/090619121443.htm2SDG report (2021). The Decade of Action for the Sustainable Development Goals: Sustainable Development Report 2021. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.3Li, X. & Siddique, K.H.M. (2018). Future smart food-Rediscovering hidden treasures of neglected and underutilised species for zero hunger in Asia. In: Future smart food-Rediscovering hidden treasures of neglected and underutilised species for zero hunger in Asia. Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations.4Mukherjee, A., Dutta, S., & Goyal, T.M. (2016). India’s phytonutrient report. New Delhi: Academic Foundation.5Borelli, T., Hunter, D., Padulosi, S., et al (2020). Local solutions for sustainable food systems: The contribution of orphan crops and wild edible species. Agronomy, 10(2): 231.

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a large part. The Committee on World Food Security (CFS, 2020) recently launched the Voluntary Guidelines-2020 on Food Systems and Nutrition, which are bound to support local food systems and the need to utilise cultivated and wild food diversity6 sustainably. However, rich genetic resources and biodiversity in the Himalayan region can be an option for nutrition security has been challenged by agriculture expansion and other developmental activities. Wild edible plants can play a significant role in food security, nutrition, and income generation, particularly in developing countries.

Diversity of wild edible in Himalaya and their potential application

Himalaya is recognised amongst 36 global biodiversity hotspots of the world, supporting nearly 50% of the total flowering plants of

India7. Recently, 1403 wild edible plant species have been documented from India, belonging to 184 families8. Western Himalayas share a larger portion of wild edible species than Eastern Himalayas and Central Himalaya9 (Fig. 1). As such, these wild edibles have the potential to be used as a genetic backup for the improvement of beneficial traits to commercial crops due to their biotic and abiotic resistance attributes, nutritional quality, and adaptability to diverse habitat conditions. There are more than 166 species of native cultivated plants along with 320

wild relatives in the Indian gene centre. Species of wild relatives are in abundance in the Himalayan region and much higher (132 spp.) than in the rest of India10. Globally, income and the invisible trade in wild resources are estimated to reach $90 billion/annum. In India alone, the livelihoods of around 6 million people are maintained by the harvest of such forest products. Characteristics of wild edibles are presented in Box 1.

Today, nutrition research focuses on

identifying bioactive components in fruits and conventional or well-characterised nutrients such as protein, vitamins, and minerals in food resources. Nutritive values of some of the wild edibles are comparable or even better than the values for cultivated/ domesticated plants. Such

6CFS (2020). Committee on World Food Security. Zero Draft Voluntary Guidelines on Food Systems and Nutrition. 7Singh, D.K. & Hajra, P.K. (1996). Floristic diversity in changing perspectives of bio diversity status in the Himalaya. In: Gujral, G.S. and Sharma, V. (eds.), British Council Division, British High Commission, Publ. Wildlife Youth Services, New Delhi, pp. 23-38.8Ray, A., Ray, R. & Sreevidya, E.A. (2020). How many wild edible plants do we eat—Their diversity, use, and implications for sustainable food system: An exploratory analysis in India. Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems, 4: 56.9Samant, S.S. & Dhar, U. (1997). Diversity, endemism and economic potential of wild edible plants of Indian Himalaya. The International Journal of Sustainable Development & World Ecology, 4(3): 179-191.10Rana, J.C., Dutta, M. & Rathi, R.S. (2012). Plant genetic resources of the Indian Himalayan region—an overview. Indian Journal of Genetics and Plant Breeding, 72(2): 115.

Characteristics of wild edibles

Nutritional security• Rich in essential nutrients, vitamins and min-

erals• Accessible and cost effective• High dietary diversity

Health benefits• Rich in antioxidants with high nutraceutical

potential• Rich with medicinal properties

Agriculture sustainability• Supports diverse ecosystem services such as

nutrient cycling, attract pollinators, etc• Prevent eutrophication as cultivated without the

use of nitrogen, phosphorus and other nutrient-based fertilizers.

• Control pest and disease • Genetic resource for new variety development

or introgression of new traits

Livelihood opportunities• High market demand due to organic nature.• Low or no production cost• Improved opportunities of livelihood through

value addition and development of market value chain.

Figure 1. Distribution of documented wild edible species in different States of Indian Himalayanregion


wild edibles can be important for enhancing the diet quality and nutritional security in the Indian Himalayan region.

Threats and future prospective

Extensive farming is considered a responsible factor for the loss of genetic diversity as ignored low-yielding varieties have important genetic machinery for cold, drought, pest, pathogen, and fluctuation stress resistance. More than 100 wild crop relative species of India have been considered threatened species as the micro centres of most of the species have been identified as the Himalayan region. Various natural causes and human activities threaten wild edible plant species; thus, these plants need suitable conservation and protection management.

Wild edible species of the Himalayan region have tremendous potential to concur the food

security issue and can sustain the livelihood of marginal/ indigenous communities. Wild edibles can play a critical role in nutritional security to achieve the Sustainable development Goal for combating hunger (SDG 2). Also, it can contribute to improving livelihood (SGD 1), prevention of non-communicable diseases with the use of nutraceuticals or functional foods (SDG 3), and development of small entrepreneurship for bioprospecting and value addition (SDG 8). However,

more in-depth research is needed to promote their domestication and productivity, agro-technologies, post-harvesting technologies, value chain and many related issues. Furthermore, in future genomic resources, data of DNA sequence and proteomic level in all the valuable species can improve quality and remove undesirable traits (taste or toxic compounds) for varietal improvement. Information on the genomic part can provide a deeper insight into adaptability and productivity-related mechanisms for particular species. In addition, immediate focus can be on the wild edibles as a food supplement as they are a source of various nutritional and nutraceutical content. This may help to ensure the slogan of ‘ecosystem health for one health’.

Common wild edible of Himalaya a. Potentilla indica, b. Fragaria nubicola, c. Pyracantha crenulata, d. Myrica esculenta, e. Rubus ellipticus, f. Rubus niveus, g. Rubus reticulata, h. Rubus peniculum, i. Berberis asiatica, j. Berberis lyceum, k. Phyllanthus emblica, l. Prunus cerasoides, m. Ficus palmata, n. Ficus glomerata, o. Pyrus pashia, p. Terminalia chebula.

Sandeeep Rawat, PhD, is Scientist C with GBPNIHESD, Uttarakhand, India

Indira D. Bhatt, PhD, is the Theme Head (EP) with Centre for Biodiversity Conservation and Management (CBCM), GBPNIHESD, Uttarakhand, India. He is also a member of the

IUCN Commission on Ecosystem Management

Vikram S. Negi, is Scientist E with with GBPNIHESD, Uttarakhand, India

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Joystu Dutta, Abhijit Mitra and Goutam Sengupta

Nature-based solutions for eco-restoration in Sundarbans

India occupies a unique position in the scenario of coastal biodiversity with a coastline of 7515 km., an exclusive economic zone of

2,014,900 km2 and a shelf area of 4,52,100 km2. West Bengal, a maritime state in the eastern part of the country, adjacent to Bangladesh, opens up into the Bay of Bengal through numerous river openings. The important rivers from east to west are Harinbhanga, Gosaba, Matla, Thakuran, Saptamukhi, Muriganga and Hugli, which ultimately end up at the Bay of Bengal. On their way have encompassed about 108 islands crisscrossed and intersected by various creeks and delta distributaries. With a total land and water area of ca. 1,000,000 ha, the entire Sundarbans ecosystem of India and Bangladesh supports the

world’s famous mangrove block, a well-known ecosystem of the Tropics. Sundarbans face the wrath of climate change and the increased frequency of natural disasters such as tropical cyclones, floods, storm-water surges, and salinity ingression during the last three decades, making the ecosystem more fragile and vulnerable1.

The Indian Sundarbans at the apex of the Bay of Bengal (between 21º13´ to 22º40´ N latitude and 88º03´ to 89º07´ E longitude) is located on the southern fringe of the state of West Bengal, covering the major portion of North and South 24 Parganas districts. The region is bordered by Bangladesh in the east, the Hugli river in the west, ‘Dampier – Hodges line’ in the north and the Bay of Bengal in the south. Beaches, mudflats,

1Mitra, A. et al. 2009. Observed changes in water mass properties in the Indian Sundarbans (northwestern Bay of Bengal) during 1980–2007. Current Science 97(10): 1445–1452.

Map showing the location of Sundarbans (b) Map showing Indian Sundarbans in the lower Gangetic delta region; reddish color represents the mangrove patches


coastal dunes, sand flats, estuaries, creeks, inlets and mangrove swamps constitute the significant morphophytes of Indian Sundarbans. This area has the status of “Sundarbans Biosphere Reserve (SBR)” and includes Sundarbans Tiger Reserve (National Park, Sanctuary and Reserved Forests) and 24 Parganas Forest Division, South (Lothian Wildlife Sanctuary, Haliday Wildlife Sanctuary and Reserve Forest).

Saltmarsh communities are widely distributed on the shoreward side of mudflats in temperate and tropical belts of the world. The estuaries of

the Indian sub-continent sustain an important saltmarsh grass species, namely Porteresia coarctata, which has a great role in stabilizing the island ecology. The long network of roots binds the soil particles very intricately and retards the process of erosion. A major ecosystem service offered by this species is the acceleration of the process of accretion, due to which the embankments along the creeks and estuaries get rid of natural erosion and subsequent structural failure. The embankments in the lower Gangetic region, preferably in Sundarbans, protect the people and properties from the tidal inundation that get breached frequently caused by physical, climatic, biotic and several other factors. Such breaching of the embankments severely impacts the life and livelihood of marginal communities of the deltaic islands. It was observed from a series of field studies that the nature of embankment failure in the Indian part of Sundarbans is very complicated and is a function of physical, chemical, geological and biological factors

Zone Area (Km2)

Sundarban Tiger Reserve 2660

National Park 1330 Sajnekhali WLS 362

Lothain WLS 38

Haliday WLS 6

Reserve Forest 924

24 Parganas (South) Forest Division 1660

Demarcated areas under Sundarbans Biosphere Reserve (SBR)

Reasons behind embankment failure in the Indian part of Sundarbans

Sl. No. Reason Description

1 Solution and mudflow

The soils of the dikes are heterogeneous and form solutions of variable nature and composition. Stratification of the soil layers in terms of composition thus plays a major role behind embankment failure. The permeability of the dike body determines the velocity of percolation of water through the dike and, therefore, its stability too. This can be seen as solution breaching that is most frequent on the sides and top of the dikes. The pH of the ambient water triggers the process of breaching.

