GESI responsive springshed management in the Hindu Kush Himalaya

About the event

We are jointly organising a four-day regional training with the Swami Rama Himalayan University (SRHU) to equip government officials, researchers, practitioners, and community members with knowledge, skills and methodologies for springshed management, promoting water security, biodiversity conservation and climate adaptation while integrating scientific and field-based approaches into policies and practices. The training brings together 40-50 participants from government, academia, NGOs and the private sector across India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, and Nepal, all engaged in planning and implementing springshed management.

The event is supported by ICIMOD’s Himalayan Resilience Enabling Action Programme, funded by the United Kingdom International Development, along with G.B. Pant National Institute of Himalayan Environment (NIHE) and the Swiss Agency for Development Cooperation (SDC).

Objectives

The specific objectives of this training are to:

• Provide an interdisciplinary approach to understanding spring systems in the HKH, translating into knowledge and skills for springshed management to enhance the socio-ecological resilience of local communities
• Build skills regarding springshed management activities through sound concepts, analyses, and field experience; develop a systematic methodology based grounded in hydrogeology alongside disciplines such as climate, environment, and water governance
• Understand and analyse experiences and impacts of springshed management under different conditions across the HKH region
• Learn to use appropriate innovative water supply technologies

Background

Springs play an important role in the daily lives of thousands of rural and urban communities in the hills and mountains of the Hindu Kush Himalaya (HKH). Springs are also important for ecosystem services as they improve base flow in rivers, support biodiversity, and provide cultural and spiritual services. However, in many places, once-reliable springs are drying up or their discharge is reducing, presenting rural communities, women in particular, with new challenges. There is also growing concern about the quality of spring water because of contamination from different sources – geogenic and anthropogenic.

In the Himalayan region, natural springs and their sustainable development are gaining attention from policy, practice and science aspects. For instance, the National Institution for Transforming India (NITI) Aayog, the Department of Land Resources (DoLR), the Ministry of Jal Shakti and others in India, as well as the Department of Water, Royal Government of Bhutan and local governments in Nepal, are including springshed management in their programmes and plans.

However, one of the main gaps in scaling springshed management is the inadequate capacities of government and other stakeholders for planning and implementing springshed management for water security, biodiversity, and climate adaptation co-benefits. Hence, there is an urgent need to raise awareness among academia and relevant policy and decision makers, and to develop skills and share knowledge on this critical topic with field practitioners and community members.

Most springshed management trainings have targeted civil society organisations across the HKH region. It is equally crucial to extend this training to government officials, researchers, practitioners, and community members who can play a key role in scaling springshed development and management methodology and integrate conceptual and field experiences into their areas of work and portfolios.