A community consultation was held in Dimapur to gather inputs for the Nagaland State Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan revision.
DIMAPUR — The Nagaland State Biodiversity Board (NSBB), in partnership with the Nagaland Community Conserved Areas Forum (NCCAF), The Nature Conservancy Centre (TNCC), and the Foundation for Ecological Security (FES), organised a community consultation on the Nagaland State Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (SBSAP) on Thursday at Hotel Acacia in Dimapur.
Supongnukshi Ao, Additional Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Territorial), attended the occasion as the chief guest, along with Sidramappa M Chalkapure, Member Secretary of NSBB, according to an update.
Led by Heirang Lungalang, Chairperson of NCCAF, the consultation brought together 59 community leaders from 15 districts of the state.
It was mentioned that Nagaland is in the process of revising its SBSAP to align with India’s National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan 2024–2030 under the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. Nagaland prepared its first SBSAP in 2005. It was later revised and formally launched in May 2022, incorporating 12 national biodiversity targets in line with the Aichi Biodiversity Targets.
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The community consultation focused on hearing the voices of communities and gathering their perspectives on strategies and action points relevant to Nagaland’s biodiversity. The discussions focused on four key themes: biodiversity conservation and management; restoration of degraded land and waterbodies; sustainable use and benefits from biodiversity; and participatory and inclusive decision-making.
Revising the plan using inputs received from the consultation will help align it with the local knowledge, priorities, and experiences of people dependent on the state’s biodiversity.
To support the revision process, two more consultations are planned in September with Nagaland’s Department of Environment, Forests and Climate Change, line departments, regional universities, and sectoral experts.
The Nature Conservancy and its Indian affiliate, TNCC, and FES, in close coordination with NSBB, have been working to strengthen community-led conservation efforts in the state.