2 Washout

In this type, the corrosive forces of water currents during forwarding and retreating tides play a major role, therefore related to the velocity of the tidal actions. The riverside wall gradually becomes narrow in breadth resulting in the loss of stability. In this case, the aquatic pH is also a major player as the rate of corrosion increases with the lowering of pH.

3 Overtopping

This type of embankment breaching occurs with the strong upsurge of tidewater mostly during the time of cyclonic storms during March to June, as witnessed in the lower Gangetic delta region. In this case, the water flows with high force over the top of the embankment and removes the topsoil. The height of the embankment quickly recedes, and the overtopped gap expands rapidly on both ends.

4 Slump breaching

This is most frequent on walls of the embankments that are exposed to strong tides. Initially, the open wall facing the river or the bay is attacked by the high and strong waves of tidewater accompanied by a strong gush of storms. Such attack erodes the wall almost vertically, and as a result, the base of the wall becomes weak that cannot bear the load and falls down straight to the adjacent water mass. The gap in the wall created by such type of breaching gets widened and deepened within a short period through which intrusion of saline water occurs with great velocity.

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Fig. 2 (a): Saltmarsh grass Porteresia coarctata in Indian Sundarbans (b): Mangroves with supporting root system along the estuaries

coupled with human intervention in the entire failure loop. Four major categories of reasons behind embankment failure have been identified.

The breaching of the embankments in Sundarbans can be controlled by propagating and expanding the coverage of the intertidal mudflats by Porteresia coarctata (Fig. 1a) and by mangroves (Fig. 1b). The species will further provide three direct benefits in context to the domain of climate change-induced vulnerability, namely (i) carbon sequestration, (ii) erosion control and (iii) aquatic pH regulation. Mangroves too play a crucial role in stabilizing embankments. The forest area accounts for some 0.7% of the total tropical forest globally and is widely distributed along the estuaries and coastal zones. Mangroves offer unique and diversified ecosystem services starting from erosion control to carbon sequestration, from being a safe haven for rich biodiversity to control of soil salinization. In recent times, some interesting, cutting-edge research occurred in these halophytes, which are keenly associated with the vertical of food and nutrition like preparation of food items from

fruits and vegetative parts of mangroves and associate species.

This can open up the avenue of mangrove-centric alternative livelihood for coastal population and island dwellers. In deltaic Sundarbans at the apex of the Bay of Bengal, the low saline water-loving mangrove species are Heritiera fomes, Bruguiera gymnorrhiza, Sonneratia spp. and Nypa fruticans (Fig. 2). Interannual

Figure 1. Saltmarsh grass Porteresia coarctata in Indian Sundarbans (left); Mangroves with supporting root system along the estuaries (Right).

2Trivedi, S. et al. 2016. Inter-annual variation of salinity in Indian Sundarbans. Indian Journal of Geo-Marine Science 45(3); 410–415.

Figure 2 (Clockwise from top left) (a) Hertiera fomes grows luxuriantly within a salinity range between 1.0 psu to 8.0 psu; the species is presently getting extinct from the Indian part of Sundarban due to salinity rise; (b) Bruguiera gymnorrhiza grows luxuriantly within a salinity range between 4.0 psu to 12.0 psu; (c) Nypa fruticans prefers a salinity range between 5.0 psu to 18.0 psu; (d) Sonneratia apetala prefers a salinity range between 4.0 psu to 15.0 psu.


variation of salinity in Indian Sundarbans is already reported2. The low saline hydrophilic mangroves grow best in the intertidal zone adjacent to the riverine embankments, which are artificial banks raised above the immediately surrounding land to redirect or prevent flooding by the tide fed rivers or estuaries. The height of such embankments ranges between 2–2.5 m. Earthen embankments are the lifelines of the residents of Sundarbans. These are erected to protect the lives and properties of about 4.5 million people of Indian Sundarbans from the saline water of the tidal rivers and to hold back the high tides that occur twice daily. Many species such as Avicennia marina, Avicennia alba, Avicennia officinalis and Excoecaria agallocha prefer salinity of a higher degree. The moderate to high saline loving mangroves are the most suitable species to impart stability to the sea-facing embankments, where the water salinity ranges between 15–32 psu depending on the season. It has been observed that structural deformation of embankment occurs in zones where the population density of Excoecaria agallocha is high (Fig. 3). Structural failure of an earthen embankment may take the form of a slide or displacement of material in either the downstream or upstream face. Sloughs, bulges, cracks or other irregularities in the embankment generally are signs of serious instability and may indicate structural failure (Fig. 3).

The tidal creeks in the high saline zone of central Indian Sundarbans are studded with Phoenix paludosa, which are ideal for providing stability to the earthen embankments (Fig. 3) along the creeks in the high saline region of central Indian Sundarbans.

These are some of the examples available from nature itself that present solutions for the embarkment failure in this region.

Figure 3. Excoecaria agallocha with a wide range of salinity tolerance can grow within a salinity range between 5.0 psu to 28.0 psu (top); Broken embankments post-Yash cyclone (middle); Phoenix paludosa along the high saline tidal creeks prefers a salinity range between 18–32 psu (ideal species for eco-restoration of earthen embankments post-cyclone) (bottom).

Joystu Dutta, PhD, is Assistant Professor with Sant Gahira Guru University, Sarguja, Chhattisgarh, India, and a member of IUCN Commission on Ecosystem Management

Goutam Sengupta, is with Techno India University, Kolkata, West Bengal, India

Abhijit Mitra, is Faculty Member with Techno India University, Kolkata, West Bengal, India

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Hishmi Jamil Husain

Enhancing Urban Biodiversity through Ecosystem Restoration and Rejuvenation of Waterbody at

Jamshedpur

According to different expert’s ecosystem services worth USD 125 trillion make human life possible by providing clean

water, regulating disease, nutritious food and climate, supporting the pollination of crops and soil formation, and provide recreation and benefits to spiritual benefits. Ecological restoration plays an important role in improving air quality, reduce desertification, stop biodiversity loss, improve urban environmental indicators to provide suitable air quality for communities and their relationships with nature. Healthy ecosystems clean our air and water, maintain soil fertility, regulate the climate, recycle nutrients, and provide food. They provide raw materials and resources for medicines and other purposes. They are at the foundation of all civilization and sustain our economies.

Jamshedpur is situated at the convergence of Kharkai and Subarnarekha Rivers. Subarnarekha is the main river of Jamshedpur. Messrs Julian Kennedy Sahlin of Pittsburg, USA, prepared the first layout of the town. It was designed more or less on American lines with roads cutting each other at right angles. In 1920, Mr Frederick Charles Temple, the Sanitary Engineer to the Government of Bihar and Town Planner, was engaged as the Chief Town Engineer. He created the web of hexagonal dwellings juxtaposed with open, green spaces. In 1936, Major P C Stokes, who was connected with Quetta reconstruction after the earthquake, was invited by the Company to advise on town planning and development, thereby seeding the concept of resilience in the city. At Independence in 1947, Jamshedpur was

the only centre of heavy industry in India. The first Prime Minister of the country, Pt Jawaharlal Nehru, charged Tata Steel to double its steel output to feed the newborn nation’s hunger for steel. Thousands of skilled and unskilled labour swarmed to Jamshedpur in search of a livelihood and to contribute to the dream of building India. Dr Otto Koenigsberger, a distinguished architect and town planner, was invited to study the existing conditions and future requirements extensively. His master plan aimed at making it a sustainable city capable of serving the functional and aesthetic needs of a growing population while simultaneously reducing its ecological footprint. Jamshedpur has one of the highest green covers (more than 27 per cent) in India, having 30 big and small community parks covering an area of over 122 hectares. In the twenty years, Tata Steel has planted over 12 lakh trees in town to maintain the air quality and converted 12 wastelands areas into parks.

CRM Bara Pond Rejuvenation

Cold Rolling Mill (CRM) Bara Pond is located (22°48’36.31” N 86°14’09.90” E) on vast slushy fly ash filled area near Cold Rolling Mill of Tata Steel Ltd in the Bara area of Jamshedpur, Jharkhand, India. The pond comprises three water bodies and serves the purpose of rainwater harvesting, and plays a pivotal role in maintaining the biodiversity of the surrounding area. This water body was fast vanishing due to administrative negligence and poor upkeep. In 2019 Tata Steel commenced the accountability of rejuvenating this water body as part of their


commitment to long term water sustainability. Tata Steel’s efforts in the last two years have led to the creation of an ornamentally designed reservoir with beauty and splendour, and the twin disappeared water bodies have been restored to an attractive pond in a 5.6 hectares area.

