Development Alternatives and ICIMOD forge long-term partnership to build climate-resilient Hindu Kush Himalaya

New Delhi, India/ Kathmandu, Nepal – 21 June 2024

The impacts of climate change are increasingly being felt across the Hindu Kush Himalaya (HKH) region, with more frequent and extreme heatwaves, floods, droughts and landslides, while changes in snowfall, permafrost and glacier loss continue at an alarming rate. Added to this, air pollution across the region remains critical – severely affecting the health and wellbeing of millions. Against this backdrop, Development Alternatives (DA), based in New Delhi, India, and the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) have entered into a long-term partnership to create a more sustainable future for the HKH region. The two organisations signed a long-term Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) at ICIMOD’s headquarters in Kathmandu, Nepal.

This strategic partnership signifies a commitment to reducing climate risks and their impacts for millions of people in the region, while building regional leadership in sustainable development in the HKH. The MoU establishes a framework for collaboration in critical areas such as reducing climate risks, promoting adaptation strategies, promoting livelihood security, and building regional leadership in sustainable development.

During the signing, Pema Gyamtsho, Director General of ICIMOD, highlighted the importance of collaborative action: “Meaningful and sustainable partnerships between organisations like Development Alternatives and ICIMOD are essential to take forward relevant and impactful actions to address challenges the HKH is facing. Through this partnership, we can pool the rich expertise, knowledge and wide network of researchers and practitioners of both DA and ICIMOD, to further accelerate the promotion and adoption of sustainable climate practices and secure livelihoods for mountain communities.”

“The MoU demonstrates our shared commitment to working together to address the pressing environmental challenges facing the Hindu Kush Himalaya,” said Ashok Khosla, Chairman of Development Alternative Group. “This partnership will allow us to combine our expertise to create a more resilient and sustainable future for the region.”

Shrashtant Patara, CEO of Development Alternatives, elaborated on specific areas of collaboration: “This MoU lays the foundation for new initiatives aimed at addressing the three of the most pressing global crises of our times – Climate change, resource degradation, and jobless growth, acute forms of which are being faced by mountain economies. Through this partnership, DA will work collaboratively with ICIMOD across various thematic areas to promote livelihood security, resource efficiency, cleaner air, and climate resilience among the communities in the Hindu Kush Himalaya region.”

ICIMOD, a leading international research and development centre, works in and for the eight HKH countries – Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India, Myanmar, Nepal, and Pakistan. DA is a research and action organisation working on innovative solutions for sustainable development.

Media contacts:

For Development Alternatives

Shaila Sam
Head of Communications & Impact
Associate Vice President
Email: ssam@devalt.org

For ICIMOD

Annie Dare, Head of Communications
Neraz Tuladhar, Media Officer
Anshu Pandey, Senior Media Associate
Email: media@icimod.org

For more information on the MoU:

Udayan Mishra, Partnerships Specialist
Email: Udayan.mishra@icimod.org

NOTES TO THE EDITOR

About Development Alternatives

Development Alternatives (DA), the world’s first social enterprise dedicated to sustainable development, is a research and action organisation striving to deliver socially equitable, environmentally sound and economically scalable development outcomes. Our green technology innovations for habitat, water, energy and waste management, which deliver basic needs and generate sustainable livelihoods, have reduced poverty and rejuvenated natural ecosystems in the most backward regions of India. The mission of DA is to create models that generate sustainable livelihoods in large numbers. Whereas, the Vision is to see a world where every citizen can live a secure, healthy and fulfilling life, in harmony with nature.

About ICIMOD

The Hindu Kush Himalaya (HKH) region stretches 3,500km across Asia, spanning eight countries – Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India, Myanmar, Nepal, and Pakistan. Encompassing high-altitude mountain ranges, mid-hills, and plains, the zone is vital for the food, water, and energy security of up to two billion people and is a habitat for countless irreplaceable species. It is also acutely fragile, and vulnerable to the impacts of the triple planetary crisis of climate change, pollution, and biodiversity loss.
The International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), based in Kathmandu, Nepal, is an international organisation established in 1983, that is working to make this critical region greener, more inclusive and climate resilient. For more information, read our Strategy 2030 and explore our website.