List of abbreviations

EU European Union
GLOF Glacial Lake Outburst Floods
HICAP Himalayan Climate Change Adaptation Program
ABSTRACT
HIMALICA Rural Livelihoods and Climate Change Adaptation in change
Climate the Himalaya
is taking its toll on the Himalayan
region, exposing communities to GLOFs,
HKH region Hindu Kush-Himalaya region deteriorating conditions for agriculture, and
ICIMOD International Centre for Integrated Mountainreducing
Developmentbiodiversity. Although the effects of
climate change are non-discriminative, the
IOM International Organization for Migration communities that live in the Himalayas are generally
socioeconomically poorer and thus have fewer
LAPA Local Adaptation Plan of Action resources at their disposal to combat climate
MAPs Medicinal and Aromatic Plants change. With much of the men migrating elsewhere
in search of higher earnings, women are left to farm
NAPA National Adaptation Plan of Action and sustain households in tougher climatic
conditions coupled with their conventional
REDD Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation
marginalized social roles. Lower womens
SNV Netherlands Development Organization (Stichtingparticipation in decision-making
Nederlandse bodies further
Vrijwilligers)
promotes ill-informed policies that only marginally,
TMI The Mountain Institute if it all, alleviates their situation. Focusing on climate
change adaptation in Nepal, this paper calls for a
UNFCCC United Nations Framework
Source: XuConvention
et al. 2009 on Climate Change
restructuring of decision-making bodies to be more
WFP World Food Program inclusive of women and keep gender in mind while
formulating policies or projects. Remote
WOCAN Women Organizing for Change in Agriculture & Natural Resourceareas
Management
ADDRESSING CLIMATE mountainous also have access to fewer
resources and minimal infrastructure, hence,
policies need to be applicable in the urban as well as
CHANGE IN NEPALS rural areas. Grassroots movements and local
initiatives should be endorsed by NGOs as well as
the government because such initiatives are likelier
HIMALAYAS to be successful and sustainable.

Eriko Shrestha
A summary of the effects of climate change and a critical The Mountain Institute
analysis to acknowledge potential adaptation opportunities
List of abbreviations
EU European Union
GLOF Glacial Lake Outburst Floods
HICAP Himalayan Climate Change Adaptation Program
HIMALICA Rural Livelihoods and Climate Change Adaptation in the Himalaya
HKH region Hindu Kush-Himalaya region
ICIMOD International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development
IOM International Organization for Migration
LAPA Local Adaptation Plan of Action
MAPs Medicinal and Aromatic Plants
NAPA National Adaptation Plan of Action
REDD Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation
TMI The Mountain Institute
UNDP United Nations Development Plan
UNFCCC United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
WFP World Food Program
WOCAN Women Organizing for Change in Agriculture & Natural Resource Management
MSFC Ministry of Soil and Forest Conservation
Executive Summary

This paper is primarily a background research on climate change in the Himalayas with a specific focus on
the Himalayan region in Nepal. Along with providing an introduction to the detrimental effects of climate
change on the environment, biodiversity and the remote mountain communities, it also encompasses a
more detailed look into migration and womens experiences of climate change. As an intern writing a
report on climate change in the Himalayas, this paper is intended to orient me and future newcomers to
the significance of the Himalayas, the adversity that the region currently faces, and how communities are
coping to the changing environment. Initially intended to be a report on climate change adaptation
initiatives in the Himalayan region, a lack of information has transformed the report into a situation
assessment that points out the gaps in knowledge to combat climate change.

Climate change is a broad historic event that has far-reaching effects and deserves more attention.
Despite the global significance of the Himalayas, a majority of the region is neglected. Many remote
communities are unaware that the climate is dramatically shaping their environment but they are already
adapting to changes to survive. More extreme weather patterns, such as rainfall, is occurring at shorter
windows of time, affecting many livelihood practices and driving people to seek out other alternatives.
Communities most vulnerable to such changes, ones with a higher likelihood of being susceptible to
adverse conditions of climate change, are generally groups that are already marginalized due to gender,
social and cultural factors, or power dynamics. Women, lower castes and Dalits are more affected by the
effects of climate change because they have little social power and possess fewer resources to adapt to
climate change.