Strategic Reasons

Tata Steel’s strategic promise to improve water sustainability is that freshwater consumption

is reduced to 50% in the last ten years. The management of Tata Steel has viewed the situation and took prompt action to rejuvenate water bodies in Jamshedpur Town. This will help

in water harvesting for the town and reduce water pollution in the area. As part of Tata Steel’s eco-friendly initiative, it was envisaged to rejuvenate a dying water body and restore the same to its pristine glory. Accordingly, the ancient water bodies have once again been restored to their pristine glory. Scientific surveys were carried out by the consultants involving experts of national repute in the field of rainwater harvesting and watershed management. The consultant prepared a detailed feasibility report and Master Plan for rejuvenation of a few selective water bodies with detailed engineering of the structures and cost estimate. After several rounds of meetings and detailed discussions with the executives of Tata Steel about the benefits of the project in sustaining the eco-environment, the location at CRM was selected for execution. Community participation was critical for accomplishing the development, and the residents were involved in creating a win-win situation. The local community was sensitized about the intrinsic benefits of the transformation of the lake how it would protect the water environment.

Environmental Reasons

The vanishing ponds have created an unpleasant and unwelcome impact on the environment. The contaminated water started flowing to the nearby Subarnarekha River. Lack of moisture content and depleting water table led to the decline in nearby plants. Dynamic growth of invasive plants and undergrowth provided conducive conditions for a diversity of creatures and venomous snakes. Indigenous and migrant birds are immobile adorning the area. The terrain condition of the catchment and surrounding area of these lakes are such that contaminants immediately reaches the water body without much hindrance. As a result, the consistent accumulation of silt and other contaminants had reduced the storage capacity of the lake and blocked the recharge of the groundwater table. The groundwater table started dwindling alarmingly, resulting in the drying of drinking water structures in the downstream areas.

Contribution of CRM Bara pond Rejuvenation

The implementation of pond rejuvenation results in accumulating about 82000 cubic

Google earth view of Bara Area in 2003

Google earth view of Bara Area in 2018

Google earth view of Bara Area in March 2021

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meters of rainwater, plummeting pollution and refining the biodiversity in the area. The flow of contaminated water has been treated and stopped eventually. Total dissolved solids of water have been reduced, and yield of water extraction structures increased, and the groundwater table in the region started rising post project implementation. The biodiversity conservation and green cover improved with the help of the plantation of 5000 plants of different species to attract birds and pollinators. Pollinators are attracted to water and plants, so biodiversity increased in the project area. Due to improvements in water availability, there is a thriving population of fishes that

attract migratory birds. The hygienic and clean environment added beauty and charm and created a calm and pleasing feeling for the people who live around the pond. This also helps in improving the livelihood and engagement with different stakeholders. The project execution

has proved that underprivileged community members can be transformed in the presence of a harmonious water project. Improved water availability has helped in improving the income of the local community members through fishery activities. Implementation of the project has created a winning situation for all stakeholders and nature.

Hishmi Jamil Husain, PhD, is Head Biodiversity, Corporate Sustainability, Tata Steel Limited, Jamshedpur, India, and a member of IUCN Commission on Ecosystem Management

CRM Bara Pond After Rejuvenation


Harini Santhanam, Sarbjeet Kaur and Sudip Kumar Kundu

Maximum Sustainable yields, Marine trophic status and Nature-based Solutions – balancing

the ying-yang of marine sustainability

The Marine Trophic Index (MTI) is a widely accepted indicator of the sustainability of fisheries, used to measure the changes in

mean trophic level as per the position of organisms (e.g., fishes, prawns, and other economically important species) in the food chain. The regional and sub-regional data on marine fish landings are used to compute the MTI, which can indicate the impacts of current fishing strategies and their impacts on the marine environment. For example, the decline in trophic levels may alter the food chains and make the ecosystems more vulnerable to natural or human-induced changes, affecting the harvest of long-term sustainable yields and ultimately impacting human livelihoods. The understanding of Maximum Sustainable Yields (MSY; also called maximum surplus production, maximum equilibrium catch, or sustainable catch) plays a crucial role in order to quantify the stock1 that can be harvested from a resource without causing a collapse of the industry on which it is based. As one of the robust ecological indicators authorised by the Convention on Biological Diversity, MTI can be used to assess the impacts of fishing practices on trophic structure, fish population dynamics and measures the state of the marine environment as

a function of time2. From a ground perspective, local-scale and region-scale estimates of MTI can support the improved understandings of the complex trophic feedbacks in the marine environment, which are imperative to maintain the productivity and the services it provides to humans (e.g., food security and livelihood3). Moreover, specific MTI values have been globally used as targets for management interventions for achieving Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 14 through the implementation of suitable ecosystem-based approaches for sustainable development.

Although the Bay of Bengal (BoB) is an ecologically important marine environment, the nature of adverse changes to trophic statuses is known to impact the BoB ecosystem as it is more susceptible to changes caused by anthropogenic activities and environmental stressors. Although trophic statuses have been extensively studied using ecosystem modelling for BoB, e.g., through the use of the Ecopath approach4,5, studies related to trophic level estimates of losses to ecosystem services are still underreported. These estimates are crucial to assess the impacts of the MTI on the MSY for BoB. Hence, it is essential to generate the databases on the parameters influencing MSY,

1Schaefer, M. B. (1954). Some aspects of the dynamics of populations important to the management of the commercial marine fisheries. Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission Bulletin 1(2): 23–56.2Pauly, D., & Watson, R. (2005). Background and interpretation of the ‘Marine Trophic Index as a measure of biodiversity. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences 360(1454): 415–423.3Albouy, C., Archambault, P., Appeltans, W., Araújo, M. B., Beauchesne, D., Cazelles, K. & Gravel, D. (2019). The marine fish food web is globally connected. Nature Ecology & Evolution 3(8): 1153–1161.4Das, I., Hazra, S., Das, S., Giri, S., Chanda, A., Maity, S., & Ghosh, S. (2018). Trophic-level modelling of the coastal waters of the northern Bay of Bengal, West Bengal, India. Fisheries science 84(6): 995–1008.5Ullah, M. H., Rashed-Un-Nabi, M., & Al-Mamun, M. A. (2012). Trophic model of the coastal ecosystem of the Bay of Bengal using mass balance Ecopath model. Ecological Modelling 225: 82–94.

September 2021 39

MTI, and the economic profits from the fishing activities, which could support the framework of suitable strategies for the sustainable development of fisheries in the Northern and Southern BoB. The BoB is a highly productive environment and potentially important from an ecological perspective and vital for the social and economic aspects of the directly dependent local population. Despite the high productivity and complexity of the feedbacks observed in the BoB, the MTI has not yet been reported in detail. Further, reports of overexploitation of the fish stocks in the BoB have been suggested to endanger the livelihoods of fishers who depend on the marine and coastal ecosystems of the BoB region. Hence, it is essential to quantify the MSY in relation to the MTI to derive a holistic understanding of the status of the ecosystem and its sustenance.

These targets are highlighted in the UN SDG 14.4, in recognition of the fact that the fisheries sector need to be managed in such a way that the imbalance of ecosystem functioning due to overexploitation, loss of biodiversity and fish stock, and adverse impact the socio-economic development are minimised. However, estimates of MSY by themselves may not adequately reflect the status of the environment, considering the vastness of the oceans and the physicochemical and biological feedbacks that control the fish stock proliferation over the long-terms6. Therefore, the quantification of MTI and MSY to optimise fish stock abundances becomes a very important

area for stakeholders of a given marine eco-region such as the BoB. While many studies have proved that Nature-based Solutions (NbS) can be effective to counter both the anthropogenic impacts as well as the unsustainable fishing practices, in the marine sector, the awareness of the same in terms of the resources management perspective is mostly treated as ‘contextual’ as in the case of the BoB. However, measures of MSY can be optimised by the establishment of NbS-based fishing infrastructure such as artificial reef systems, while the establishment of supportive engineering structures can achieve the desirable MTI estimates to optimise the landings while maintaining stock diversification (Fig. 1). NbS can offer three types of resources management options: fully natural (e.g. use of sustainable

nettings and gears), hybrid solutions (e.g. use of corrosion-resistant crafts made from modified natural materials) as well as environmentally engineered solutions (e.g. artificial reefs or sheltered lagoon systems where sustainable stock can be capitalised without disturbing the standing stock or total carrying capacity of the eco-region).

6Fox Jr, W. W. (1970). An exponential surplus yield model for optimising exploited fish populations. Transactions of the American Fisheries Society, 99(1): 80–88.

Harini Santhanam is Assistant Professor with National Institute of Advanced Studies, Karnataka, India, and member of IUCN Commission on Ecosystem Management

Figure 1: Proposed blueprint in the achievement of SDG 14.4 incorporating NbS in the optimisation of the marine trophic index (MTI) with the maximum sustainable yield (MSY) for Bay of Bengal (BoB).© Authors

Sarbjeet Kaur is Senior Research Fellow with Guru Angad Dev Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Punjab, India

Sudip Kumar Kundu,is PhD Scholar with National Institute of Advanced Studies, Karnataka, India


Swayamprabha Das

People and oceans are interwoven; nearly 2.4 billion people (about 40 per cent of the world’s population) live within 100 km (60

miles)1, settled along the 1.63 million kilometres2

global coastline. Over three billion people depend on marine and coastal biodiversity for their livelihoods, with marine fisheries directly or indirectly employ over 200 million people. Globally, the market value of marine and coastal resources and industries is estimated at $3 trillion per year or about 5 per cent of global GDP3. The FAO’s State of Fisheries 2020 has also noted the 122% rise in total food fish consumption from 1990 to 20184.

