Symposium for conservationists

The Habitats Trust launches multi-city Symposium: An initiative to build capacity among conservationists. The Symposiums will be held in Delhi, Bhubaneshwar, Jaipur, Bhopal, Bengaluru, Chennai, Kolkata, Dehradun, Mumbai and Guwahati.

The Habitats Trust, founded by Roshni Nadar Malhotra, CEO of HCL Corporation, is set to organize a series of symposiums across the country to empower local conservationists and help them gain support from India and other parts of the world. The first symposium was held in Bhubaneshwar on January 10, 2020 and witnessed participation from close to 100 people from the field of conservation. The next symposium will be held in Jaipur on January 13, 2020.

The Habitats Trust symposiums are aimed at helping grass-root conservationists learn to design and develop effective and time-bound conservation project proposals that can attract grants.  In a mega diverse country like India that accounts for 7% – 8% of all recorded species in the world and houses four of the 36 globally identified biodiversity hot spots (The Himalayas, the Western Ghats, the North-East, and the Nicobar Islands) conservation is critical for ensuring a sustainable future for the planet. However, the issue of conservation often takes back seat to people problems in a country with a population of 1.3 billion people and as a result the support available for conservationists is often limited. Also, while committed conservationists are doing some seminal work on ground, they often lack the specialized skill to present their work in a way that can help them secure the limited institutionalized support that is available. The Habitats Trust is committed to bridge this gap.

Panellists who participated in the first symposium in Bhubaneshwar included Trisha Ghose, Project Director, The Habitats Trust, Mr. Rudra P Mahapatra from Wildlife Trust of India and Mr. Nirmalendu Jyotishi from Foundation for Ecological Security. The Habitats Trust team also shared specifics about the its annual Grants Programme, which selects and supports four organizations and individual conservationists, helping them complete a project of one-year duration.

Last year the THT Grants received 860 registrations and the winners included Aaranyak (awarded Rs 25 lakhs under the Strategic Partnership Grant); Coastal Impact (awarded Rs. 20 lakhs in the Lesser-known Habitats category); Meta string Foundation (awarded Rs. 15 lakhs in Lesser-known Species Grant) and Neethi Mahesh who was awarded with Rs. 10 lakhs as the recipient of The Conservation Hero Grant.

APCCF officer Dr GobindSagarBharadwaj, Dr.DharmendraKhandal from Tiger Watch and Mr. Harsh Vardhan from Bird Fair will be the panelists in the upcoming Jaipur symposium, which is scheduled for January 13^th.

 

Details of upcoming symposiums are as follows:

 

S. No.	Location	Date
1.	Jaipur	13th Jan, 2020
2.	Bhopal	16th Jan, 2020
3.	Bengaluru	21st Jan, 2020
4.	Chennai	8th Feb, 2020
5.	Kolkata	10th Feb, 2020
6.	Delhi	13th Feb, 2020
7.	Dehradun	15th Feb, 2020
8.	Mumbai	17th Feb, 2020
9.	Guwahati	19th Feb, 2020

 

About The Habitats Trust Grants

India is a mega diverse country, with only 2.4% of the world’s land area, it accounts for 7% – 8% of all recorded species, including over 45,000 species of plants and 91,000 species of animals. Four of the 36 globally identified biodiversity hot spots: The Himalayas, the Western Ghats, the North-East, and the Nicobar Islands, are found in India. However, rampant habitat loss and fragmentation, increasing biotic pressures on forests, and poaching and the illegal wildlife trade in species, pose a grave threat to India’s biodiversity. In 2018, the annual Grants was conceptualized to recognize, and support committed conservationists who have dedicated their lives to securing the country’s vibrant flora and fauna.