One of the ways people are arguably adapting to climate change is by migrating. However, migration is
also another livelihood strategy and cannot be directly related to climate change because no direct study
linking climate change to migration has been conducted yet. People are, nonetheless, migrating in huge
waves, first to urban areas and second to other countries in search of higher earnings. Although women
also migrate, most migrants from Nepal are men who perform low-income manual labor in harsh
locations such as construction sites. Remittances from migrants help satisfy immediate consumption
needs of their families but have rarely generated enough money for their families to invest and form
capital to improve their lifestyles.

As a consequence of men migrating coupled with the lack of natural resources, women are
overburdened. Women are faced with mental, emotional, physical and social stress that is not often
treated or acknowledged. Their miniscule roles in decision-making bodies limits progress in their favor.
Although a certain percent of each national budget is set aside to address the environment and womens
needs, the budget is controlled by uninformed and unqualified individuals, further hampering
improvement. More women need to be consulted about their experience of climate change as well as
represented in decision-making bodies to form well-informed policies. In order to improve the situation
for women, men also need to be taught about their value and better treatment.

Many initiatives that tackle climate change are prospering but limited budgets often limit projects from
developing to their full capacity. Technological enhancements of crops have been distributed to villages
but they are not readily available. Moreover, technical skills such as water-harvesting could tremendously
benefit households but training for techniques is still needed in many areas suffering from intermittent
rainfall. The largest discovery from this report is the lack of knowledge on climate change in Nepal for the
public as well as the absence of much-needed adaptation measures.
1: What about the Himalayas?

The Himalayan mountain range in Nepal is part of the Hindu-Kush Himalayan (HKH) region. Dubbed the
third pole, the Hindu Kush Himalayan region contains the largest freshwater concentration on Earth,
apart from the polar regions. In fact, the region supplies water to ten of the largest rivers in Asia and cuts
across eight countries: Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Nepal, Bhutan, China, Bangladesh and Myanmar.
Altogether, the region supplies water basins that are a source of water for 1.3 billion people, a direct
source of nutrition to an estimated 500 million people, and offers livelihood to 210 million people (Geis and
Haskins 2011). The HKH region is also home to four biodiversity hotspots due to a unique gradient of
vegetation, humidity, precipitation and other climatic factors (Xu et al. 2009). In fact, it possesses a larger
variety of forest types than the Amazon (Geis and Haskins 2011).

Unfortunately, the HKH region is highly vulnerable, a natural tendency or likelihood to be harmed, by
climate change. Although there are conflicting reports about observed temperature changes,
temperature is variedly rising across parts. More warming has been recorded at higher altitudes as well as
been more prominent in cooler months than warmer months (Geis and Haskins 2011). Temperatures in
Lhasa has increased by 1.35 C between 1950 and 1980 while the global average temperature change
from 1911 to 2011 was 0.74 C (Geis and Haskins 2011). Warming temperatures have reduced seasonal
differences and provided conditions more favourable to some species over others. Counter intuitively,
the central Himalaya glaciers are melting slower than the Tibetan plateau glaciers. The debris that has
piled up over decades of tourism has created an insulation for the surface of the central Himalaya glaciers
against warming, relatively slowing down melting. If the debris disappears, the central Himalaya glaciers
are at risk of a rate of glacial melt that would be catastrophic.

In Nepal, climate change has intensified variability and unpredictability of weather patterns as well.
Changes in precipitation coupled with the change in the type of precipitationmore rain falling than
snow has made the region more prone to flash floods (Leduc 2009). Levels of rainfall have remained
the same while the time-frame for rainfall has shortened. Extreme weather events are unleashing a ripple
of consequences such as an increase
in landslides, migration of species as
well as entire villages, and extirpation
or extinction of species (Leduc 2009).