The ocean is their lifeline for many communities, especially in the Small Island Developing States (SIDS). Any fluctuation due to climate change, pollution, or human-made disaster will likely impact the food source and economy significantly. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) states that by 2100, sea levels will be between 0.26 metres and 0.77 metres higher than today. It’s estimated that by 2100, rising sea levels will threaten 200 million

people who live in low-lying coastal areas.The Blue Economy5 that started as a

discussion during the Rio+206 preparatory process, pioneered by SIDS, is applicable across all coastal countries has gained momentum over the decade. Blue Economy supports the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 14 ‘life below water’ and conceptualises oceans as “Development Spaces” where spatial planning integrates conservation, sustainable use, oil and mineral wealth extraction, bioprospecting, sustainable energy production and marine transport. The Blue Economy is not just about market opportunities; it also protects and develops more intangible ‘blue’ resources such as traditional ways of life, carbon sequestration, and coastal resilience to help vulnerable states mitigate often-devastating effects of climate change7. In other words, the blue economy is the sustainable use of ocean resources for economic growth, improved livelihoods and jobs, and ocean ecosystem health.

Over the century, the marine ecosystem has been threatened by overfishing, Illegal,

1https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Ocean-fact-sheet-package.pdf2Measuring the length of a coastline therefore is complex, and any induction will remain imperfect. Any statements of length need to be treated with caution as the totals vary depending on the approach used. For example, the World Factbook states the total length of coastlines in the world as 1.16 million kilometres. The World Resources Institute, meanwhile, states a total figure of 1.63 million kilometres in one of its studies. http://www.viewsoftheworld.net/?p=53403SGD 14, https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/oceans/4The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture 2020, http://www.fao.org/state-of-fisheries-aquaculture5The concept of Blue Economy was introduced by Gunter Pauli in his 2010 book- “The Blue Economy: 10 years, 100 innovations, 100 million jobs” suggests that we can alter the way in which we run our industrial processes and tackle resultant environmental problems, refocusing from the use of rare and high-energy cost resources to instead seek solutions based upon simpler and cleaner technologies.6The United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development - or Rio+20 - took place in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on 20-22 June 2012. It resulted in a focused political outcome document which contains clear and practical measures for implementing sustainable development. The Conference also adopted ground-breaking guidelines on green economy policies and decided to convene a Third International Conference on SIDS in 2014 (https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/sids2014)7Blue Economy Concept Paper, https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/content/documents/2978BEconcept.pdf

BLUE ECONOMY: A pathway for inclusive growth and recovery

September 2021 41

Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) fishing, pollution from shipping (oil spills), plastics in the oceans, climate change. While during COVID 19 pandemic, the marine ecosystem benefitted/ recovered due to the slowing down of activities from tourism, fisheries and shipping, yet it has impacted the coastal community from loss of livelihoods.

As noted by IUCN “A forced slow-down on activities like coastal and marine tourism, shipping, and even fisheries, has led to a reduction in the pressures of pollution, overfishing, habitat loss, invasive species introductions and the impacts of climate change on the ocean. This seemingly temporary breather may indicate hope for the recovery of marine and coastal ecosystems. However, for some of the major threats to ocean health, a greater effort derived from science and policy reforms is needed”9. Post-COVID 19 recovery provides us with the opportunity to reduce threats to the marine ecosystem from unsustainable and polluting practices and rebuild skills and strengthen the marine fisheries value chain, with a focus on inclusion.

The FAO figures tell us that women account for just 14 per cent of the 59.5 million people engaged in the primary fisheries and aquaculture sector in 2018. Many authors and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) report that one out of two workers is a woman! Women play a crucial role throughout the fish value chain, providing labour in commercial and artisanal fisheries and acting as small-scale entrepreneurs where capital allows. However, gender studies and approaches have shown how women are often assigned the most unstable roles or poorly paid or unpaid positions requiring lower qualifications – most often in the secondary sector – and are often under-recognised or not recognised in the sector10. UNCTAD notes that “women make up most of the workforce in coastal and maritime tourism and fisheries, the main blue economy sectors. Yet they are in the lowest-paid, lowest-status and least-protected jobs. In small island

developing States, tourism accounts for 30–80% of total exports, with the participation of women as high as 54%. But most work in low-skilled, casual and temporary jobs11.

Indian context, some reflections

While the Indian economy faced the consequence of the COVID 19 pandemic, that not only slowed down the economy but also impacted millions of livelihoods, including the 4 million fisherfolk and coastal communities. The government recently shared the draft Blue economy policy that intends to provide an impetus for skilling and employment in the marine sector. The seven key areas of the intervention include (i) the National accounting framework for the blue economy and ocean governance; (ii) Coastal marine spatial planning and tourism. (ii) Marine fisheries, aquaculture, and fish processing (iv) Manufacturing, emerging industries, trade, technology, services, and skill development (v) Logistics, infrastructure and shipping, including trans-shipments (vi) Coastal and deep-sea mining and offshore energy, and (vii) Security, strategic dimensions, and international engagement.

It is estimated that India’s blue economy supports 95% of the country’s business through transportation and contributes an estimated 4% to its Gross Domestic Product (GDP). India is also the third-largest fish producing and second-largest aquaculture fish producing country globally (source: NFDB, 2020). Therefore, all the sectors across the blue economy have the potential to engage a large workforce and have been doing so for the past many decades, at least in sectors such as fishing, aquaculture, fish processing, marine tourism, shipping and port activities12. The shipping sector is also one of the key livelihood providers in the blue economy as India has one of the largest merchant shipping fleets among the developing countries and ranks 17th in the world. The number of Indian seafarers who are employed on Indian and foreign flag vessels crossed over two lakh in 2018, showing

9World Oceans Day 2021: a new opportunity for law to step up. https://www.iucn.org/news/environmental-law/202106/world-oceans-day-2021-a-new-opportunity-law-step10http://www.fao.org/state-of-fisheries-aquaculture11“The blue economy is an ocean of opportunity to advance gender equality” by Dona Bertarelli, UNCTAD Special Adviser for the Blue Economy https://unctad.org/news/blue-economy-ocean-opportunity-advance-gender-equality12Manju Juneja, “Blue economy: An ocean of livelihood opportunities in India”, TERI, 2 March 2021, https://www.teriin.org/article/blue-economy-ocean-livelihood-opportunities-india


an unprecedented increase of 35% over the previous year. Seaports are also a large source of employment. The smaller ports (minor ports) have shown an increase from 1,933 in 2003 to 19,102 in 2017 (Blue Economy Working Group Report 4). And with new minor ports being developed under the Sagarmal project, that is likely to increase the workforce participation in the port sector.

During this pandemic, the National Fisheries Draft Policy 2020 was also introduced that proposed Rs. 20,000 crore investment in marine fisheries, inland fisheries, and aquaculture. The new scheme does little to help fishers directly, mainly supports the wealthier and more powerful actors within the sector, and lacks provisions to improve the social capital of India’s fishing communities through education, healthcare, and environmental protection. While the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana’s (PMMSY) Swath Sagar programme envisages hygienic fish handling and e-marketing strategies and proposes the modernisation of coastal villages, with new’ state of the art’ harbours, landing centres, and fish markets, and the Sagar Mitra programme intends to establish Fish Farmers Producer Organizations (FFPOs), yet the role and contribution of women, their inclusion in the marine fisheries sector is not elaborated.

The Blue Economy policy, supported with Working Group discussions can be a decisive game-changer in the post-COVID 19 recoveries. The reimagining of the blue economy sector also integrates new sectors like renewable energy and strengthening of the value chain and supported with robust institutional mechanism, skilling/upskilling/ reskilling of the coastal communities, especially youth, and based on inclusivity principle of ‘leaving no one behind’ can be a pathway to #BuildForwardBetter.

Setting up for #bluerecovery

The year 2021, with the onset of the United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration and the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development, provides a prospect

for defining and setting new international and national policies. Both of these will support the achievement of SDG 14 that promotes restoration of degraded and destroyed ecosystems as a proven measure to fight the climate crisis and enhance food security, water supply and biodiversity; built a shared information system, science-based data, capacity building from across the oceans. The inter-connectivity between healthy ecosystems and human health, as aptly demonstrated in the COVID crisis, makes ocean protection a global priority.

Financing and partnerships with the private sector and business are critical to build a sustainable blue economy that addresses climate risks and provide insurance, social security and safety nets for small businesses and communities alike. Financial Institutions provide the financing, investment and insurance required to power ocean-related sectors, including shipping, fishing, coastal tourism and renewable marine energy. By building sustainable blue finance practices into their decision-making processes and engaging with their clients on the topic, the financial sector has a unique opportunity to steer ocean industries towards sustainability. In this regard, United Nations’ Sustainable Blue Finance Initiative provides guidance and frameworks to ensure investment, underwriting and lending activities are aligned to the UN Sustainable Development Goal 14 (SDG 14), ‘life below water’ enabling financial institutions to rebuild ocean prosperity, restore biodiversity and regenerate ocean health13. In 2018, an innovative finance model was adopted by the Republic of Seychelles14 for developing a Marine Spatial Plan (MSP) Initiative for its entire EEZ. This launched the world’s first sovereign blue bond—a pioneering financial instrument designed to support sustainable marine and fisheries projects. The bond, which raised US$15 million from international investors, demonstrates the potential for countries to harness capital markets for financing the sustainable use of marine resources. The World Bank assisted in developing the blue bond and reaching out to the

13https://www.unepfi.org/blue-finance/14Seychelles Blue Economy: Strategic Policy Framework and Roadmap Charting the future (2018-2030), http://www.seychellesconsulate.org.hk/download/Blue_Economy_Road_Map.pdf

September 2021 43

three investors: Calvert Impact Capital, Nuveen, and U.S. Headquartered Prudential Financial, Inc. Grants and loans provided through the Blue Grants Fund and Blue Investment Fund, managed respectively by Seychelles’ Conservation and Climate Adaptation Trust (SeyCCAT) and the Development Bank of Seychelles (DBS) and worked with The Nature Conservancy (TNC) to restructure part of its national debt, generating up to $430,000 per year for marine conservation and climate change adaptation. As of 2020, the Seychelles government has protected 86 million

Swayamprabha Das, Ph.D, expert in International studies with a focus on environmental diplomacy. She is also a Hubert H Humphrey Fellow (2007–08) and a Climate Reality Fellow, 2001. She is also member of IUCN Commission on Ecosystem Management

acres of the ocean—exceeding their goal to protect 30% of Seychelles’ Exclusive Economic Zone and Territorial Sea by 202015.

