Sunil Nautiyal

Institute for Social and Economic Change · Centre for Ecological Economics and Natural Resources

Biodiversity is regarded as a scientific concept, a measurable entity, and a social–political construct (Wilson in The diversity of life. Harvard University Press, Cambridge, 1993; Gaston in Biodiversity—a biology of numbers and differences. Blackwell Science, Oxford, 1996). The 34 global hotspots are considered to be the living laboratories for bi...

The present study was carried out in Biligiriranga-Swamy Temple Tiger Reserve (BRTTR), a hill range situated in the south eastern (Western Ghats) part of Karnataka, bordering Tamilnadu, India. An indigenous tribal community known as Sol igas rely on nature and natural resources for livelihood. Soligas follow unique tradi tional cul tural practices...

Energy plays a crucial role in the socioeconomic development of the country as elsewhere in the world. The past five-year period from 2004–05 to 2008–09 witnessed the economy grow at an average rate of 8.5%, despite the worldwide financial crisis affecting the second half of the five-year period. For the expected economic growth trend (8-9%) to con...

Uranium is available in Gogi, Gulbarga District (now Yadgir), Karnataka. The area spreads over 30 km from the central point of the potential Uranium site to be mined for sustainable energy production. A field study was conducted across different zones of the region for different seasons. With the help of a phytosociological study, 376 species of an...

Deficiency of long-term data on performance of multipurpose tree plantations in degraded lands delimits the scope of realization of economic benefits from the United Nations-REDD+(Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation) initiative of climate change mitigation by making payments for reducing emissions in developing countries. T...

Uranium is available in Gogi, Gulbarga District (now Yadgir), Karnataka. The area spreads over 30 km from the central point of the potential Uranium site to be mined for sustainable energy production. A field study was conducted across different zones of the region for different seasons. With the help of a phytosociological study, 376 species of an...

The aim of the study was to evaluate the impacts of the transition from wood fuel to Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) from energy use and health perspectives along an altitudinal gradient (viz., lower altitude; middle altitude; and higher altitude) of the Central Himalayas. Empirical field study and questionnaire based survey was conducted for obtaini...

The global climate pattern has been changing fast and observational evidence indicates that high carbon emissions and climate changes in the 20th century have already affected a diverse set of physical and biological systems (IPCC 2001; IPCC 2007a, b).

India and Germany, as a mark of 60 years of diplomatic relations between them, hosted year-long programmes in their respective countries during 2011–2012. To strengthen the relationship further, a Year of Germany in India was organised under the motto ‘Infinite Opportunities—Germany and India 2011–2012’ with the theme, ‘StadtRäume—CitySpaces’. In t...

In the rural landscape of the central Himalaya, livelihoods of the people depend heavily on agriculture, animal husbandry and forestry sectors and they are inextricably connected with each other. The role of forest goods and services in sustaining the productivity of the agriculture and animal husbandry is immense. The central Himalayan region has...

The highly successful Humboldt Kolleg on “Knowledge Systems of Societies for Adaptation and Mitigation of Impacts of Climate Change” convened by Sunil Nautiyal, CEENR, ISEC showed a high relevance of climate change research in more or less in all relevant scientific areas. Today, adaptation and mitigation research plays an important role in all sci...

Current global climate policy architecture does not aim at stabilizingthe greenhouse gases concentration in atmosphere that may achievethe proclaimed 2°C guard rail. An alternative approach that targetson limiting the global cumulative emission to accomplish such an outcomeis put forward by German Advisory Board of Global Change(WBGU). This researc...

Climate change is broadly recognized as a key environmental issue affecting social and ecological systems worldwide. At the Cancun summit of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change’s 16th Conference, the parties jointly agreed that the vulnerable groups particularly in developing countries and whose livelihood is based on land use...

A study was carried out examining the effects of conservation policy on the ecosystem and livelihoods of local people on the Rajiv Gandhi National Park, located in one of the global biodiversity hotspots, the Western Ghats, India. Results show that less than 5% of the people are in favor of the policies while a staggering 94% of the people are stro...