The melting of Himalayan glaciers is

not just jeopardizing a water source
for many remote mountain
communities but also unfurling a
cascade of effects such as the
formation of new glacial lakes. The
increase in number of glacial lakes
pose the growing risk of glacial lake
outburst floods (GLOFs). Out of the
15,000 glaciers and 9000 glacial lakes 1Path to one of TMI's working villages in Rasuwa. Photo: Alisa Rai
throughout Bhutan, Nepal and Pakistan, 200 have been declared potentially susceptible to GLOFs
(Bajracharya et al. 2007). Glacial retreat further endangers animal species and impacts drinking water,
industry, hydropower and agriculture of dependent communities. Himalayan glaciers are disappearing at
a rate of 10 to 60 m per year and many recorded small glaciers have already disappeared. Lake Imja Tsho
in the Dudh Koshi sub-basin (in the Khumbu-Everest region) did not exist in the 1960s but it now covers 1
sq. km. Imja glacier, the source of the lake, is disappearing at a rate of 74 m per year (Bajracharya et al.
2007).

Communities are unequally affected by climate

change. Their vulnerability is influenced by social
and cultural factors in addition to peoples status,
behavior, relationships, and power (Leduc 2009).
Especially in Nepals remote Himalayas, where
infrastructure is ill-prepared to defend against
the effects of climate change, vulnerability is
augmented by poverty, caste, ethnicity and
gender. Marginalized groups are disadvantaged
from being resilient because they lack the
resources and alternatives to protect themselves
2 Landslide in Rasuwa. Photo: Sujeet Shrestha
from disasters and are unable to sustain their livelihoods. Women are particularly vulnerable to climate
change as men, the primary breadwinners, migrate for higher earnings and subsequently pile their
responsibilities on to the women. Traditional gender roles, however, restrict women from being well-
adapted to the changing conditions.

Even though mountain communities are ill-informed of the environmental changes befalling them,
mountain people have begun adapting to the consequences of climate change without knowing the
reason behind it. In order for adaptation measures to be more effective, the Himalayas require more data
collection to make more accurate predictions of the changing environmental trends. Further study can be
improved through:

Expansion of current glacier monitoring to safeguard communities from the effects of glacier-melt.
Until 2011, only 10 glaciers had been regularly studied to determine their mass balance (net ice and
snow) out of 54,000 glaciers recorded in the HKH region. Glaciers are a rampant concern as 22% of
Bhutan and 21% of Nepals glaciers have depleted in the last 30 years (Geis and Haskins 2011).
Collaboration with local people to collect data on trends such as glacier-melt since locals can
identify change by not just recalling their memory but can also be assets who continuously make
quantitative observations of diminishing species or land fertility. As for adaptation measures long
due to combat consequences of climate change in the mountains, a multi-dimensional approach
needs to integrate scientific studies and discoveries with the wisdom and practice of the mountain
people.

2: Looking outwards: drivers and benefits of migration

The HKH countries account for 15% of the worlds total migration. Taking the populations of China and
India into account, however, the statistic is not staggering. Food insecurity, globalization and escalating
income disparities will only encourage international migration. Rural-urban migration is also one of the
widespread trends prevalent in the HKH region. Most migrants from developing countries emigrate to
high or low-income countries depending on their skill level (Hoermann, Kollmair 2009). Yet,
approximately half of the international migration is to countries within the HKH region. Data from
Hoermann and Kollmairs study shows that about 38 percent of South Asian migration is within the region
and another 12 percent is to other developing countries. The Gulf nations are a major destination for low-
skilled labor (Hoermann, Kollmair 2009). Remittances from labor migration can be a strong driver for
poverty reduction and increasing prosperity. Households with migrants have shown a changed perception
towards education, improvement for gender equality, and pay greater attention to health.

Hoerman and Kollmair further shed light on the migration trend that has tripled in Nepal since the 1980s
and the urbanization rate that has increased by almost 30%.Approximately 4 million Nepali migrants
worked abroad in 2014, generating remittances equivalent to 25% of the nations GDP (Meccroap,
Gurung, 2014).The outflow of Nepali citizens is a manifestation of the problems at home. Even though
the overall rate of poverty is decreasing and health and education outcomes are improving, Nepal
remains one of the least developed countries in the world. A deep divide between the rich and poor,
urban and rural, coupled with the lack of domestic employment opportunities encourage people to resort
to opportunities abroad (Jha 2010). While the poorest of the poor migrate to India, others seeking a
higher income migrate to the Gulf countries or Malaysia. A survey by the World Food Program (WFP) and
the European Union (EU) found that 39% of Nepali households with one or more migrants listed India as
their destination while 32% listed destinations in the Middle East or Malaysia (Jha 2010).