It is in the spirit of building a sustainable marine ecosystem and resilient communities that the blue economy emphasises on integration of the development of the ocean economy with social inclusion, environmental sustainability, combined with innovative business models. This shared responsibility and global commitment on how we manage our oceans will lead to achieving SDG14 – life below water.

15https://www.nature.org/en-us/what-we-do/our-insights/perspectives/an-audacious-plan-to-save-the-worlds-oceans/

THE BLUE ECONOMY

creates jobs, reduces poverty and ends hunger

uses smart shipping to lessen the impacts on the environment

takes action against illegal fishing

is inclusive and improves the lives of all

conserves marine life and

oceans

protects coastal communities from the

impacts of climate change

harnesses renewable energy

is based on sustainable fisheries

tackles marine litter and oceans pollution

The blue economy at a glance.© blueconomyconference


In 1956, the time when the Restoration Ecology was just emerging as an applied discipline of Ecology, close to 400 hectares

of highly degraded sodic land was acquired for its sustainable development by CSIR-National Botanical Research Institute at Banthra village. The land of the area was characterized by high pH (> 11), very high concentration sodium that damages every single species of vegetation, poor soil physical structure, hard calcite pan in the deep layer of the soil that impedes the flow of water, make soil highly dispersed during the raining season and stone-like hard during summer, and poor nutrient conditions. The major task and very initial challenge were to reduce soil pH, sodium concentration and improve soil organic matter, water drainage and movement, and physical properties to make the soil suitable for the initial establishment of crops and test their

effectiveness in soil rehabilitation and providing economic benefits. Historically this area had been a thick blanket of forest trees, and this area was known as Vani Banthra (Banthra Jungle). Different developmental activities such as roads, railway, expansion of agriculture and adjacent city resulted in deforestation and poor movement of rainwater. In due course of time, because of high evaporation of rainwater rich in salts from the agricultural field and its less percolation to deep soil profile, salts get accumulated on the soil surface and make a carpet of sodium salt (locally called Rehu), and the land reincarnated into a barren landscape.

Reclamation involving communities and locally available resources

Involving the local people living in penury, believing that these officers will run away in

few days after their initial failures, was not easy. But the visionary and effective leadership and the team of this organization from the very first day involved the village leader (Pradhan), created a training school for the villages (School of Science), and started inhabiting over there thatched huts in the barrenness. This motivated local communities to be

September 2021 45

Kripal Singh and S. K. Tewari

Ecorestoration of Degraded Sodic Lands: Introducing a success story at the start of UN Decade

on Ecosystem Restoration

Then, barren land with sparse vegetation in 1956 (A) and a closer view of undulated, hard and granular land surface with exposed calcite pan due to erosion (B). Credit: NBRI, Lucknow.

involved and learn various techniques to manage their land degraded because of sodicity. Another unique feature of the project was using any readily available organic matter only to enhance soil fertility, no chemicals at all. The organic amendments were prepared by harvesting sparsely growing species such as Argemone mexicana L., Calotropis procera (Aiton) W.T. Aiton and a few grasses followed by collecting dung of grazing animals, farmyard manure and actively growing Sesbania bispinosa (Jacq.) W. Wight. Organic matter developed from A. mexicana was the most effective amendment to decrease soil pH, and plots treated with this amendment provide the highest yield of salt-tolerant rice varieties. This

process was continued for many years, and then other crops (vegetables, cereals, oilseed, spices and cash crops like cotton, sugarcane etc.), trees and grasses were tested to know their potential to withstand such inhospitable conditions, increase soil fertility and provide various socio-ecological and economic services.

Developing various agricultural, forestry and grasslands models for food, energy and environment

After various constructed efforts, with practising various standards of the science of restoration ecology, this research centre has been developed as a model for ecological restoration of degraded sodic lands in the last six decades. Currently, this research centre has monoculture plantations of several tree species, 3 hectares of human-made forest of 34 tree species, tree gene bank of 78 threatened plants, germplasm of 185 accessions of bioenergy crops, various orchards, agroforestry systems, germplasm of

threatened medicinal and aromatic plants, wetlands and avenue orchard. This centre is home to wildlife (especially wild bores, blue bulls, two species of monkeys, birds, rodents, reptiles, bees, aunts, etc.) within a peri-urban area of the metro city. From the very first day of research, the engagement of the farmers has been one of the top priorities of this centre, and thousands of farmers have been trained for their socio-economic development by providing agro-technologies and agribusiness models to utilize degraded land sodic lands.

All these activities carried out at this

centre are important for conservationists, restoration ecologists, land managers and other stakeholders. Today it is an established ecological model to understand restoration ecology with particular reference to the management of degraded lands for obtaining various ecosystem


Bioenergy crop Jatropha curcas Photo: Kripal Singh

Terminalia arjuna monoculture stand: fuelwood, timber and medicinal

Photo: Kripal Singh

Prosopis juliflora monoculture stand: fuelwood, timber and soil reclamation

Photo: Kripal Singh

Neem and medicinal and aromatic plants based agroforestry system: Economic and ecological benefits

Photo: SK Tewari

Diverse Forest with different story vegetation

Photo: Kripal Singh

Herbal and vegetable garden Photo: SK Tewari

Ecosystem services

• Soil-water conservation, carbon sequestration, pollination, conservation, wildlife support, etc.

• Bioenergy and biofuel, organic edibleproducts (turmeric, honey, rose water,etc.), medicinal herbs, etc.

• Pedagogical activities for school andcollege student, training programs forfarmers, entrepreneurs, industrypeople, etc.

The current landscape of rehabilitated degraded sodic lands with diverse islands of croplands, monoculture plantations, forest and agroforestry models

services. During UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, this case study can motivate new generation professionals to be part of the

global goal of ecosystem restoration to restore differently degraded lands in India.

Kripal Singh, PhD, is Project Scientist with CSIR-National Botanical Research Institute, Lucknow, India, and member of IUCN Commission on Ecosystem Management

S.K.Tewari, PhD, is Chief Scientist with CSIR-National Botanical Research Institute, Lucknow, India

September 2021 47

Shalini Dhyani

Consuming high value tropical forests to fulfil growing Palm Oil demands in S. Asia: Native

oil seeds can be a better option

For decades increasing demand of Palm oil across the globe has a long-lasting and damaging impact on natural forest

ecosystems. Palm Oil has heavy demand because of its availability as the cheapest edible oil along with soap and many other food industries in Asia and Africa. It is important to note that most of these forest areas where Oil Palm is expanding is coming at the cost of rich biodiversity hotspots and threatened biodiversity. India is one of the biggest importers of Palm oil in South Asia. While palm oil cultivation is increasing in the region, it is a massive threat for many natural forests in the North East, Andaman and Nicobar islands and other sensitive and high-value ecosystems of the country. The promotion of palm oil will not only come at the expense of high-value ecosystems and threatened biodiversity; the cost of palm oil will also be loss of traditional agriculture landscapes, loss of stress-tolerant indigenous crops, and cropping varieties. While, recently declared support of 11,000 crore Indian Rupees from the government of India will enhance Palm oil cultivation in making the country more independent and self-sufficient by reducing imports from Malaysia and Indonesia (the biggest exporters to the country), in the long

run, it is going to seriously affect the health of existing forest ecosystems and forest-dependent marginalised indigenous and local communities. Different agro-climatic zones and biodiversity hotspots of the region are already stressed from various developmental projects and facing threats. Promoting palm oil and other such commercial crops in these landscapes and critical eco-regions will further deteriorate the ecosystems and habitat of many flagship, umbrella, lesser-known indicator as well as pollinator species.

On the contrary to Indian support and

incentive palm oil industry by promoting more than 6.5 hectares of land by 2025–26 under palm cultivation under the National mission on edible oils-Oil Palm (NMEO-OP), the neighbouring

Oil palm plantation in India © ICAR-CCARI


island nation and biodiversity hotspot Sri Lanka has banned palm oil import and has asked the producers for phase-wise removal of these plantations and replacing them with coconut and other native crop varieties. This is a welcome and bold step by Sri Lanka by realising the widespread destruction, deforestation and fragmentation of natural forests because of Palm oil. While this step will help save the local coconut oil and other native oilseed varieties and generate revenue for local people, it will also help revive traditional oilseed crops and develop market opportunities for smaller farmers and entrepreneurs. There is also widespread calls in government and civil society in Indonesia (one of the largest exporters of Palm oil) to ban new planned oil palm plantations and reduce the loss of natural forests and ecosystems.

It is important to note here that in India Forest Survey of India defines forest cover as “Any land having more than 1 ha area with tree canopy density of 10% irrespective of its ownership and legal status”. Dense oil palm plantations will have >10% canopy density that will affect the way we understand forests in the national biannual reports about forest cover, biomass, carbon stocks and many other parameters. So, while the forest cover might be on the increasing side, the actual natural forests will disappear on the ground with insufficient carbon stocks and ecosystem health to meet the promises of Nationally Determined Targets (NDCs). This is not only going to be the context of NDCs, but also loss of native biodiversity of insects, butterflies, mammals, reptiles, birds etc. will affect achieving the post-2020 global biodiversity targets and realising the goals of UN decade on restoration (2021–2030) in a promising way. This cost of loss is tremendously high when compared with the profits the country will be making by being self-sufficient and reducing the import costs for Palm Oil.