Cleome viscosa, an annual herb locally known as Jakhiya, grows naturally from seed in rainfed agricultural land and abandoned crop fields at altitudes ranging from 500 to 1500 m in scattered pockets of the Garhwal Himalaya. The seeds are mostly used as condiment. This species is a good substitute of cumin (Cuminum cyminum). Traditionally it is also...

Abstract This paper provides an overview on biofuel production and its pros and cons in India and elsewhere. The paper also discusses the major issue of whether biofuels are an alternative to fossil fuels or are a competitive for food production. It examines benefits for the rural poor by providing additional income, employment, land value, etc., a...

Current global climate policy architecture does not aim at stabilizing the greenhouse gases concentration in the atmosphere that may achieve the proclaimed 2 °C guard rail. An alternative approach that targets on limiting the global cumulative emission to accomplish such an outcome is put forward by German Advisory Board of Global Change (WBGU). Th...

Current global climate policy architecture does not aim at stabilizing the greenhouse gases concentration in the atmosphere that may achieve the proclaimed 2°C guard rail. An alternative approach that targets on limiting the global cumulative emission to accomplish such an outcome is put forward by German Advisory Board of Global Change (WBGU). Thi...

In biodiversity-rich areas, both conservation and socioeconomic development are at the core of discussions among various stakeholders, such as local people, policymakers, conservationists, resource management professionals, economists, researchers/scientists, and so forth. Various innovations are being provided that aim at promoting both improved l...

This study was undertaken to understand that how academic institutions could play a significant role in conserving biodiversity and this study is one of the preliminary efforts in this endeavor. Phytosociological study was carried out for enumeration of plant species on the ISEC campus. Geographical Information System (GIS) and satellite data were...

The Indian sub-continent is endowed with a huge plant biodiversity. The two important landscapes, viz. the Himalayas and the Western Ghats in India, are the home for more than 6,000 endemic plant species thus listed among the 34 biodiversity hotspots worldwide. We have carried out a study in the Nilgiris, located in Western Ghats, India to understa...

In India, during the mid-nineties the Union Gov-ernment had initiated the Mid-Day Meal sche-mes in schools to promote primary education on one hand, and to reduce malnutrition on the other. However, Tamil Nadu had launched this program several decades before; during the regime of Mr. Kumarasami Kamraj (1954-1963). An empirical study was undertaken...

A numerous studies have been done on climate change at regional, national and global levels. Several climate models have predicted the global scenarios for climate in different parts of the world. However, the significance and practical implementation of such models at local level yet to be validated. This is because those national or global models...

This study aims at presenting a conceptual model for landscape management in the Himalayan region of India, using quantitative/mathematical approach. Keeping in view the requirement, (based on fifteen years empirical field work in the Himalayan region and as well as literature survey) the MODAM (Multiple Objectives Decision Support Tools for Landsc...

The hotspots are the world's most biologically rich areas hence recognized as important ecosystems not important only for the rich biodiversity but equally important for the human survival as these are the homes for more than 20% of the world's population. India got recognition of one of the mega-diversity countries of world as the country is home...

This article intends to present the historical development of German agriculture sector over the last several decades and underlined the benefit of the advancement in agriculture sector to fulfill the growing food demand. At the same time the article discussed the ecological and socio-economic viewpoint of rapid technological development of agricul...

Biosphere reserve models around the world are becoming increasingly people-oriented and conservation-conscious in achieving their objectives. However, reserves established in developing countries, such as the Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve in India, are facing management versus people conflicts due to the insensitivity of management to both genuine a...

Land use/cover changes during the period 1963–1993 and their ecological and socioeconomic implications in Pranmati Watershed in the Indian Himalaya were analyzed on the basis of information extracted from archival records, satellite data, participatory discussions, and field measurement. Agricultural land use was practiced on 14.2% of the watershed...

The Himalayas in India is one of the biodiversity hotspots in the world. An integrated approach with the help of empirical study and using satellite imagery was undertaken to study the impact of conservation and management model (CMm) in the region. Methods have been applied to understand the development of traditional animal husbandry system, as w...

The Himalaya in India is one of the world's biodiversity hotspots. Various scientific studies have reported and proven that many factors are responsible for the tremendous decline of the Himalayan forests. Extraction of wood biomass from the forests for fuel is one of the factors, as rural households rely entirely on this for their domestic energy....

