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Accepted Paper:

Environmental NGOs in South Asia: strategies for partnerships  
Ksenia Gerasimova (University of Cambridge )

Paper short abstract:

This paper looks at environmental NGOs' activities in the area of food security and biodiversity conservation in South Asia, particularly at one aspect of its activities - strategic networking and partnerships and resulting knowledge transfer.

Paper long abstract:

I would like to offer to look in this paper how environmental non- governmental organisations (NGOs) working on food security and biodiversity conservation strategise their networking and choose which alliances to form. I will use examples of Navdanya (India) and WWOOF (Nepal) as case studies. Both organisations focus on two similar groups of partners - local farming communities and partnering organizations in the West, members of their international network, but not so much on other national NGOs. I argue that there is an explanation for that. Local farmers provide a source of traditional farming knowledge and also represent a main target group for crop sharing and educational programs. Western partnering organizations supply much needed funding which often comes through western volunteers who are ready to pay a good price to experience traditional farming and learn about nature conservation. Upon return to the home countries they promote organic agriculture and lobby for policies addressing climate change. Other NGOs based in the same countries act as competitors for funding and public attention and such alliances can be only temporary and tactic.

In conclusion, I will discuss the organisational challenges faced by environmental NGOs, such anthropological phenomenon as organic farming volunteering and point out the directions of knowledge transfers resulting from their current partnerships.

Panel P43
Community-led conservation of traditional crops and knowledge co-production in response to a changing climate: Case studies from South Asia
  Session 1