Shillong, Jan 29: Meghalaya is set to host an international conference titled ‘Scaling Nature-Based Solutions for Himalayan Resilience’ on January 30-31, spotlighting climate adaptation strategies for the ecologically sensitive Himalayan region.
The two-day event is being jointly organised by the Meghalaya Basin Development Authority (MBDA) and the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD). It will convene policymakers, climate experts, scientists, development agencies, private sector stakeholders, youth representatives and community leaders from across the Indian Himalayan Region and the broader Hindu Kush Himalaya, a press release informed today.
The Indian Himalayan region ranks among the most climate-vulnerable areas globally, grappling with erratic rainfall patterns, extreme weather events, environmental degradation, floods, landslides and declining biodiversity, the release said. These challenges pose serious risks to water availability, food security, livelihoods and human settlements.
The conference will centre on advancing nature-based solutions – approaches that harness natural ecosystems to tackle climate change while simultaneously supporting biodiversity conservation and sustainable development. Such solutions have gained global recognition as an effective framework for addressing multiple environmental and developmental challenges in an integrated manner.
The organisers, through the release, pointed out that while initiatives such as springshed management, watershed restoration, agroforestry and community-driven conservation are already being implemented across the Himalayas, many remain scattered and confined to limited project scales.