A rapid situation assessment on migration and agriculture by the International Organization for Migration
(IOM) found that scores of people are migrating now not so much because of a lack of livelihood options
but more so out of interest and awareness of jobs outside the country. IOMs study in Jhapa revealed that
even though employment opportunities exist in sugarcane, banana, and tea farms, fewer people are
interested to work as farmers. The same assessment also discovered that the flow of migration from
Dolakha was reduced when various Swiss-supported projects opened and created local employment. In
2003-2004, the share of agricultural workers declined by 6% because of the availability of alternate
employment opportunities. Due to this decline in agricultural workers, agricultural wages recorded a
growth to 25% while non-agricultural unskilled wages grew by 2% (Jha 2010).

Climate change could be a direct driver of migration in the Himalayas as a result of an overall decrease in
agricultural productivity and diminishing natural resources. Even before variability in weather patterns
were as pronounced as they are today, most households could only produce enough food for four to six
months because of the size of their land and the lack of adequate technology (Jha 2010). Decreased crop
productivity and availability of natural resources will amplify the shortage of food and drive more people
to novel areas for longer seasonal labor migration in order to support their families. Yet, organizations are
only beginning to explore a link between climate change and migration. IOM recently published their
report Assessing climate Change, Environmental Degradation and Migration Nexus in South Asia that
points towards climate change encouraging migration but research in this field is still limited. Migration
patterns deserve more attention with regard to climate change and should focus on:
Primarily more research that assesses climatic or environmental factors driving migration in
Himalayan communities
Documentation of population movements across Nepals borders, especially low-skilled labor
migration. In the case of Nepal, many low-skilled laborers migrate to India and their movement is
undocumented due to the free border. ICIMOD has called to build cooperation between leading
regional and international actors to enhance methodologies and technologies that can be used to
 leverage migration for mountain people. The call for such cooperation also comes with the
recognition that migrants need better support services so as to avoid exploitation.
Research into the condition of households that have seen their primary breadwinners migrate.

3: Gender in Nepal and Climate Change

3.1: Womens experience of the changing climate

Women are more affected by climate change than men. Limited access to resources and information, and
exclusion from decision-making affairs limits womens capacity to cope with the changing environment.
Their experience of the changing climate is hence different from that of men due to their socially
constructed roles and comparatively poorer position financially and socially (Gurung, Bisht 2014).
Increased responsibilities are isolating women from vital adaptive knowledge because of how constraint
they are with additional duties. As women become the principal household managers due to the
diminishing population of men present in mountain villages, women have an ever-growing role in
conserving mountain biodiversity and managing natural resources (Gurung, Bisht 2014). Yet, several
reports have identified a knowledge gap between policymakers and womens role in adapting to climate
change. Much of the research and processes that go into policymaking fail to consult women on their
knowledge and constraints that they face in effectively carrying out their roles. Implementing uninformed
policies can perpetuate the marginalization and unequal access to resources that women already face.

3.2: Impact of climate change on womens livelihoods and wellbeing

Agriculture is the main source of livelihood for 78% of all women in Nepal. There are more women who
depend on agriculture than men in Nepal; therefore effects of climate change on agriculture will certainly
affect livelihoods of women (Dhakal 2014). Marginalized and poor communities such as the Chepang and
Dalits are hardest-hit as climate-induced changes in biodiversity is leading to a loss of what is often their
only source of household income and livelihood option (Gurung, Bisht. 2014).Documented evidence
shows how women in the Himalayas have been adversely affected by the changing conditions in relation
to the resources necessary to farm:

