Post by account_disabled on Mar 14, 2024 0:20:55 GMT -5
Flanking the edges of India, the mountain ranges of the Eastern and Western Ghats are a culturally and environmentally rich region. Ranked among the world’s 36 biodiversity hotspots, the area is home to dense forests, vital rivers, and rare wildlife such as the Asian Elephant and lion-tailed Macaque. Spanning several of India’s states, the area is linguistically and culturally diverse, with tribal populations earning their livelihoods from forest resources and farming families producing a range of crops for local consumption and sale. For example, the mountain slopes of the Western Ghats are India’s primary coffee-growing region. Despite their importance for people and wildlife, these areas face land degradation and biodiversity loss. As of 2019, the Indian government estimated that approximately 29 percent of India’s total geographical area had been degraded—and scientists estimate that there will be a 33 percent drop in biodiversity in the Western Ghats by 2050 due to extreme weather caused by climate change. Agriculture is also encroaching on forested land, contributing to growing human-wildlife conflict as forest cover diminishes, and is depleting soils and polluting rivers through the inappropriate use of agrochemicals. There is extensive legislation in India to protect the natural environment, conserve biodiversity, and guide the development of sustainable agriculture, including a commitment to restore 26 million hectares of degraded land by.
However, it is not always effective, due to a lack of government capacity for implementing and enforcing its policies. Both the government and the market have key roles to play in incentivizing farmers to adopt more sustainable practices and produce healthy food and other agricultural commodities. Through this project, the Rainforest Alliance will work with the central and state level governments of India, the private sector, farmers, and communities to develop a strategic approach to land management that improves livelihoods while restoring degraded land and conserving biodiversity. Location India: State of Andhra BYB Directory Pradesh Eastern Ghats (3.6 million hectares), Vizianagaram, Visakhapatnam, East Godavari, West Godavari, Prakasam, Kurnool, and Cuddapah districts State of Karnataka Western Ghats (0.9 million hectares), Kodagu, Hassan, and Chikmagalur districts Period 2022 – 2027 Partner communities This project is expected to benefit 770,000 people across the states of Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka, of which 765,000 are farmers and farm workers and 5,000 are service providers and other stakeholders engaged in landscape management.
Project objectives: aligning landscapes and markets to increase sustainable agriculture Weighing bags of coffee This project will work at both the farm and landscape scales to help farmers, Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs), and communities adopt more sustainable land use practices, restore degraded lands on and off farm, and protect forests. It will facilitate supportive policies and harness market demand for natural production systems that use water efficiently, replenish soils, and conserve biodiversity. Activities will fall under three key areas: Training farmers and farmer organizations on sustainable agriculture Farmers will be trained in best practices to conserve the natural ecosystem and increase their incomes through soil and water management, agroforestry, and crop diversification. The project will promote two agricultural production systems: the Rainforest Alliance’s Sustainable Agriculture Standard in Karnataka, which is widely adopted by coffee and spice farmers, and the Community Managed Natural Farming system being scaled up in Andhra Pradesh by the state government organization Rythu Sadhikara Samstha for a variety of food crops, including rice, millet, maize, pulses, and cotton. We will also train and mentor FPOs in business management and support them in developing action plans to strengthen their business operations, access to markets, and financial literacy. This will enable them to interact more profitably in supply chains and secure a higher price for products.
However, it is not always effective, due to a lack of government capacity for implementing and enforcing its policies. Both the government and the market have key roles to play in incentivizing farmers to adopt more sustainable practices and produce healthy food and other agricultural commodities. Through this project, the Rainforest Alliance will work with the central and state level governments of India, the private sector, farmers, and communities to develop a strategic approach to land management that improves livelihoods while restoring degraded land and conserving biodiversity. Location India: State of Andhra BYB Directory Pradesh Eastern Ghats (3.6 million hectares), Vizianagaram, Visakhapatnam, East Godavari, West Godavari, Prakasam, Kurnool, and Cuddapah districts State of Karnataka Western Ghats (0.9 million hectares), Kodagu, Hassan, and Chikmagalur districts Period 2022 – 2027 Partner communities This project is expected to benefit 770,000 people across the states of Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka, of which 765,000 are farmers and farm workers and 5,000 are service providers and other stakeholders engaged in landscape management.
Project objectives: aligning landscapes and markets to increase sustainable agriculture Weighing bags of coffee This project will work at both the farm and landscape scales to help farmers, Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs), and communities adopt more sustainable land use practices, restore degraded lands on and off farm, and protect forests. It will facilitate supportive policies and harness market demand for natural production systems that use water efficiently, replenish soils, and conserve biodiversity. Activities will fall under three key areas: Training farmers and farmer organizations on sustainable agriculture Farmers will be trained in best practices to conserve the natural ecosystem and increase their incomes through soil and water management, agroforestry, and crop diversification. The project will promote two agricultural production systems: the Rainforest Alliance’s Sustainable Agriculture Standard in Karnataka, which is widely adopted by coffee and spice farmers, and the Community Managed Natural Farming system being scaled up in Andhra Pradesh by the state government organization Rythu Sadhikara Samstha for a variety of food crops, including rice, millet, maize, pulses, and cotton. We will also train and mentor FPOs in business management and support them in developing action plans to strengthen their business operations, access to markets, and financial literacy. This will enable them to interact more profitably in supply chains and secure a higher price for products.