ELEMENT Project to combat climate change in Nagaland

Morung Express News
Kohima | August 22

A state level consultation workshop on enhancing landscape and ecosystem management (ELEMENT) Project Society for Climate Resilient Agriculture in Nagaland (SOCRAN) was held at Capital Convention Centre, Kohima on August 22.

Giving an introduction of the ELEMENT Project, K Khekiho Shohe, Deputy Director-1 said it is a project that encompasses all aspects of biodiversity, food, water, shelter, livelihood, economic growth and human well-being.

Faced with the threats of global warming and climate change, effective conservation of forests and ecosystem services such as soil, water and biodiversity needs to be prioritised, which, he said is particularly crucial in Nagaland.

Shohe also explained briefly on forest landscapes management and ecosystem services management.

He said it is important to adopt climate smart models that protect and conserve community forests, supporting green growth and sustainable livelihood enhancement and provisioning ecosystem services.

The outcome of this project, he pointed out will be climate change mitigation benefits, livelihood benefits and community capacity benefits.

Proposed project activities and outputs, Shohe cited out are community livelihood, integrated nutrient management and pest and disease management, irrigation, mechanisation and marketing infrastructure, forestation and natural resource regeneration, spring rejuvenation and catchment protection, communities capacity building and preparing landscape management plans.

Expected outputs as outlined by Shohe are sustainable livelihoods based on integrated settled farming system model, infrastructural development for marketing linkages for livelihood activities and increased water availability in springs, value chains, increased in tree/green cover of community owned forests and restoration of ecosystem, database, MIS, GIS and RS, project tracking and management, mobile application, digital and emerging technologies etc.

The other resource persons were Dr Jitendra Gupta, Project Director ELEMENT, Sunil Kumar and Kiran Kumari both from Synergy Technofin Pvt. Ltd.

As defined by the Landscape Approach 101-Couse, World Bank, the funding agency for this project “A landscape approach means taking both a geographical and socio-economic approach to managing the land, water and forest resources that form the foundation - the natural capital for meeting goals of food security and inclusive green growth.”