Women spend more time tilling and weeding land because of the hardening of soil and invasion of
new pests and crop diseases (Gurung, Bisht. 2014).
Decline in lentils and vegetables has driven food shortages. To cope, farmers sell cereals like rice,
maize, wheat and lentils in the local market to purchase cheaper grain from the Terai.
Reduction in food diversity as a consequence of farmers purchasing cheaper grains in the local market
affects the nutrition of women and children the most, as men are usually the ones who eat more
nutritiously since they are conventionally the head of the household and perform more manual labor.
Most poor women are not registered with the District Agriculture Development Office to purchase
subsidized fertilizers. Capital that used to be spent on livestock is now being spent to buy food and
substances to stimulate plant growth.
Water shortage is sending women farther away from their homes to collect water, increasing time
away from work. Lack of water is also leading to social consequences of further marginalization and
humiliation of women over the contestation of water as they encounter discomforting situations on
their longer journeys.
 Irrigation channels in villages are communally shared but households headed by men frequently
create diversions of the irrigation channel into their homes after midnight, leaving women powerless
since venturing outside during late hours is potentially dangerous (D. Gurung, personal
communication, June 28, 2016).
Nepal has no infrastructure to harvest excess water supply. As a long-term result, reduced water
storage and variability of supply will have an adverse impact on agriculture. Alternative methods of
collecting water, such as rainwater harvesting require technical knowledge and financial resources
that is not often available to poor and Dalit households, particularly those headed by women
(Gurung, Bisht 2014). The limitation of water makes disadvantaged households further dependent on
more prosperous or upper caste households for help.

3.3: Womens empowerment

The Government of Nepal has identified three

critical climate risk sectors quantity and
quality of food; food security; and ecosystem
health in its Strategic Program from Climate
Resilience. ICIMODs Himalayan Climate Change
Adaptation Program (HICAP) was vital in
developing a framework for this pilot project.
HICAP identified that gender is a critical issue
when it comes to climate resilience and that a
gender analytical framework needs to account
for multiple drivers of change that intersect
with gender relations to inform decision- 3 A lady spinning yarn in Rasuwa. Photo: Alisa Rai
makers. A gendered approach also needs to be
informed of socially constructed roles, cultural-historical context, accessibility of resources, and the socio-
cultural and politico-economic complexity of various communities. Understanding power relations within
the community can also foreshadow whether differences will perpetuate vulnerability of marginalized
groups. Gurung and Bishts report on Womens Empowerment at the Frontline of Adaptation
emphasizes the need to understand dynamics between customary institutions, community initiatives,
and government institutions and how these are redefining womens involvement at different levels.

Women are vastly under-represented in decision-making bodies. Womens participation and

representation in the REDD (reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation)-Readiness
Preparedness Proposal, which aims to ensure effective participation of women and other marginalized
groups, was found to be insignificant, less than ten percent (Gurung, Bisht 2014). Womens participation
in the legal framework and political context is also miniscule. Although there are legal provisions that
protect and advance the interests of women and some provision for including women in political stands,
the participation of women is merely for representation than to bring about any substantial change.
Gender inclusion is often an afterthought of in the policy-making process rather than a part of the
formulation of the policy.

Frameworks that tackle climate change need to implement the following to ensure gender inclusion:
 Processes that obtain information for policymakers need more research and consultation with
women on farming practices, adaptation measures to natural disasters, and displacement. Their
knowledge needs to be well-documented and shared as it is valuable to women facing the same
challenges in villages across the nation.
Be inclusive of training or raising awareness on climate-related issues. In a disaster-prone area like
Nepal, anecdotal evidence suggests that women are more commonly victims of natural disasters
than men due to social and behavioral norms, and motherhood. Disaster preparedness needs to
therefore involve a more holistic approach inclusive of both gender perspectives, particularly
acknowledging womens larger role in managing the household, especially in Nepal, a country prone
to natural disasters (Aoyagi, Suda, Shinada. 2011).
Gender inclusion needs to be an actively discussed component before a policy is formed.

4: Challenges to tackling climate change

Despite emitting only 0.025 percent of the worlds total greenhouse gas emission (GHG), Nepal is the
fourth most vulnerable nation to climate change (Climate Change Policy 2011). The potentially jarring
future puts Nepal in a position keen to pursue progressive and effective policies. Nepal signed the United
Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in 1992 and in accordance with its requirement,
developed its own National Adaptation Plan of Action (NAPA) (Climate Change Policy, 2011). Climate
change has been on more of a steadfast agenda since 2009 when it appeared on the national
development agenda and then again in the Interim Constitution of Nepal in 2007 as well as the Three-
Year Interim Plan between 2008 and 2010.

