Key Points from Discussion

Restoring Fallow Lands to Prevent Degradation and Conflict

In eco-sensitive mountain areas, fallow lands often degrade into wastelands or informal dump sites, attracting wildlife such as jackals and red foxes into human settlements. This increases human–wildlife conflict and the risk of disease transmission between wildlife, livestock, and humans. LBM interventions should prioritize restoring these lands through reforestation, habitat enrichment, and community-led management to prevent further degradation and associated conflicts.

Sustainable Grazing to Protect Mountain Meadows

Traditional livestock grazing is deeply embedded in mountain communities, but overuse of core forest meadows threatens their ecological balance. Integrating rotational grazing, stall feeding, and alternative fodder sources can reduce pressure on limited grazing areas, ensuring both community livelihoods and ecological resilience.

Community-led Invasive Species Management: Tamil Nadu’s Lantana Briquette Model

The Thalavadi Adivasikal Munnetra Sangam (TAMS), a tribal-led institution, removed invasive lantana and converted it into marketable briquettes. Supported by Startup Tamil Nadu and facilitated by WWF India, the initiative linked ecological restoration with livelihood generation, policy support, and financial backing. This case illustrates how local governance structures, economic incentives, and multi-stakeholder partnerships can sustain invasive species management over the long term.

Designing LBM for Air Quality Co-benefits

Urban greening can serve as a barrier to particulate matter (PM10, PM2.5) by slowing wind movement and providing deposition surfaces. However, species selection, plantation placement (e.g., upwind of pollution sources), and maintenance are critical for effectiveness. Restoring abandoned plots and dump sites can reduce both pollution and land degradation. Embedding air quality monitoring into project design can provide evidence for co-benefits.

Grassland Restoration for Central India’s Wildlife Corridors

Grasslands in central India are often seasonal and challenging to identify, appearing barren in dry months but flourishing after rains. Restoration efforts should begin with mapping and identifying grassland patches, especially those serving as dispersal or migratory corridors. Management requires multi-year protection and weeding cycles, supported by local committees like Van Suraksha Samitis and Gram Vikas Samitis to ensure continuity after NGO exit.

Financial Incentives and Cultural Relevance for Community Engagement

Economic benefits and cultural connections are essential for sustaining community participation in restoration. Activities that revive traditional resources (e.g., rare edible plant varieties) or yield marketable non-timber forest products (NTFPs) ensure both income generation and preservation of traditional knowledge systems.

Urban–Peri-urban Agriculture for Multifunctional Landscapes

Integrating agriculture into peri-urban restoration projects can create multifunctional spaces that act as wildlife corridors, enhance biodiversity, provide food security, and generate livelihoods. This approach also addresses the ecological connectivity between rural and urban areas.

Aligning Urban Greening with Air Quality Programs

Urban greening under the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP) is often constrained by short funding cycles versus the long establishment period for trees. Cross-departmental coordination (forestry, municipal, irrigation) is needed for planning, implementation, and maintenance. Additionally, green waste from urban forestry must be managed to prevent seasonal pollution spikes from biomass burning.

Recommendations:

• Restore and protect fallow lands in eco-sensitive and peri-urban areas to prevent degradation, reduce human–wildlife conflict, and curb potential air pollution sources.
• Integrate sustainable grazing practices such as rotational grazing and stall feeding in mountain landscapes to protect meadows and maintain community livelihoods.
• Strengthen and empower local institutions (e.g., Gram Sabhas, Van Suraksha Samitis, Gram Vikas Samitis) to lead restoration, invasive species management, and habitat connectivity initiatives.
• Embed air quality monitoring in LBM projects where urban or peri-urban greening is undertaken, enabling evidence-based demonstration of co-benefits.
• Identify and restore seasonal grasslands in central India and other heterogeneous landscapes, prioritizing multi-year protection and active management.
• Promote livelihood-linked restoration by selecting native species and NTFPs that meet both ecological and market needs, ensuring long-term community engagement.
• Encourage urban–peri-urban agriculture to create multifunctional landscapes serving as biodiversity corridors, food sources, and economic assets.
• Align urban greening programs with long-term funding and maintenance plans, ensuring inter-departmental coordination and integrating waste management to prevent secondary pollution.
• Leverage financial mechanisms such as carbon markets, green credits, and CSR funding to scale community-led LBM interventions.
• Incorporate cultural knowledge and traditions into restoration planning, ensuring interventions resonate with local identity and practices.