News & Updates

• • October 12, 2012

  • Anthra Participates at COP 11

  • Anthra organised a side event entitled India’s forgotten grasslands which made an effort to bring people from different organisations, fields of expertise and positions together, to discuss and debate on an issue often ignored. grasslands. The Panelists for the session were Dr. Suvarana, an officer of the Indian Forest service of the Andhra Pradesh Cadre who is presently posted in the Rural Development Ministry of the Government of AP, Dr. Ranjit Manakadan Assistant Director at the Bombay Natural history Society, Mumbai, Mr. Pankaj Joshi, Ecologist and presently associated with Sahajeevan an NGO based in Kutch, Gujarat, Karthikeya Sivasenapathy, managing trustee, Sivasenapathy Kangeyam Cattle Research foundation, Dr. Kandasamy, Retd. Professor of animal breeding and genetics Namakkal veterinary college, Tamil Nadu Pastoralists from the Deccan, Banne, Sariska and other places The Moderator and facilitator for the session was Dr. Nitya Ghotge of Anthra. The session was well attended and many interesting ideas and suggestions came forth which are being compiled. They will soon be available on this web page. Anthra along with Adivasi Aikya Vedika participated in the Indigenous People’s Biocultural Climate Change Assessment Initiative side event where experiences of the Indegenous People’s Biocultural climate Change Assessment initiative in developing community based bio-diversity and climate change assessments to create local mitigation and adaptation responses in the context of food security and livelihoods, with special attention to the interaction between climate, land use and indigenous territoriality were discussed. Anthra shared our experiences in the side event Community protocols and FPIC: lessons from practice and challenges ahead where Dr. Sagari Ramdas and Vaikuntha- Savara adivasi activist shared their views coming from the field against access and benefit sharing. Anthra’s voices was also heard in the side event – Bioenergy and biodiversity where Shiva – Gond adivasi activist presented the mounting evidence for harms to terrestrial ecosystem biodiversity resulting from escalating demands for bio energy feedstock. The side event critiqued the policies and supports driving these bio energy feedstock including assessment of the performance of sustainability “standards”. Anthra also coordinated with several NGO’s in setting up a stall at the HITEC center where various products and valuable information on pastoral production systems in India were on display