Climate change, however, still has not received the attention it deserves and previous agendas have not
progressed as much as they should have. The obstacles to tackling climate change at the national level
remain:

Nepal has well-designed policies in place but only subpar institutions to implement them. Many
policies such as Nepals Climate Change Policy was formed by collaborating with international
organizations who are not fully aware of the disparity in capacity and infrastructure to implement
greatly progressive policies in the nation. The Climate Change Policy written in 2011 is extensive but
most of what it includes is difficult to implement on the ground-level. For instance, clause 9.4 states,
Prohibiting the development of human settlements in climate-vulnerable areas, Rule of law in
Nepal is too weak to enforce such policies.
National efforts to improve climate-resilience is hampered by lack of knowledge and scientific data
linking climate change to conditions in the nation. Most areas affected by climate change have not
been sufficiently studied before policies and programs are instituted (M. Pradhan, personal
communication, June 17, 2016).
Decentralization of power within the nation has also created a disconnected development effort. An
institution that reaches the federal and local level is necessary to reach the grassroots level as well as
communicate with central authorities. Although a Climate Change Network exists, it is not integrated
to include the works of all NGOs involved in Nepal and neither is it an easily accessible resource.
Government-positions are not held by qualified candidates. While 30 percent of any budget is
supposed to be set aside to address the environment and gender inclusion aspect of any issue,
 progress is minimal due to inexperienced workers managing how the budget is utilized(Dibya Devi
Gurung, personal communication, June 29, 2016). For example, if a project needs a person who can
advise on gender, the government may assign the position to a woman assuming she is well-qualified
to advise on gender issues due to her physiological appearance.

5: The way forward

5.1: Gaps in implementation

The Ministry of Soil and Forest Conservation (MFSC) has taken measures offered by World Banks REDD
framework such as submitting a Readiness Plan Idea Note (R-PIN). The R-PIN is supposed to assess and
support the present REDD framework, explore governance issues pertaining to it, attract stakeholders to
endorse the framework, and foster responsibility in local communities to participate in the REDD forest
management effort (Kotru 2009). The REDD effort is intended to reduce emissions from deforestation
and forest degradation and enhancement of forest carbon stocks in developing countries. Community
based forest management has to promote participatory decision-making (Khotru 2009). The biggest
concern that comes with a largely funded framework is whether forest-dependent communities and
marginalized groups will be affected by REDD. Discourse over REDD is exclusive and historically
underrepresented groups such as Dalits and women are not yet significant decision-makers. In order to
implement plans of action, what the government also requires is training programs to produce sufficient
professionals. However, the REDD framework encountered numerous problems before recently being
implemented, some of which include poor coordination and commitment among donors, and lack of a
clear national policy and framework in place to begin conservation efforts in targeted areas (Khatri, Paudel
2013).

On mainstreaming gender agendas in development issues, there is no exclusive climate fund that fully
integrates gender into its governing and decision-making structures or makes mainstreaming gender a
criterion in its functioning. Existing funds that address gender do not consider gender in their planning
and operational framework, rather it is an aspect that is considered once a projects structure has been
planned out, except in the case of the Green Climate Fund (Dahal 2014). Womens ability to engage in
climate finance is further hampered not just by gender disparities but also by their disproportionately
higher illiteracy rates and low participation in political decision-making bodies, disadvantaging women on
talks involving climate change. Gender needs to be part of the structural planning in NAPA. Furthermore,
projects that tackle gender need to have success indicators that mark improvement towards equality in
financing and decision-making mechanisms (Dahal 2014).

5.2: New agriculture

Oxfam has created cropping calendars in

association with the Nepal Agricultural
Research Council to assist farmers with the
uncertainty of weather patterns. The calendar
provides a timeframe for each stage of
farming, from instance seed planting and
germination to a harvesting period. The

4 A farm in Ilam. Photo: Umesh Basnet

cropping calendar also incorporates a disaster calendar to make villagers aware of when to expected
particular disasters, such as flooding or drought. The disaster section of the calendar informs farmers on
which disaster affects which crop and can help farmers reduce losses by helping them adjust their crop
planting patterns. If a particular month is prone to hailstorms, then the calendar recommends planting
underground vegetables such as carrots. The calendar also promotes technologically improved variations
of the plant species that are more resistant to environmental changes, granting farmers a longer cushion-
time in case weather patterns such as rainfall occurs later than expected.

