Community Stewardship and PES Market:
North-East Region Round Table
Date: 19th July 2024 | Time: 9 AM to 5 PM | Location: Guwahati
Context
Forests, pastures, and agricultural lands are crucial to India's climate strategy, maintaining ecological integrity and supporting human well-being. These ecosystems are vital for addressing climate change, preserving biodiversity, and sustaining rural livelihoods. Forests alone can sequester around 30% of emissions from industrial and fossil fuel sources, contributing significantly to the Paris Agreement goals. Beyond carbon sequestration, these ecosystems house 80% of terrestrial biodiversity and support marginalized communities.
The Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES) concept has emerged as a promising solution for environmental conservation and rural development. PES institutionalizes partnerships between beneficiaries and rural communities, incentivizing the protection and management of critical ecosystems. However, critics have raised concerns about PES implementation, citing issues with inclusivity and inadequate consideration of social impacts and trade-offs. Moreover, in the Indian context, where community rights and traditional ecological knowledge play significant roles, there is a need to ensure that PES mechanisms are culturally sensitive and socially equitable.
A well-designed plan that integrates governance and management, considering local contexts and community strengths, is essential. Investments should recognize community contributions to conservation outcomes and provide benefits for local ecosystems, livelihoods, farming, and culture.
India's Northeast Region (NER) is known for its biodiversity and diverse ecosystems, supported by traditional knowledge and community-based conservation. The intrinsic relationship between indigenous people and forests, rooted in culture and religion, benefits biodiversity through traditional management practices like sacred forests and village reserves.
With the right conditions, Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (IPLCs) can lead forest protection efforts, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and preserving biodiversity. Collaborative efforts are needed to provide IPLCs with resources and skills, significantly increasing funding for IPLC forest guardianship.
About the Convening
The workshop will bring together a diverse set of stakeholders for an insightful discussion to delve into understanding the emerging challenges and opportunities in PES and will provide an overview of the community stewardship concept. Additionally, it will present the results and outcomes from pilot programs implemented in the states of Meghalaya, Odisha and Manipur. Through shared insights and meaningful dialogue, the workshop will identify avenues to foster collaboration, discussions, and strategic partnerships among non-profit organisations, philanthropic, and government stakeholders towards empowering community agencies in the NER. Through discussions and cross-learning, the workshop aims to lay the foundation of a collaborative action plan for PES markets in the NER ecosystem.
Key Objectives:
● Landscaping the opportunities and challenges in the market and communities implementing PES projects
● Showcasing successful IP&LC governance models in nature-based projects
● Spotlighting PES initiatives in the NER towards enhancing philanthropic attention
● Identifying local solutions from the communities, who are intervening in these intersections
● Laying the road ahead for coalition building around community stewardship across diverse landscapes in the country
Coalition Objectives:
● Promote community-led conservation action.
● Develop compelling, evidence-based narratives to highlight the role of communities in conservation action.
● Identify opportunities to unlock innovative financing mechanisms for community-driven climate action
● Facilitate knowledge exchange between communities and create adaptable guides to help CSOs and NGOs to implement similar actions in their sites, with due consideration to cultural and environmental contexts
Expected Outcomes:
● Enhanced awareness among participants about the challenges and opportunities community stewardship initiatives in the NER
● Improved philanthropic attention towards unlocking and redirecting finance towards community stewardship projects through an innovative model
● Consensus on actionable strategies to draft a road map for PES projects in the NER