|
Project Area |
|
|
|
The project will focus on the Khangchendzonga
landscape complex. It includes the protected areas of Khangchendzonga
Biosphere Reserve (KBR), especially the core zone in Sikkim (1784
km2), and the Khangchendzonga Conservation Area (KCA) in Nepal
(approximately 2000 km2). The project will also work in key and
threatened adjacent habitats in the more heavily populated buffer
zones of Sikkim’s Khangchendzonga Biosphere Reserve (KBR) (800
km2).Three settlement units have been identified in Sikkim which are
as follows
1. Yuksam
2. Darap Nambu
3. Uttarey |
| |
|
|
Key Threats and Opportunities |
|
These unique habitats are increasingly under threat and are undergoing
rapid transformation and alteration. The primary direct threats to the
area’s unique biodiversity and at the project sites are land
conversion and degradation, and landscape fragmentation. Over the last
few decades, there has been a visible change in terms of landscape,
species composition and stand density in studied forests. Key
activities including grazing (local and trans-boundary activities
across the border between India and Nepal) and associated fuel wood
removal, tourism, selective forest product removal (for cash,
subsistence, especially fuel wood, and tourism) and, to a lesser
degree, wildlife hunting, are increasing in the Khangchendzonga
Biosphere Reserve. Although there have been workshops and meetings on
the need to cooperate in conservation in this unique area, to date
there has been little on the ground activity, despite good
international relationships between India and Nepal.
A further threat in Sikkim is private land under cardamom cultivation.
Many of the agro-forestry techniques currently in use are
unsustainable and result in gradual erosion of biological diversity.
After initially clearing private lands and planting cardamom, farmers
gradually convert the forests into single species forests as they
remove a variety of tree species to allow light in and for use as fuel
for drying cardamom pods. Over time, soil fertility erodes and genetic
variability declines as farmers plant more and more vegetative stock
from cuttings rather than from seed. |
| |
|
|
Overall Project Goal, Objectives and Strategy |
|
The goal of “Countries, Communities and Conservation: Building
Cooperation in Khangchendzonga” is to promote effective conservation
management of the area in and around Khangchendzonga using
community-based conservation approach.
The project has three main components and focal areas:
The first objective is to promote community-based conservation in
areas outside each of the protected area boundaries. In Sikkim, the
project will focus on the communities located in the areas designated
as buffer zones within the existing Khangchendzonga Biosphere Reserve.
Secondly, the project seeks to diversify livelihood options, with a
pronounced shift from unsustainable activities to more sustainable
ones.
Thirdly, the project seeks to establish trans-boundary cooperation
mechanisms and promote conservation between Nepal’s Khangchendzonga
Conservation Area, plus surrounding areas and the adjacent
Khangchendzonga Biosphere Reserve in Sikkim, working with authorities
and communities and within protected area boundaries. |
|
|
|
|
|
Khangchendzonga Biosphere Reserve Project |
|
|
|
Project Background |
|
|
|
 The Himalayas present a formidable physical and
political boundary between neighboring countries in this mountainous
region. Much of this region’s unique biodiversity and endemism is
ascribed to the marked variations in elevation, climate, terrain and
topography, which occur within short distances. Ecological diversity
and contrast is especially obvious in the high rainfall areas of the
Eastern Himalaya where in short spaces one can go from 300m to over
8,000m in altitude. |
|
|
|
 The Khangchendzonga region in the Eastern Himalaya
is listed among the world's ten most critical centers for biodiversity
and endemism. The largely intact ecosystems in western Sikkim (part of
the proposed project area) possess astonishing species diversity, with
4000 species of flowering plans, 81 species of mammals, 550 species of
birds, 650 species of butterflies, 33 species of reptiles, 16 species
of amphibians, 48 species of fishes, 450 species of orchids (95
genera), 36 species of rhododendrons (45 varieties), 9 species of
conifers, 300 species of ferns and allies, and 175 species of wild
edible plants including cash-crops such as cardamom. Within the
Eastern Himalaya region, the Indian state of Sikkim is acknowledged as
one of the country’s most significant biodiversity "hotspots". |
|
|
|
Target Groups |
|
Stakeholders in Sikkim who will be involved in and benefiting from the
project are primarily local populations residing in the proposed
Khangchendzonga Biosphere Reserve and
 adjacent areas, Panchayat bodies
that are a key-planning unit in JFM and community-based organizations
such as the Khangchendzonga Conservation Committee, and the State
Forest Department. Other key stakeholders will be relevant government
agencies, plus Sikkim-based institutions working in conservation and
sustainable livelihoods. The local population, Panchayat and
community-based organizations have been active participants in
previous TMI and partner projects in Sikkim |
|
|
|
Key Project Staff and NGO Partners |
|
The following are key individuals who will be directly involved in
project implementation.
Brian Peniston, Senior Program Manager, TMI is trained in
natural resource management and public health (MES from Yale and MPH
degrees). He has worked with local communities and conservation
organizations in the design and management of protected areas and
natural resources in Nepal, Malaysia and Indonesia for over 20 years.
He currently represents TMI in the Regional Office.
Ang Rita Sherpa, Ecotourism Specialist, TMI is a park
management specialist and native of the area with 15 years’ experience
in park management, conservation education and ecotourism. He has a
Masters degree in conservation education from the University of Wales,
UK.
Renzino Lepcha, Project Officer, Sikkim and Executive
Secretary, Ecotourism and Conservation Society of Sikkim, a TMI
partner, has over five years’ experience in conservation and
development, with a focus on community participation and ecotourism.
Mr. Lepcha possesses an M. Phil degree in ecology
|
|
|
|
Khangchendzonga Conservation Committee (KCC) |
|
|
|
KCC is a community-based organization in Yuksam in
West Sikkim, comprising of energetic, active and dedicated members who
help to mitigate tourism impacts, conserve natural and cultural
resources and provide training to community stakeholders, educate
visitors, monitor resources and advocate for appropriate policy
changes. KCC will be a primary partner in developing and implementing
community-based conservation and livelihood training. |
|
|
|
Ecotourism and Conservation Society of Sikkim (ECOSS) |
|
|
|
Established in 2001 its mission is to promote
conservation and ecotourism, and related research and advocacy. In
2002 ECOSS was the primary organizer of the South Asia Regional
Ecotourism Conference, one of regional meetings leading to the World
Summit on Ecotourism in May 2002. ECOSS is currently engaged in a
number of initiatives in Sikkim, and will be a primary training and
facilitation partner. |
|
|
|
BACK TO TOP |
|
|
|
ECOSS, State Archives Annexe,Zero Point, Gangtok,Sikkim - 737101, India
Phone : 0091-3592 - 228211, 225182, 229154 ; Fax : 229183;
Email : ecoss@sikkiminfo.net |