A better way to develop self-sufficiency though a little long term programme can be the promotion of indigenous oilseed crops in parallel to the Palm oil mission and phasing out Palm oil in a time bound manner by 2030. India is home to diverse native, wild, lesser-known oilseed crops and cropping varieties that have been grown in different agro-climatic

zones of the country. All these oilseed varieties are not only good for the soil, and ecosystem health but are able to support pollinator diversity with rich medicinal properties, and that is why the present educated generation is preferring these indigenous, traditional and local oils. This strength should be harnessed not only to phase out Palm oil but also to conserve the genetic diversity of these lesser-known crops. Oils that have smaller ecological, carbon and water footprint should be promoted than Palm oil, soya or any other commercial oil crops. By running a parallel mission, the government can promote these oil crops and also support marginalised farmers across the country by incentivising them to grow local oil seeds. Mahua (Madhuca indica); Til (Sesame); Chuli (bitter almond or Prnus armeniaca); Bhenkal (Prinsepia utilis); Chirad (Neolitsea pallens); Wild walnut (Juglans regia); Bhangjeera (Perilla frutacense) are some of the examples of lesser-known wild oil yielding crops along with Mustard, Coconut, Groundnut which were locally preferred and were traditionally cold-pressed for better health and nutritional benefits. Many local and native palm varieties could have been opted to rehabilitate wastelands and fallow lands than removing rich tropical forests for expanding exotic varieties of Palm plantations. Cold pressing oil seeds itself was a huge knowledge base that has further deteriorated due to the loss of these crops and the interest of people because of the easy availability of cheap vegetable oil and palm oil based products. Western Himalayas used to have gharat (small village level oil and flour mill that was run on the force of small fast-flowing streams). These went out of fashion, were abandoned, and so were many such local and traditional practices to extract cold-pressed oil from oilseeds.

It is vital to generate more awareness on the removal of oil Palm plantations considering Nature 2030: One nature one future that is going to be the larger agenda and mission of IUCN’s 2021–2024 programme and also as per Union’s 2016–2020 programme that highlighted South Asia as one of the region’s that required greatest conservation requirements. Expansion of palm oil plantations in sensitive and vulnerable but biodiversity-rich ecosystems and landscapes in the region is already proven to jeopardise

September 2021 49

ecosystem structure and functioning. There is a need to make regional and national governments aware to understand the larger threats of such projects. Avoidance of Palm oil expansion will be better, that is also being followed by other

countries, and to promote local oil yielding crops, including the domestication of lesser-known varieties to promote livelihood opportunities to support marginalised local communities.

Shalini Dhyani, PhD, is Senior Scientist with CSIR – National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI), Nagpur, India and South Asia Regional Chair of IUCN

Commission on Ecosystem Management


Yashmita Ulman and Manoj Singh

Traditional farming systems—a way of life

The traditional farming systems form the backbone of the farmers of Assam – a northeastern state of India. The farmers

in Assam employ integrated farming practices for the cultivation of not only rice but also tea, cardamom, ginger, turmeric, silk, livestock etc. Thus, increasing plant, soil, microbial and farming system diversity. They are the true custodians of biodiversity. The farmers have drawn on their traditional skills and knowledge passed on from generation to generation to come up with strong, nature-friendly, environment enhancing and diversity conserving agricultural practices.

The north bank plain of Assam is blessed with heavy rainfall, surface water from the perennial river the Brahmaputra and its tributaries (Subansiri and Ranga) and fertile soil, which supports the multi-cropping farming activities of this region. In a survey conducted in this area on the traditional cultivation systems practised by the local people, the following farming systems with the preferable crops were identified.

Home garden: Almost every household in each of the districts surveyed have adopted this system. Trees along with livestock (fish, cows, sheep, goats and pigs) form an important component of this system. This system has fruit trees like Mango, Banana, Jamun, timber trees like Teak, Sal, Malabar silk-cotton tree, cash crops like Betel nut, Betel vine, Pepper, vegetables like Bottle gourd, Pumpkin, Raddish and bamboo species. All these tree are sometimes scattered or planted in specific blocks depending upon the area under

the home gardens. Aquaforestry: This system is used to rear fish and ducks. They sometimes form a part of the home garden or sometimes are independent systems. The ponds are lined with banana or bamboo species on their periphery. The fish species such as Silver carp, Grass carp, Rohu and indigenous varieties are reared in the ponds. The presence of ducks in these systems ensures the eradication of insect pests, tadpoles and create a conducive environment for the fishes to grow. The droppings of the duck provide carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus, promoting the recycling of nutrients in the ponds. Their movements on the surface of the pond help aerate the ponds. The leaves of the trees on the fringes of the system lowers the temperature of the water, provides food in the form of leaves, seeds and fruits for the fish. Commercial crops under the shade of planted trees: Tea, the main commercial crop, is planted under the shade of trees like Betel nut, Orange, Lemon, Pomegranate etc.). The trees provide shade, and the tea ecosystem provides biotic components needed for the luxurious growth of trees. Multipurpose trees on croplands: The trees such as Teak, Sal, Malabar silk-cotton, Beechwood, Mango, Jackfruit, Elephant apple, Mulberry and bamboo species are grown intermittently with agricultural crops like Rice, Turmeric, Ginger, Potato, Cabbage etc. Betel nut based cropping: The tubers like Turmeric and Ginger, fruit plants like Pineapple and spices like Pepper are cultivated under the

September 2021 51

Betel nut trees. The light crown of Betel nut trees provides filtered shade to the plants growing below it. Commercial crops trailed on support trees: The Pepper and Betel vine trail on Betel nut trees.Trees on farm boundaries: Teak and bamboo species are planted on the farm boundaries surrounding the Rice crops.Scattered trees on farms: The trees like Elephant apple, Mango, Malabar silk-cotton and bamboo species are planted without any definite arrangement within the farmlands along with rice.Live fence: The plants such as Snake plant, Cactus, Jatropha, Euphorbia are grown on farm boundaries to demarcate the fields and on peripheries of home gardens to beautify the homes. As these plants form thick and dense hedges, they also serve as a barricade against grazing animals and as fuelwood.Sericulture: The plants like Mulberry, Castor, Machilus bombycina, Litsea polyantha and Litsea salicifolia are raised in available spaces in home gardens to feed the silkworm species of Bombyx textor, Samia cynthia, and Antheraea assamensis.

All these farming systems have four common benefits. They provide multiple products from the same unit of land, are sustainable, recycle available natural resources and are low external input agriculture or ‘organic’. The food wastes and leftovers are served as food to the poultry, the tree leaves and grasses grew around the farms, and home gardens are used as fodder and feed for livestock. The droppings of the livestock return nutrients back to the soil. The cow dung and leaves fallen from the trees is converted into compost, thus improving soil fertility.

All the trees planted in their farms are based on their local needs. The farmers grow seasonal vegetables in their farms using a technique of multilayered farming. The crop combinations, crop rotations, vertical or horizontal layer

occupancy and requirements of water and mulching are all decided as per their traditional know-how. By using this knowledge, they grow different varieties of tubers, leafy vegetables and creepers in various combinations. Mulching is done using dry leaves available in their farms and home gardens. This helps in giving a cooling effect and increases the ants, earthworms and microbes in the soil. Almost all the vegetables and fruits grown are only for home purposes. But commercial products like banana, spices, betel nut and leaves, timber, bamboo, silk are sold in the local markets. So, these systems provide fresh, nutritious, and healthy seasonal crops and help provide self-employment. Thus, these traditional farming systems are directly linked with three (viz., No poverty, Zero hunger, and Good health and well-being) out of 17 Sustainable Development Goals.

The farmers of this region are well aware that trees combined with agriculture and other land-use systems are the only way of human survival and ecosystem maintenance. They believe that trees help in water percolation, enrich the soil, prevent soil erosion and host birds and animals, which are natural pollinators and predators of agricultural pests. Therefore, mixed cropping, which considers diversity and ecosystem sustainability, is the only way forward. Though the traditional farmers have known this essence of life for a long time now, the modern world has recently come up with this idea and given fancy words like Agroforestry, Permaculture, Food Forest, Multilayered farms, Family farming etc. to the same practice. Some threats to these systems in the form of erosion of traditional knowledge, inclination towards monocultural plantations, hybrid seeds, excessive use of chemical fertilizers etc., were also perceived during the survey. But we need to realize that trees are our true lifelines and adopt such farming models across the country.

Yashmita Ulman, PhD, is Assistant Professor with College of Horticulture & Forestry, Acharya Narendra Deva University of Agriculture and Technology, Faizabad, India.

She is also member of IUCN Commission on Ecosystem Management

Manoj Singh, PhD, is Assistant Professor with Kalinga University, Chhattisgarh, India


Seema B. Sharma

AgroTEK for Sustainable Environment and Food Security: Choice or Necessity?

The deleterious effects of synthetic chemical additives for soil fertility enhancement have raised several questions in the

recent past1. Revival of Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) based agroecosystem management strategies has ignited new hope in finding sustainable solutions for environmental implications2. Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) is the indigenous/local knowledge of people in any part of the world. Keeping in mind the present needs and future sustenance, this knowledge is framed and processed by inhabitants and carefully passed on to future generations. Each string of TEK is woven delicately into the life-sustaining system so intricately that it becomes an inseparable part of the community in particular and the ecosystem in general. India and many countries worldwide are a cradle to this TEK in various fields like medicine, health, ecosystem management and specifically agriculture systems. TEK includes sustainable soil management systems, ecofriendly and chemical-free pest management techniques, seed conservation and improvement know-how, to mention a few. Unfortunately, this vast knowledge has been lost since the Green Revolution. In recent times, the urgent need to revive organic and traditional knowledge-based sustainable agriculture has reawakened interest in TEK. This interest also links up close to several of the United Nations Sustainable Development

Goals (SDG, 2015), including goals 2, 3, 12, 13 and 15.

