ANNUAL REPORT A registered non-profit civil society organization for Environmental Conservation and Poverty Alleviation in the Indian eco-region 2014-2015 SAFE SOUTH ASIAN FORUM FOR ENVIRONMENT (A registered non-profit civil society organization for Environmental Conservation and Poverty Alleviation in the Indian eco-region) ANNUAL REPORT 2014-2015 SAFE Head Office : B 43, Survey park, Kolkata : 700075 Admn Office : P-32, J. U. Emp. Housing Co-op Society Panchasayar, Kolkata 700 094 Phone : +91 33 24329699 email : [email protected] OR [email protected] Official Website www.safeinch.org CONTENTS Message from Dr. Gopichandran 05 Director, Vigyan Prasar (Department of Science & Technology) Govt. of India, New Delhi Sharing vision by Chair... 06 Dr. Dipayan Dey Chair South Asian Forum for Environment S A F E touch your heart 07 S A F E Events 11 S A F E in Media 30 S A F E Audit Reports 34 S A F E 2 0 1 4 - 1 5 Message Dr. Gopichandran Director, Vigyan Prasar (Department of Science & Technology) Govt. of India, New Delhi Dear Friends, Climate change and its detrimental effects on the planet is inevitable and therefore the growing need to become proactive in order to gain resilience, adaptation and mitigation of the same has become highly imperative. Increases in extreme weather conditions—droughts, storms, and floods—and global warming are already altering economies, lifestyles and patterns of human migration and effecting the lives of especially women and children leading to growing survival concerns globally due to scarcity of safe drinking water, sanitation, basic health amenities among the masses along with causing irrevocable damage to the environment. South Asian Forum for Environment (SAFE) is working for last one decade to achieve sustainable environment development goals for poverty alleviation through empowerment, equity and reciprocity in the Indian eco region. In the year 2014-15, the main activities of SAFE were spread over both rural and urban sectors spanning through five countries of South Asia, including India. In rural areas SAFE partnered with local marginal farmers and fishers communities, those are vulnerable to climate change impacts, to promote climate smart agro-environmental practices through technology cooperation towards less water intensive and low chemical intensive farming, agro-waste management, agro- biodiversity conservation etc. In urban areas, our main focus has been water, sanitation, and gender equity and habitat conservation. As a part to this end we have worked at the national level on entrepreneurial solutions for municipal solid waste management to reduce landfill emissions and have integrated renewable energy resources in water and sanitation sector for the urban poor. Conservation of wetlands, a flagship program of SAFE has been implemented at the regional level with special emphasis on trans-boundary Ramsar wetlands. We have been awarded the “Lighthouse Activity Award in Climate Change” for 2014 by UNFCCC and the coveted UN 'Water for Life' award in 2015. SAFE appreciates its entire team for relentlessly taking this venture forward and genuinely thanks its valuable local, national and international partners with whose support the environmental endeavors for this year became reality. Considering this year as another stepping stone towards a vision of creating a cleaner and greener planet, we believe that we have a long way to go and achieve new innovations, sustainable developments, policy changes and much more in the years to come. Dr. Gopichandran Director, Vigyan Prasar 05 South Asian Forum for Environment A N N U A L R E P O R T 2 0 1 4 - 1 5 Sharing vision by Chair... Dr. Dipayan Dey Chair South Asian Forum for Environment This year have been challenging in addressing to climate, community, capacities at science-society interface, and our innovations could address environmental issues with reference to water energy and food security through community based conservation initiatives. For this SAFE, envisages global reciprocal partnership and participatory policy frame for 'Biorights, a conservation paradigm for poverty alleviation. SAFE has its presence in India, Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan and Philippines and inculcate awareness and community preparedness for disaster mitigation and adaptive strategies for resilience to climate change. SAFE focuses on innovation and green technology cooperation in rural sector and encourage environmental stewardship for health & sanitation for the poor. This WASH program of SAFE not only runs on renewable energy, it generates too. Since year 2015, SAFE has covered the need of drinking water and sanitation of 16000 urban poor using clean energy. The Water Treatment Plant provides 10000 litres per day, which completely runs on Solar Power. Overall the model has a carbon offset equivalent of 28 Metric Tons per year, and further, it reduces nearly 60% water footprints by utilizing the refusal water from water treatment plant in the sanitation units and harvesting 13420 thousand gallons of rainwater annually in a 3.8 hectare water system is yet another climate