Ecosystem-based Adaptation is an approach that aims to improve ecological resilience in response to climate change and threats from natural hazards in ways that also improve the livelihoods of local people. In NEPAL our Himalayan EbA team just signed a three-year agreement with the Central Department of Environmental Science (CDES) at Tribhuvan University in Kathmandu. This agreement includes CDES conducting a baseline study and climate change vulnerability assessment of the Chilime sub watershed--our Mountain EbA project site in Rasuwa District. Preliminary work is already underway. In PERU our Andes EbA team met with several communities in the Nor Yauyos Cochas Reserve. Community leaders were enthusiastic about continuing key water and rangeland management projects that are based on the EbA approach. At HQ in Washington D.C. we've been meeting with our Mountain EbA partners and planning workshops to be held at international forums in Bonn and Rome. Even more good news...TMI just received formal approval for expanding our Mountain EbA Program to Colombia and Bhutan next year!Learn more about Mountain EbA on our website.
Keshav Khanal, Team Leader, Nepal MtEbA Project and Erin Gleeson, Global Team Leader, MtEbA Program in front of CDES, Tribhuvan University in Kathmandu, Nepal.
Andes Program
Our Andes team in Peru has been busy bringing USAID-funded projects to a successful conclusion. Our work on water and rangeland management, medicinal and aromatic plant cultivation, Inca Trail restoration, applied research and climate change planning with local governments continues--all in partnership with mountain communities. We just received recognition for our work to conserve the páramo ecosystem of northern Peru. November's
Peak News will give more details about our award from the Peruvian National Water Authority (ANA) and the Ministry of Agriculture of Peru.
Stay tuned!
Our Pragatishil Pahad "Progressive Mountains" Project is near completion thanks to support from LaGuntza Foundation and Tourism Cares. This project included biodiversity monitoring components along with specialized training for small-scale tourism entrepreneurs in the Ruby Valley Trekking Trail in central Nepal.
We also had a visit recently by an important donor to our Medicinal and Aromatic Plants (MAPs) program--Fondation Pro Victimis (FPV) of Switzerland. Mark Cave of FPV and members of our Himalayan Program staff toured some of our work sites in Rasuwa district. Farmers showed their intercropping methods, nurseries and cultivated plots. FPV also provided essential support for post earthquake relief and rebuilding in this area. Village leaders explained to our team how new drinking water systems are now benefitting their communities. See more photos from this trip on our Facebook page.
We're working with partners to keep mountain issues front and center at the UN Climate Change Conference (COP 23) in Bonn, Germany next month. Our staff will speak at
five high-level events (and counting...) TMI is also a finalist for the Solution Search "Farming for Biodiversity" Prize and we are looking forward to the Awards Ceremony on November 14th in Bonn! Here's a link to learn more about our Ancestral Technologies project that is a Solution Search finalist. More here about COP23: https://cop23.unfccc.int
Why Mountains?
Since our beginning in 1972, we've kept our focus on mountain conservation, communities and cultures. We've been partners with mountain people in the Himalayas and Andes for decades. And we see clearly how mountains are essential to global water supply and home to amazing wildlife, ancient cultures and sacred places. They play a pivotal role in regulating our global climate. This link is our answer to the question of
"Why Mountains?"