The booming world population is putting tremendous pressure on cultivable lands around the world. To meet such challenges, a continuous expansion of food-producing ecosystems is required. However, this increase in production has to go in hand with the system resilience so that we can have flourishing systems for future generations as well. All over the world, different groups of people may perceive and interact with Nature in a different manner, but history has withstood the testimony that the only sustainable systems are those that can maintain the natural flow of materials to and from the system. In the quest for an ecologically sustainable society, traditional ecological knowledge and indigenous people have been shaped so that the systems can sustain themselves in the long run.

World over, traditional knowledge-based practices are used to achieve food and livelihood security in a myriad of ecosystems. These indigenous methods go a long way in establishing resilient ecosystems. As an example, the traditional seed keeping strategies that are adopted by farmers in many countries, including India, help seeds be saved in situ as these ‘Indigenous seeds’ or heirloom seeds are developed over decades from generations to generations and demonstrate the best adaptability and endurance to site-specific climatic conditions

1https://doi.org/10.1186/2193-1801-2-5872Convention on Biological Diversity. Traditional knowledge and the Convention on Biological Diversity; Article 8(j) Traditional Knowledge, Innovations and Practices

September 2021 53

that include but are not confined to drought, salinity and other physiological stresses3.

Asia, America, Africa, Australia and many other parts of the world have a rich cultural heritage of indigenous knowledge in the agriculture sector. These systems and adaptive methodologies are suited to their unique microenvironment and yet have chances of replicability in similar climatic zones. Traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) is one of the major components of the Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems (GIAHS), which are classic living examples of evolutionarily adapted socio-ecosystems in human history4. These traditional heritage systems have been passed down for generations to generations because of their excellent local traditional knowledge and practices. A living example of GIAHS is the ‘The Hani Rice Terraces System’, located in China’s south-western Yunnan Province5. It has been in existence for more than one thousand years, based on TEK related to cultivation and natural resources management, which was preserved and practised continually. Over the long time period, TEK has enabled the Hani people to skillfully manage their terraces and other natural resources in a sustainable way5. The inhabitants of Central America and south-eastern Mexico, known as Maya people, have adapted an agricultural system known as ‘Milpa’ (to the field) agricultural systems for almost four millennia6. The Maya traditionally used the slash-and-burn methods to manage agriculture of a variety of species like maize, beans and squash, among other plants for food and medicinal purposes; they also adopted terracing in their agricultural fields and manipulated the wetlands for agricultural production6. Maya used a different cultivation method that made their agricultural system effective. They used site-specific crop management by planting perennial plants and crops in cavities of limestone bedrock that were filled with soil6. In coastal parts of Kenya, sacred forests (or ‘kayas’) conserve animal and

plant biodiversity and are a valuable source of germplasm for species that are tolerant to extreme weather conditions. The strategic methodologies suited to varied ethnic groups in different parts of the world have a very strong foundation of living in harmony with Nature. These systems are not greed-driven, but the underlying principle of respect and love for the ecosystem helps flourish man and Nature intricately. However, the population boom coupled with pressure on resources has ushered the whole agri-management system into the present state of failure and distress. Indian agriculture is at least 10,000 years old. During the time Rigveda (c. 8000 BC) was compiled, basic farm operations, as practised today, had been worked out. Surapala’s Vrkshayurveda, c.1000 AD; Krishi-Parashara, c. 400 BC; Kashyapiyakrishisukti, c. 800 AD and Vishvavallabha, 1577 AD). Each hymn in these scriptures has described various diversified aspects of mankind, from astrology to spirituality and from medicine to agriculture; all aspects have been covered in a very subtle way and are very much relevant to date. ‘Rig Veda and Krushi Parashar’ finely describe crops and their cultivation techniques, rain forecasting and soil adaptations. All the diversified aspects related to agro-management techniques have been dealt with detail in these valuable treatises. These ancient goldmines of knowledge have emphasised the ‘Vedic Krishi system’, which was practised by ancient sages since the dawn of agriculture in the evolution history of mankind. The systems explained in detail were all in harmony with Nature, with the fundamental governing principle of giving back to Nature what one takes from it. Ever since the dawn of agriculture, the farmers impart the Panch sanskars to the agroecosystems and hand over to coming generations. These include the sanskars/ rituals for Soil, seed, Jal (water), Vayu (air) and field sanskar. These sanskars are passed down to the next generation in the form of folklores, proverbs, rituals and songs. Some of

3Shiva, V. (2016) Biopiracy: the Plunder of Nature and knowledge. North Atlantic Books, Berkeley4CelaCruz, M., Koohafkan, P. (2009) Globally important agricultural heritage systems: a shared vision of agricultural, ecological and traditional societal sustainability. Resour Sci 31:905–913.5https://doi.org/10.3390/su60744976https://doi.org/10.1016/j.still.2011.03.001


these traditional practices are as follows:• Bijamrut: Seed treatment. Prior to

sowing, the seeds are treated with organic materials like cow urine and then sown.

• Native seeds and varieties: Local seed banks, production of seeds at local level and participatory plant breeding. Farmers’ seed system is an important aspect of adaptation.

• Bioformulations like Jivamrit. A fermented concoction of cow dung, cow urine, jaggery and gram flour along with some soil. The microbial population grows manifold with the availability of carbohydrates (jaggery) and protein (gram flour), and after five days, this bioformulation shows wonderful effects on the soil and crops.

• Achhadana/Bio-mulching: Using locally available organic wastes like leaves of trees or sugarcane trash are a vivid example of how soil can retain the little moisture it receives under harsh climatic terrain.

• Natural fertilisers/vermicompost.• Natural pesticides/brahmastra.• Livestock rearing: the farming

communities rear livestock on farms, in general, and this livestock is a source of natural composting materials.

• Traditional cropping calendars based on the lunar cycle

The agriculture in past few decades, specifically the post ‘Green Revolution’ era of 1960’s has already witnessed the detrimental effects of synthetic chemical inputs based on nutrient

management systems1. The chemicals that enter our food system through chemical fertilisers have crippled our overall ecosystem health that includes the basic production unit (the Soil), the producing unit (farming community) and the finally, the consumer unit (the food chain). And it’s high time we realised the importance of an agriculture system that can sustain itself as well as the coming generations. An ‘AgroTEK’ system that supports the ecosystem health and nutrient content of ‘soil’ and the ‘produce’ is now the need and not a choice.

As we move forward in a world torn apart by pandemics, we need to answer certain

questions and find their applicable solutions. We need to understand how can the vast legacy of Traditional Ecological Knowledge-based agri-management systems in general, and soil management systems in particular that exist in India and in different parts of the world be brought to mainstream agriculture systems and in what manner, if at all, do current laws/policies support innovation, adoption and dissemination of TEK based agri-management systems and know-how. What factors, if any, are driving farmers away from the Indigenous knowledge-based soil management systems? And at the same time, which factors, if any, are bringing some

Heaps of farmyard compost prepared on-site from farm waste (Location: Kachchh, Western India) © Seema B. Sharma.

Traditional partitioned wells for preparing ‘Jivamrit’ on the farm from cow-dung and urine (Location: Kachchh, Western India) © Seema B. Sharma.

September 2021 55

farmers back to these systems? In an era when we stand at the crossroads and talk about second Green Revolution; How AgroTEK can bring in a

newer process-based approach to overall goal of sustainability.

Seema B. Sharma, PhD, is Assistant Professor with KSKV Kachchh University, Gujarat, India. She is also member of IUCN Commission on Ecosystem Management


Amitha Bachan K.H. and Devika M Anilkumar

Unto Nature’s wilderness until harmonise our understandings to restore healthy ecosystems

We were wondered about the diversity of vegetation and its heterogeneity when we moved along the river

courses in the Anamalai landscape of the Western Ghats. The riparian flora merges with the evergreen forest formations from very low elevations to the wet evergreen forests in the medium elevations. The species assemblage is depicted as the important forest compositions of Cullenia exarillata – Palaquium ellipticum – Mesua ferrea – Canarium strictum in the wet evergreen forests changing to Dipterocarpus indicus – Vateria indica at low elevations. The riparian forests hide its unique compositions of Humboldtia vahliana – Madhuca neriifolia – Garcinia wightii – Ochlandra scriptoria and many in the camouflage of the evergreen associations Hopea parviflora, Vateria indica etc. The forest varies in associations within every forest strand along with regional bioclimate and microclimate created through complex species interactions. This wilderness filled us with in-depth knowledge and understanding that sustainable living and ecosystem values and immense biodiversity can only exist within these heterogenic permutation combinations of biota with these wide spectra of

ecosystems.The rich mountainous landscape has been

exposed to various kinds of exploitations, started during the British East India Company regime with timber extraction, which had gone through monoculture based conservation to the post-independent industrialisation, conversion to plantations and hydro projects, and the infrastructure and largescale conversion in the neoliberal regimes. This has destroyed more

than 70% of the forest in its extent, and present estimates in the landscape indicate the availability of unmanaged primary forests as less than 10% and even less remains for the state or the Western Ghats Sri Lanka biodiversity hotspot.

The anthropocentric view of conservation

The valley and the peaks in the Western Ghats. The land is heterogenous, forests, plantations and the anamudi peak at the background. A view from Sholayar forests © Authors

September 2021 57

of state forests as economic production started during colonial times. This has gradually evolved to environmental consciousness (Stockholm conference 1972), deep ecology, concerns for the ozone (Montreal protocol) and climate change (IPCC), biodiversity (CBD), inclusive conservation with settling of rights of ecosystem people (UNDRIP 2007), questions of sustainability and equity (CoP 14) and finally the requirements of ecosystem-based approaches for conserving biodiversity and the requisite of Eco restoration (SER 2014). The forest conversion history indicates the inadequacy of forest legislation and the compatible frameworks such as the Biodiversity Act 2002, Forest Right Act (FRA) 2006 and pushing out of its instruments of the forest regime with the inherent systemic colonial rigidity. The clearance obtained for conversion of forest to non-forest from MoEFCC during 1980–2012 was 13.7 lakhs hectare, and the recent decisions have cleared 2.5 lakhs hectare of forests in India (2009–2019) and decided to convert plantation in 1.82 lakh ha.

