Empowering farming communities to manage biodiversity in Nepal

For the 2016 International Day for Biological Diversity, M. Ann Tutwiler, Director General, Bioversity International, guest blogs on the World Bank Governance for Development Blog about why community-based biodiversity management approaches matter when it comes to linking agricultural biodiversity, people, food and the environment.

She highlights a visit to Nepal where she met an inspirational farming couple Surya and Saraswati Adhikari (see photo) who grow more than 150 plant species. What impressed me most she explains was their "detailed knowledge of the different species and varieties they grow, and how to use this agricultural biodiversity to promote a healthy and productive food system."

Of course a food system goes beyond the boundaries of a single farm. Surya and Saraswati are also part of a larger ‘Community-based Biodiversity Management’ approach in the Begnas valley which has put the governance of land and biodiversity into the hands of the people who depend on it.

Read the blog to find out more:

English
Empowering farming communities to manage biodiversity in Nepal

Spanish
Empoderar a las comunidades agrícolas para que gestionen la biodiversidad en Nepal

Follow M. Ann Tutwiler on Twitter: @AnnTutwiler

Bioversity International’s work in Nepal has only been made possible through the critical support of our many implementation partners, in particular ‘Local Initiatives for Biodiversity, Research and Development’ (LI-BIRD).

^{Photo credit: Surya and Sarawasti Adhikari on their biodiverse farm, Nepal. Photo credit: Bioversity International/J. Zucker}