Mountain springs sustain over 100 million people in the Hindu Kush Himalaya, where these springs are drying rapidly. Cost-benefit analysis of reviving the mountain springs from Indian Himalayan sites shows net gains, highlighting high returns from spring revival related investment.
As urbanisation accelerates across the Hindu Kush Himalaya, the brick industry - vital yet highly polluting - faces urgent calls for reform. ICIMOD, with partners, is leading efforts to promote cleaner, more efficient technologies like zigzag kilns, while addressing social challenges in the sector. With over 11,000 kilns converted in Punjab, Pakistan, and cross-provincial learning underway in Sindh, this transformation offers a scalable model for climate action, healthier communities, and safer livelihoods across South Asia.
As Bhutan seeks to revitalise its agriculture sector and improve access to water amidst growing climate challenges, renewable energy-powered lift irrigation presents a viable and context-appropriate solution. The project implemented in Thosne Khola, Nepal, offers valuable lessons on how such systems can be effectively utilised for both irrigation and drinking water supply. With strong cross-sectoral collaboration and context-specific adaptation, Bhutan is well-positioned to replicate and scale these innovations.
Reflective piece for World Environment Day 2025
The open-access biodiversity data platforms like GBIF and HKHBIF are transforming conservation in the Hindu Kush Himalaya, supporting global biodiversity goals – KMGBF and the SDGs.
Community Conserved Areas (CCAs) in Nagaland hold significant potential as Other Effective area-based Conservation Measures (OECMs), fostering biodiversity protection through indigenous stewardship, traditional knowledge, and sustainable practices while supporting local livelihoods and strengthening decentralized conservation governance in ecologically sensitive landscapes.
As the world grapples with the repercussions of a warming planet, it is the mountain communities, such as the yak herders in JDNP, who bear the brunt of these impacts. Although these communities make minimal contributions to climate change, they find themselves disproportionately affected by its adverse consequences.