Resorting to new crops and medicinal herbs can yield potentially higher profits despite the changing
climate. However, the attraction of higher yields can bring an uncontrollable stream of tourists and
people seeking good rewards. One such case occurred in the Makalu-Barun National Park located in the
Upper Barun Valley. Around 2003 a caterpillar fungus yarsugumba (Ophiocordyceps sinensis) valued for
its medicinal properties was discovered in the Barun valley. The moth plant brought 5000-6000
harvesters each year between April and July to a valley typically only visited by a handful of herders,
trekkers and pilgrims (Byers, Byers, Thapa 2014). The demand for yarsugumba in India and China is far
beyond the supply and is hence precious in the market. The huge influx of human activity in the area
resulted in a loss of wildlife, accumulation of rubbish (beer bottles and trash from villages), and increased
fragility of alpine soils and vegetation. Significant tourism infrastructure since 2008 has declined the
health of the alpine ecosystem in the Upper Barun Valley. Tourism accommodation alone burns an
estimated 25,000 kilograms of shrub juniper every year as fuel (Byers, Byers, Thapa 2014).

A more successful novel plant cultivation is

The Mountain Institutes (TMI) Community
Based Initiative to Conserve the Environment
and Support Livelihoods through Sustainable
Medicinal and Aromatic Plants (MAPs)
Cultivation in the Upper Arun Valleys Bhot
Khola region. Approximately 1,634 farmers
have been trained for MAPs and other
farmers have been able to duplicate MAPs
cultivation as well. Altogether, 1,814 farmers
(45% female) earned a total of USD 97,583
from sales (TMI November 2015). Seeds of
5The Upper Arun Valley. Photo: Karma Bhutia chiraito, a MAPs plant, were distributed
freely to encourage farmers. MAPs plants are grown in fallowed land, leaving conventional agriculture on
fertile soil uninterrupted. The accessible nature of MAPs farming is promoting womens empowerment
alongside its primary objective of increasing earning as women are able to farm and contribute to the
household, granting them greater decision-making power. MAPs is also being integrated to biodiversity
conservation efforts. TMI established a Biodiversity Learning Center to foster urgency for biodiversity
conservation in the area but the center requires further funding to institutionalize the center.
Additionally, TMI has undertaken several complimentary activities such as distributing improved cooking
stoves, installing a drinking water system for 22 households, and reconstructing a school that had been
wiped away by floods after the earthquake (TMI November 2015). Farmers preference to cultivate
together rather than individually is dividing labor, leading to more innovation and building local linkages
between farmers.
 MAPs was initiated in 2009 in additional
three districts: Dhading, Gorkha and
Rasuwa. The earthquakes in 2015
interrupted progress of the project but
since its founding, MAPs has strengthened
the capacity and sustainability of MAPs
farmers. In 2014, a total of 79 farmers in
Dhading and Rasuwa produced 7,679 kg of
MAPs, generating a revenue of over NRs.
3,930,017 (USD 43,187) (TMI October
2015). In fact, MAPs has become one of the
most important sources of local incoming in
6 Planting seed beds for MAPs in Rasuwa. Photo: Alisa Rai Dhading and Rasuwa. The program was
introduced in Gorkha in 2015, so there was insufficient data but a few farmers have reported failure in
cultivating MAPs seeds (TMI October 2015). Households that are earning an income through MAPs are
seeing their socioeconomic status improve. In some cases, youth have opted to do MAPs farming rather
than migrate for work. The price of land has increased as a result of the renewed value from the local
industry. A high number of women participants in MAPs training is channeling household resources to
invest in education, health and restructuring power dynamics within households(TMI October 2015). TMI
is also diversifying the type of plants being cultivated and is striving to building connections between
consumers and producers in the market. The MAPs project is a nexus between biodiversity conservation
and livelihoods, thus supporting adaptation.

5.3: Recommendations

Further scientific study to understand the immensity of climate-induced effects.

