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Transboundary Landscapes
The Kangchenjunga Landscape Conservation and Development Initiative (KLCDI) is committed to the conservation of the important biodiversity, ecosystems, and livelihoods of the Kangchenjunga Landscape, which stretches across Bhutan, India, and Nepal along the southern side of Mount Kangchenjunga.
At a glance
Better conservation and management of ecosystem goods and services in the Kangchenjunga Landscape to foster economic development and build ecological and socio-cultural resilience
Tashi Dorji
Programme Coordinator
Our focus
Climate change endangers the Kangchenjunga Landscape – the very identity and lifeblood of its inhabitants. We seek to widen understanding of changes happening in the landscape and rally a concerted effort to emerge stronger.
The landscape sustains many vital Himalayan rivers and crucial watersheds. It harbours extraordinary biodiversity and valuable ecosystem services. At its heart is the sacred Mount Kangchenjunga, which weaves together centuries of shared culture, religion, and close-knit bonds among its inhabitants, spread across a part of eastern Nepal, Sikkim and West Bengal in India, and the western and south-western parts of Bhutan.
Recognizing the landscape’s importance to the HKH and the world, we work to improve collaboration on environmental conservation and sustainable use of resources. We focus on the inextricable link between people and their environments and promotes community participation in ecosystem management and resource governance, all the while helping improve the livelihoods and resilience of communities.
Improve the economic and social status of the landscape's communities, particularly of disadvantaged groups, through eco-friendly and productive livelihood avenues
Improve ecosystem management within and outside protected areas and ensure inclusive resource governance
Improve cooperation among academics, practitioners, and regional member countries in development works
POSTER
The Kangchenjunga Landscape Conservation and Development Initiative (KLCDI) is a transboundary conservation and development programme aiming to enhance regional cooperation and socio-ecological resilience of the landscape by conserving and managing ecosystems and services and improving livelihoods through nature-based solutions. Let us look at the landscape features and the initiative’s vision and components.
Featured Video
On February 2020, the Government of Bhutan gifted high quality breeding bulls to Nepal and India with an aim to revitalize yak population across the HKH region. ICIMOD facilitated this yak germplasm exchange programme, which involved high-level delegations from Nepal and Sikkim convening in Thimphu, Bhutan.
News and features
Featured partner
The Friends of Ecosystem-based Adaptation (FEBA) is a network of organizations promoting collaboration and knowledge sharing on nature-based solutions. This annual newsletter exclusively features events and publications, and upcoming activities and knowledge products related to ICIMOD’s Regional Programme on Transboundary Landscapes and its initiatives – HI-LIFE, HKPL, KSLCDI, and KLCDI.
Take a look at our latest publications along with a brief summary
The KLCDI is a collaborative effort of Bhutan, India, and China and is facilitated by the ICIMOD with financial support from the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) through the Deutsche Gesellschaft for Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) and the Austrian Development Agency (ADA).
Events around the HKH
Maps
We have a deep history of work across a broad range of issues enabling sustainable development in the complex environment of the HKH. We have been protecting the pulse for over three decades.
Forests cover around a quarter of the HKH. They are an integral part of the transboundary landscape, connecting numerous ecosystems and conserving biodiversity, sustaining livelihoods, providing timber and other resources, and guarding against natural disasters.
With their steep terrain, fragmented landscape and thermal gradients, mountain ecosystems are host to higher species richness and levels of endemism than adjacent lowlands. Many organisms adapt and specialize in these microhabitats, which can provide islands of suitable habitat isolated from unfavourable surrounding lowlands.
You will find publications produced or related to this Initiative in HimalDoc, our publications repository. These resources include journal articles, books, book chapters, research reports, working papers, brochures, information sheets, and publicity materials, among other products.
Related contents
KLCDI's work transcends geographical boundaries and involves communities from across the landscape. Read more about our impacts.