adaptive step in WASH-US. The innovation received UN Award 2015 for best practice in water and sanitation. Added innovation in this program is a Biogas plant of 4.5 Cu Mt, running on human waste and solid waste, a community kitchen unit runs on bio-gas for cooking mid-day meal for schools in the locale. This project upholds clean technologies for sustainable development. SAFE has initiated an action research on agricultural waste management under the APN ARCP Global Change Research; this action research is undergoing in Central Luzon State University, in Philippines, Renewable Natural Resource Centres in Bhutan and as well in Indian states of West Bengal and Bihar. The research experiments to develop a decision support system for agricultural waste management to show that crop waste keeping and using can be a smarter intervention than straight burning it. Hope against hope, SAFE continues its struggle for the conservation of wetlands, and I strongly feel that the need of the hour is to raise voice for a strong and mandatory regulatory framework for wetland conservation at the country level to be made for the parties of the convention to be adopted as a national policy plan. Policy formulation for wetlands must be made inclusive through community level consultation, stakeholder partnership and participatory planning. Regional cooperation must be sought in conservation of transboundary wetlands. I thank all for your support. 06 South Asian Forum for Environment S A F E 2 0 1 4 - 1 5 S A F E touch your heart SAFE preamble : The forum would work religiously towards conservation and sustainable development of environment in and around the Indian ecoregion, without any desire or expectation of incentive, profit or remuneration from the work. The forum would never be subjected to any vested interest of any one person, by the members or be used as a platform for propagating political, religious or any other individual motives which are non congruent to the forum’s mission and objectives. The forum would always regard and endorse the rights of local stakeholders of environment, encourage participation and partnership at all levels and would also act as an equal opportunity organization. The forum would always function in an autonomous way and seek a common consensus for implementing any major decision. The forum would work towards international integrity, cooperation and partnership in the issues of environment and always rise to the occasion of protecting and conserving it. The forum would be the prime objective of the forum to coordinate between the apex bodies and the local stakeholders towards sustenance of indigenous knowledge, promotion of developmental works and diffusion of conflicts through collateral understandings. The mission and vision of the forum would always highlight eco-friendship across all boundaries of cast, creed, social status, nationality and language. SAFE mission : SAFE works to achieve environmental conservation objectives and poverty alleviation through participation, partnership, equity and reciprocity. SAFE vision : SAFE envisages global reciprocal partnership and participatory policy frame for commons to promote sustainable environment development and wise use of natural resources. 07 South Asian Forum for Environment A N N U A L R E P O R T 2 0 1 4 - 1 5 SAFE history : In the year 1998, while carrying out project on natural resource conservation entrusted by the Royal Society for Protection of Nature in Bhutan the need for a common platform to address environmental issues in the region of South Asia was realized by a team of ecologists. Further, the ecological distress and problems faced by local inhabitants in Bhutan Himalyas and Gangetic floodplains along the Indo-Nepal border acted as an impetus to bring together few like-minded people from various fields to attend to the need of conservation of fresh water lakes and wetlands. It was during this time the idea of a common working platform was envisioned, but then it was yet to manifest in itself as an organized forum. By the end of year 2000, as the work load increased bringing new challenges, the team started confronting problems in delivering its task mainly due to the lack of a structured platform. Thus growing responsibility called for an immediate action and finally SAFE was launched in Bhutan as its throbbing center in year 2000. It was then decided as per requirement nation wise chapters would be installed for working out environmental projects in the South Asian countries. In year 2002, SAFE, Indian Chapter was installed with same mission and vision. SAFE objectives : To address environmental conservation issues especially with reference to lakes, wetlands, floodplains, mangroves and tropical rainforests To conduct research at science-society interface for sustainable development and poverty alleviation by assuring alternative livelihood. To inculcate awareness and community preparedness for disaster mitigation and climate change to all stakeholders. To impart environmental education through publications and review of environmental laws, policy, planning and negotiations.