Better communication and support mechanisms between the three scales of adaptation: local
community, urban and rural, and regional and transboundary. Local communities are most
vulnerable to climate change but hold negligible decision-making power (Xu et al. 2009). NGOs
working on climate change could also work more efficiently by partnering with different NGOs also
work in the same field.
Local peoples adaptation strategies need to be shared and learnt from governments to collaborate
more effectively with villagers.
Policies need to account for infrastructure that might be present in urban areas but largely absent in
villages. Policies created with the urban landscape in mind should not eclipse low-cost creations of
the mountain people. Top-down policy making by regional authorities are not suitable to rural
lifestyles, rather, transboundary authorities should attune climate resilient policies that have already
taken root at a local level.
Deeper need for practical, hands-on work: Much of the adaptive measures that the mountain people
should practice can be taught through training programs to promote technology such as low-cost,
piped water irrigation systems or collecting water from constructing artificial ponds to absorb water
seepage (Gurung, Bisht 2014).
An inventory of greenhouse gases. The last time an inventory was recorded was when Nepal joined
the UNFCCC in 1994. A thorough study of the GHG emission sectors will be useful in helping the
government set quotas for each industry sector as encouragement to practice eco-friendly measures.
 A proposed plan to take another inventory was produced in 2011 but the results of the inventory
seem inaccessible.

6: My takeaway

6.1: Key discoveries

The Himalayas deserve much more

attention than it is currently receiving.
If more people were aware of the
significance of the Himalayas, then it
could spark more interest in the public
to promote more conservation and
adaptation efforts.
Most organizations are still working on
post-earthquake recovery and are not
yet specifically looking into climate
change adaptation.
7 Destruction from the April 25, 2015 earthquake in Gorkha.
Geographic barriers area large Photo: Alisa Rai
contributing factor as to why remote communities remain isolated but political instability has also
greatly hampered progress in the rural areas.
There is more research being conducted on climate change in the rural context than in the urban
context.
Research into how climate change might be driving migration has not yet been conducted even
though the effects might seem obvious (GLOFs, floods, soil infertility and drying water sources).
Many organization or funds (such as Tewa) works on womens empowerment but have not paid
attention to how the environment might be limiting their empowerment initiatives. Moreover,
womens empowerment initiatives have not fully included men in their trainings to change the social
perception of womens roles.
Locals are often uninterested in new projects that are introduced to rural villages. Proposed
projects need to be discussed and refined with accordance to the preference of locals so that
projects are relevant and can be carried out by locals without excess NGO intervention.
The treatment of women is better in marginalized households (ex. Dalits) because they contribute
to household earnings and hence hold more decision-making power. Men from marginalized
communities may also treat women better because they are able to better-sympathize with women
as lower-caste men are found to have a larger contribution in household work.
Many projects are down-sized due to budget constraints. UNDP was supposed to channel Imja
lakes water to nearby communities as a source of water while simultaneously lowering the lakes
level. Lack of a sufficient budget has forced them to abandon channeling water from the lake into
settlements and instead only focus on lowering the lake.
The government is in possession of a large climate change adaptation budget and the money has
been allocated to various departments but it has not been used.

6.2: Questions from my research

 Why are ongoing climate change projects not widely accessible?
How are environmental changes affecting the mental well-being of women, especially in relation to
the migration of men? How is gender-based violence affected by climate change?
How does the recently passed constitution adhere to the interests of women or hinder womens
empowerment and equality in comparison to the interim constitution? Are there any progressive
legal provisions that aid women as more and more women take care of households themselves?
Why are there still women who have not yet registered with the District Agricultural Development
Office for subsidized goods and what is the government doing to facilitate registration?
Why havent more organizations collaborated with each other to target climate change by creating
safety nets such as food banks for when farming households face a disaster?
Is there a longer term step-by-step cultivation strategy that NGOs are engaging in for communities
to become self-sufficient? For instance, with MAPs, once a famer has cultivated his or her plants, is
there any proper storage to keep the plants before they are sold? Are NGOs linking up with private
demand to generate larger revenues?
Are migration remittances that are sent back home sufficient to invest in significantly improving the
lifestyles of household members? Is the absence of the primary breadwinner overburdening the jobs
of other household members (mostly women) or empowering them?
Why have agencies not studied migration and remittance patterns of our migrants yet? Why is so
much of migration, especially womens migration undocumented? Is it because of trafficking?
Are there any cash transfers being piloted in the remote Himalayan settlements of Nepal?
Where is the unspent budget directed for climate change being used? How can foreign aid facilitate
the training and employment conditions of migrants?
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