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Himalayan youth attend climate change workshops

26.01.2015

India is one of the youngest country in the world - with its current youth population. Thus, building youths’ capacities to address the emerging challenges of climate change, conduct research and engage in development work is an imperative. Keeping in mind this perspective, the Central Himalayan Environment Association (CHEA) in 2014 initiated a programme on youth and climate change in the Indian Himalayan Region with support from Friedrich Ebert Stiftung (FES) and the G.B. Pant Institute of Himalayan Environment and Development (GBPIHED) as knowledge partner.

The final training workshop in a series of three was held at Mohal-Kullu in Himachal Pradesh State on 1-3 December 2014. In all, 40 young researchers and civil society personnel participated in the three-day workshop.

Earlier in April 2014, the inaugural workshop on “Unlocking potential of youth in context of climate change in Indian Himalayan Region” was organized at Nainital, in the state of Uttarakhand, where 56 youths participated. This workshop also served to assess the training needs, which shaped the schedule for the Himalayan Youth Forum, which was organized as another event by GBPIHED in Kosi-Katarmal (Almora), an autonomous institute of India’s Ministry of Environment of Forests, in September 2014. As many as 70 young researchers from various institutions and universities of the 12 states of the Indian Himalayan Region participated in the two-day event.

These events saw a multi-disciplinary, cross-sectoral group of young dynamic individuals being oriented, sensitized and adequately informed about the projected impacts of climate change and the strategies and approaches commonly used to deal with them. At every stage, the learning process highlighted the unique and critical role youth need to play in helping Indian Himalayan communities to adapt to climate-induced impacts and contribute in policy advocacy for appropriate mitigation measures at the state as well as at Indian Himalayan regional level.

"The encouraging results of the three events has reinforced the faith on potential of youth and this process will be continued in 2015 with partner organizations,” said Dr Pushkin Phartiyal, Executive Director of CHEA. “The ultimate target is to develop an interactive forum of youth engaged in research or developmental interventions to share their learning, knowledge and understanding on mountain issues in which social media networking will play a critical role."

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Photos: Central Himalayan Environment Association