India Biodiversity Awards 2012
In India, community stewardship institutions protect a wide spectrum of landscapes and seascapes. They are often amidst human-modified surroundings and ensure connectivity in the landscape. They are categorised on the basis of their origin, practices, objectives, livelihood and ecological function, religious sentiment, cultural association, biodiversity conservation and response to external threats. These institutions could be either formal or informal and they frame rules and regulations for the conservation and management of natural resources.
Under the Biological Diversity Act (2002), every local body has to constitute a Biodiversity Management Committee (BMC) for promoting conservation, sustainable use and documentation of biological diversity. This devolution of management of natural resources has opened up a plethora of possibilities for making biodiversity management in India more grounded, efficient and responsive to ecology and livelihoods. Besides, in India, Panchayats (bodies of local self government) are also constitutional and statutory institutions which inter-alia have the mandate to plan and conserve natural and biological resources in their areas.
Co-management formalizes a system of benefit-sharing with communities and has a wider scope for biodiversity conservation and livelihood generation for communities. The 1998 National Forest Policy envisioned the conservation of natural resources by involving people, especially women, through Co-Management institutions. These institutions may be either formal or informal in nature, such as Joint Forest Management Committees, Eco-development Committees and other Government-supported institutions.
India has an impressive protected area network that represents a spread of biomes and ecosystems, as well as iconic species such as tigers and elephants. Scientific management of these areas are ensured through a rigorous system of management planning in the country.
| Category | Winner |
| Co-management | VAN UTTHAN SANSTHAN Jhadol, Phalasiya, Rajasthan, India |
| Community stewardship | PIR JAHANIA JUNGLE SURAKHYA COMMITTEE Kusumber Village, Puri District, Odisha, India |
| Decentralized Governance | THE SHANKARPUR GRAM PANCHAYAT Shankarpur Village, Gadchiroli, Maharashtra, India |
| Protected Areas | CONFEDERATION OF ECO-DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEES, PERIYAR TIGER RESERVE (PTR) WEST Kerala, India |