The concept of ecosystem conservation as a broad theme came into existence during the 1970s under the Man and Biosphere Programme (MAB) of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The Indian Government followed this approach and chose the method to segregate the landscape for conservation of the ecosystem as we...

Purpose The purpose of the paper is to critically evaluate the concept of ecosystem conservation in the areas where human and ecosystem interactions are really complex as – in one of the biodiversity hotspots – the Himalayas in India. Design/methodology/approach The research results reported in this paper are the outcome of empirical studies perfo...

The role of socio-cultural values in biodiversity conservation is an integral part of the people living in Uttarakhand, Central Himalaya, India. Still, there exist many rules and regulations set up by earlier generations for the conservation and management of the resources. To a certain extent the present generation is going through the same philos...

This study analyzed the energy and economics associated with cultivation of traditional and introduced crops in the mountains of the Central Himalaya, India. The production cost in terms of energy for introduced crops such as tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum) and bell pepper (Capsicum annuum) cultivation was 90,358–320,516 MJ ha−1 as compared to bet...

The conservation of Himalayan forests is big concern in view of global agenda. Many studies in this endeavor reported that the rate of forests degradation is posing a severe threat to the landscape and existing biodiversity in the Himalayas. Currently there many conservation approaches exists and of them four are widely recognized (1) Conservation...

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to emphasize the conservation and management of crop diversity in traditional agro‐ecosystems as a crucial component for sustainable landscape development in the mountains of the Indian Himalayan region. The results indicate that mountain farming has the potential to produce good output from a low input system w...

The high elevational areas in the Himalayas of India are dominated by forests and alpine pastures. There are many protected areas in the region, including Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve (NDBR) and Valley of Flowers (VOF) where natural resource management plan (NRMP) has been implemented for the conservation of biodiversity. This has affected the trad...

There is a growing realisation world over that the introduction of modern agriculture has to be supplemented with measures to conserve biodiversity in situ if yield gains are to be stabilized. Hence, there is a growing interest from agricultural development specialists and conservation biologists for understanding the socioeconomic factors determin...

Resource use efficiency analyses of village ecosystem are necessary for effective and efficient planning of resource utilization. This paper deals with economic and energy input-output analyses of different components of village ecosystem in representative buffer zone villages, which are practicing transhumance and settled way of lifestyles in Nand...

In any area to achieve the goal of biodiversity conservation, the existing resources must be strengthened, which are helpful to provide the alternate livelihood or income to the local people. However, although various programmes/policies are being set up over the world for conservation of biodiversity, a variety of factors are hurdles to achieve th...

Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve (NDBR) established on 18 January 1988 under UNESCO's Man and Biosphere (MAB) programme with an area of 5860.69 km 2 is one of the reserves where people inhabiting in the buffer zone villages feel that they have been deprived of the traditional uses of natural resources from the reserve. Ignoring the dependence of the lo...

The use of resources available in various sub-systems of production provides the sustainability to transhumant pastoralism in Indian Himalaya. As the transhumant pastoralists started settling down the conflicts between settled sedentary population and transhumant pastoralists for depleting resources is apparent. This is further aggravated in buffer...

Land-use change has important implications for sustainable livelihood of local communities where traditional crop–livestock mixed farming is sustained with local inputs. Knowledge of recent changes in land use, driving forces and implications of changes within the context of sustainable development is limited. This study analyses the changes in spa...

In the past, transhumant pastoralists in the Indian Himalaya used resources available in various subsystems for their livelihoods. Recent sedentarization of a section of the transhumant pastoralist population resulted in competition with the existing sedentary population for resources in some areas. Resources such as grazing areas and forests are b...

Local peoples' knowledge, aptitude, and perceptions of planning and management issues were investigated in Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve (NDBR) in Uttaranchal State of India. Conflicts ensued between local inhabitants and the management authority due to lack of community participation. Although most respondents seem to claim the knowledge of the obj...

The paper has looked at traditional systems of forestry and agricultural system management in the central himalayan region. Based on a detailed analysis of traditional eco-logical knowledge that is linked with biodiversity, natural and human-managed, various possi-bilities for sustainable management of natural resources, with concerns for sustainab...