The questions of representing the heterogeneity of the vegetation and ecosystem composition in the Anamalai region remained unresolved until we have elucidated a methodology and classified the riparian forests into 26 types and their degradation stages. These, along with works of Pascal and Ramesh in the Western Ghats forests, added another dimension to Champion and Seth’s classification for Indian forests (1962). The second question of intervention to the ecosystem

management regimes of forest ecosystems and setting up ecorestoration targets remains a hurdle. The working plan guideline 2014 (MoEFCC) provides more space for incorporating these, and we managed to do it for Vazhachal Forest Division in the Kerala part of the landscape. This has opened hopes of ecorestoration prioritisation and setting up targets of site-specific ecorestoration of

riparian forests with local community involvement along the Chalakkudy

river—the richest in fish diversity and riparian forest in the Western Ghats.

Puzzles came up like the complexity of Nature, easier to understand with her harness and difficult to explain with our systemic non-harmony. The learning alarmed the need for precautions to minimise the potential harms during ecosystem intervention. We have experiences of Acacia plantations across the land and are afraid to use the word afforestation. Removal of black wattles trees has become one ecorestoration program of the state in the Shola forest regions of the Munnar Landscape.

How to ensure planting trees not disrupting the niches of other species or other ecosystems; even though we plant native species, the thoughts became a worry when the state promoted planting along disaster impacted riparian zones along the rivers. This compelled us to develop methodologies of ecorestoration for the region, reviewing the international ecorestoration principles (SER 2014, 2019) and our legal and administrative frameworks. A methodology was evolved incorporating more than one decade long works on riparian forests in the region and presented in the international river restoration conference during 2019. Thanks to the administrators and people for accepting such concerns of ecosystem management and ecorestoration.

It is necessary to define properly, simplify and mainstream the principles of ecorestoration

The forest canopy - Medium elevation evergreen forest © Authors


into the practitioners. It shall focus on reducing the damages that we have done to Nature and not repeating the mistake that focused only on planting trees of any origin. The thoughts can be summarised into six simple principles: (1) Need to have a scale or benchmark for beginning and setting up targets for selecting species for each location under ecorestoration. This can be achieved either through offsetting a more diverse composition available close to the restoration site or with scientific studies on heterogenic vegetation composition of the ecosystem, its niche modelling for suitability and niche profiling of structure; (2) Understanding the existing status of the available vegetation in the restoration site comparing with the benchmark to avoid species that represent further degraded situations; (3) Planting the selected species based on spatial allocation of the targeted community composition along with continuous maintenance and monitoring; (4) Maintain the local gene pool through selecting parent trees and setting up nurseries at a local or regional level suitable to the selected species to maintain the genetic diversity of species populations we are intervening; (5) Ensure local community involvement and multiple partnerships with community-based statuary bodies such as BMCs (Biodiversity Act 2002) at local self-government level, CFRMCs (FRA 2006) at Grama Sabha or JMF bodies in forest areas, and schemes such as MNREGS; (6) The ecorestoration has to be multidimensional with multiple options for prime targets including restoration for livelihood, recreation, disaster management, cultural aspects and not alone for its primary and important objective restoration of primary ecosystems.

Our one and half decade intervention succeeded in opening up broad discussions across Kerala and launching in central Kerala. The flood (2018) impacted riparian areas, landslide

zone in the forest, degraded sacred groves, and climate change-induced disaster-hit zone of the coast are the few locations under consideration in the landscape. The Sree Narayanapuram Grama panchayat in the coastal region of the Thrissur district of central Kerala, their BMC came in front involving the local people through MNREGA with technical support from Western Ghats Hornbill Foundation. The local species were identified following the above-said protocol and set up targets for restoring (i)screw-pine and thickets in the sandy coastal regions; (ii) along the streams draining directly to the Arabian sea, including littoral mangrove and associated species; (iii) Freshwater channels and ponds in the coastal sandy area; (iv) along backwater canals and (v) sacred groves with low land evergreen forest composition. The program was supported by the Kerala state biodiversity board, the BMC, Vazhachal Forest Division and the Research Department of Botany, MES Asmabi College, along with local communities at different scales.

The coastal areas were badly hit with unusual cyclonic events during the last decade and continuing, necessitating bringing back the stability of the coastal landscape to harness Nature and its dynamism. The present attempt is being documented to scale up to different locations. People and authorities are committed to this and hope the CEM team can have good learnings and contribute in the future. The Western Ghats plants specialist group is also associating with restoration activities in the selected forest locations, hoping to develop some simple methodologies for modelling habitat suitability and profiling targeted ecorestoration compositions through Niche modelling and profiling for the threatened species. The local species, parent trees and nurseries have been propagated as a slogan of ecorestoration—‘seeds of ecorestoration’ by the team.

Amitha Bachan K.H., PhD, is the founder of the Western Ghats Hornbill Foundation, and Assistant Professor with MES Asmabi College, Kerala, India. He is also member of IUCN Commission on

Ecosystem Management and IUCN SSC Western Ghats Plants SG and Hornbills SG

Devika M. Anilkumar, is scholar with MES Asmabi College, Kerala, India and program coordinator of the ecorestoration program

September 2021 59

A page from member’s diary

Yasar Sharief

Synthetic Fertilizers and Pesticides: A Tribal Nemesis

“Synthetic fertilizers are taking the life out of the soil, this generation consuming poison in the name of

food”.

“Pesticides which they spray on cotton fields are affecting the bees on which we depend for food”.

I heard this from people of two different tribal groups anxious about their future in this most civilized world, whose lives and livelihoods are vulnerable to intensive and commercial agriculture.

I am a Backpacker who loves to meet people of different ethnicities and communities and to collect their stories. But meeting tribes for me is like embarking on a time machine to travel into the past, to our ancestors who depend entirely on forests and safeguard them. I learned many things from tribes, like forecasting weather (by the weird movements of birds and animals) and securing diverse food grains. Tribal peoples are not much educated, but the way they study nature and climate is staggering; I am sure not many researchers or scientists study nature and climate as closely as tribes do. They are sustainability experts; they accurately knew how and when to use forest products.

I had been to a Tribal village in the Adilabad district during the monsoon of 2019; the villages of Adilabad looks more beautiful in the monsoon. I met an old farmer of the Gond tribe and conversed with him about nature and Gond’s role in conserving it. He said we Gondi people have a motto of our life ‘Jal, Jungle, Zameen’ our life revolves around these three words. Gondi women travel far distances to collect drinking water, but now the government provided water tanks to collect water easily. He said we respect forests and animals, but people have declared war on the soil by using synthetic fertilizers and pesticides these days. Forty years back, despite having around no synthetic fertilizers, we produced food. Those days, we used cattle excreta to improve soil nutrients. We use to mix excreta with soil, and soil would remain nutritious for three years, we used to add cattle excreta once in three years. He also said these days, because of the overuse of synthetic fertilizers, our lives are in peril of the chemicals entering our bodies via food. People are dying in early ages (the 40s and 50s), so as the soil, usage of synthetics in the soil to improve nutrients initially will lead to more productivity, but the soil will no longer remain soil. Soil has a life, too; synthetic fertilizers has no limits.

After the conversation with him, I went on to another place. I was just amazed by the excellent nature scenes of that village, but one thing that drew my attention was vast cotton fields amid hilly

Gondi farmer ©Yasar


forest areas. Does it make sense? I questioned myself. I am sure the left forest area on hills would one day become cotton fields, mono-crop prevailing now where diverse plants and trees used to inhibit.

Two months later, I travelled to south Telangana to meet another tribal group named ‘Chenchu’. Usually, Chenchus live in the forest, but some have started to live in a village where the government provided free houses and drinking water facilities. Though they live in villages, they go to forests to collect honey and tubers to eat. They collect medicinal plants to sell in the market (Chenchus usually does not practice agriculture, but these days, the government is trying to teach farming to improve their livelihood). When I entered the village, I witnessed the same scene I have seen in the villages of Adilabad district that is ‘cotton crop’ amid the forest. Chenchus call themselves ‘Adavi biddalu’ (children of the forest). They started complaining about cotton fields; they stated, “usage of pesticides for cotton fields is destroying the population of honey bees”. Honey is one of the staple foods and main sources of nutrition for Chenchus; they said we collect honey from forests and consume and sell part of collected honey for livelihood. But cotton fields are prevailing amid forests; pesticides used in cotton fields are killing honey bees. Honey bees give us food no bees means no honey for us. In recent days we are experiencing less honey when compared to honey collected in the past. After two hours of a long talk with them, I started my journey back home.

I experienced two different stories which are linked to one common problem, synthetic fertilizers and pesticides. Intensive and avarice agriculture practices directly destroying ecosystems and indirectly affecting the lives and livelihoods of people who depend on forests. Tribal groups anywhere in the world are slowly becoming victims of the avarice of their fellow humans.

Yasar Sharief, is a Young Professional and a member of IUCN Commission on Ecosystem Management

Chenchu people ©Yasar

September 2021 61


The theme Ecological Civilization - Building a Shared Future for All Life on Earth is intended to promote the building of a common future for all life on Earth and to stress that human beings and nature share only one planet. Nature must be respected, sustainably used and conserved to achieve the Vision of the Convention on Biological Diversity ‘Living in Harmony with Nature’ by 2050, and to advance on the three objectives of the Convention.

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