The success of conserving biological resources in any Biosphere Reserve or protected area depends on the extent of support and positive attitudes and perceptions of local people have towards such establishments. Ignoring the dependence of the local people for their subsistence needs on resources of such areas leads to conflicts between protected ar...

A status survey for economically useful plant species was carried out in the Mandakini Valley on way to Vashuki Tal, a sacred pilgrimage site situated at 4,052 m above sea level in Garhwal Himalaya. A total of 63 accessions of seed, vegetative propagule, twig and whole plant of medicinal and aromatic plant species were collected for further multipl...

The structure and functioning of the traditional agroecosystems of the buffer zone area of Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve (NDBR), India were studied after the implementation of various conservation policies. The cropping patterns and yield potentials of various crops at different elevation zones of NDBR and the energy and economic efficiencies of tho...

Humanities collective knowledge of bio-diversity and its use and management rests in cultural diversity; conversely, conserving bio-diversity often helps strengthen cultural integrity and values. The study of these inter-relationships need to be studied mainly for the simple reason that culture is not only the ethical imperative for development, it...

The Raji tribe a smallest group among the native societies of Central Himalaya, inhabiting in Kumaon region bordering to Nepal, has strong faith and belief in traditional health care system, viz. herbal treatment. The living condition of Rajis is extremely poor and neither they have better access to modern health care and nor they have information...

Land use/cover changes during the period 1963-1993 and their ecological and socioeconomic implications in Pranmati Watershed in the Indian Himalaya were analyzed on the basis of information extracted from archival records, satellite data, participatory discussions, and field measurement. Agricultural land use was practiced on 14.2% of the watershed...

The traditional uses, cultivation practices, and economic contribution of medicinal plants to the rural economy in the Nanda Devi Biosphere in the central Himalayas of India were studied. Samplings were done on 16 species of plants stored and used by all the households within the sample areas. A total of eight species were cultivated on 4 percent o...

The Himalayan yew (Taxus baccata L.) is widely but sparsely distributed along the cool temperate belt between 2600 and 3300 m asl of the Nanda Devi Bio- sphere Reserve (NDBR), Garhwal Himalaya. Tradi- tionally, the bark of this plant is used for preparing beverages locally called Namkin Chay, medicines and its wood as a timber in various regions of...

Perceptions of local people towards conservation policy and related management interventions, nature and magnitude of policy–people conflicts and, possible options for conflict resolution were analysed in the Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve, a World Heritage Site in Indian Himalaya. People's perceptions were discerned through participatory discussions...

The fascination for mountains, breathtaking natural beauty, rich cultural diversity, socioeconomic traditions, history and lifestyles attract mountaineers, trekkers, naturalists ascetics, explorers and cultural tourists from all over the world to the Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve (NDBR) and adjoining areas. Expedition/mountaineering and tourism, as...

Conflicts between local people and protected area managers are a common problem in developing countries, but in many cases there has been little attempt to comprehensively characterize the underlying problems. Resource uses, management practices, economy and people's perceptions of problems and likely solutions were analysed in two villages near an...

The traditional agriculture land use system in Indian Himalayan region is an integral part of the society and local environment as in that the crop husbandry, animal husbandry and forests constitute interlinked systems. But due to variety of factors the land use under traditional crops is changing very fast in a part of Indian Himalayan region. Thi...

2500 km long, covering an area of 2,36,900 sq. km. India's recognition as one of fourmegadiversity' centers of Asia and as one of ten largest forested areas in the world derives partly from the Himalaya. The Himalaya although cover only 18% of the geographical area of India, account for more than 50% of the India's forest cover, and 40% of the spec...

Tolchha-Bhotiya sub-community, inhabiting the buffer zone villages of Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve, has strong faith and belief in traditional health care system, viz. herbal treatment. Twenty-five plant species are generally being used along with other materials and plant products in different combinations to cure fifteen major diseases. About eig...

A mid altitude (700–1200 m amsl.) village in Garhwal Himalaya was analysed in terms of energy and economic efficiency of different land use-land cover types constituting the landscape. Simultaneous agroforestry, sequential agroforestry, home garden and community forests accounted for 27.47%, 27.47%, 1.1% and 43.96% of the total geographical area of...