Centre News
Partnership development (April–September 2009)
Through its diverse strategic partnerships, ICIMOD (Rewards for, Use of, and Shared Investment in Pro-poor
is bringing together the active synergies of relevant Environmental Services).
institutions to address the emerging issues and
challenges of mountain development in the region, Capacity development
including climate change, water hazards, and
ICIMOD signed an MOU with The World Bank’s
sustainable livelihoods. ICIMOD recognises that
Offi ce of the South Asia Region Chief Economist,
partnership is the main strategy for knowledge
Washington DC to make a research capacity building
development, networking, and impact orientation.
grant to the South Asian Network for Development and
During 2009, ICIMOD entered into agreements with a
Environmental Economics (SANDEE) programme, which
number of strategic partners and international resource
is being hosted by ICIMOD.
centres in order to realise its strategic outcomes.
Selected agreements are highlighted below.
Raising awareness of climate change and shifting
cultivation
Climate change adaptation
The uncertainties about and challenges to effective
In 2009, ICIMOD signed agreements with the
biodiversity conservation in the face of climate change
International Institute for Environment and Development
in mountain regions is one of ICIMOD’s main concerns.
(IIED), UK, and the Stockholm Environment Institute,
ICIMOD signed agreements with the Namsaling
Bangkok, with the objective of providing technical and
Community Development Centre in Nepal to support
methodological backstopping and coordination to
conservation activities by promoting the landscape
fi eld assessment teams on the identifi cation, collation,
approach to biodiversity conservation; with the Nepal
and assessment of policies and discourses, and
Chepang Association and LIBIRD to implement the
analysing and synthesising the policies and information
Regional Project on Shifting Cultivation: ‘Promoting
documented on local adaptation strategies in the context
Innovative Policy and Development Options for
of ‘too much and too little water’. A Memorandum of
Improving Shifting Cultivations in the Eastern Himalayas’;
Understanding was also signed between ICIMOD and
and with Initiatives for Development and Eco Action
SN Power Holding Singapore Pte Ltd to carry out a
Support (iDEAS) to jointly raise awareness of the effects
GLOF Hazard Assessment for the Tamakoshi River Basin.
of climate change among the mountain community of
This study will be a part of the feasibility study for the
the Khumbu region. Under the latter, an interschool art
Tamokoshi 3 hydroelectric projects.
and letter writing competition was organised on the
theme ‘Climate Change: Voices of Khumbu’s Children’;
Payment for environmental services (PES)
the winning entries will be highlighted at COP 15 in
ICIMOD signed an agreement with the World Copenhagen in December.
Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF) for the further strengthening
of strategic cooperation in promoting and understanding Regional knowledge sharing
PES. This partnership was established in the context
ICIMOD signed agreements with the GB Pant Institute
of the recently-initiated IFAD-funded RUPES-II project
of Himalayan Environment and Development (GBPIHED)
with the objective of fi lling knowledge gaps and gaining
a better understanding of the impact of climate change
on biodiversity and the environmental services provided
by protected areas; and with FAST-National University
of Computer and Emerging Sciences Islamabad,
Pakistan, to explore research areas of mutual interest;
share knowledge, research data, and publications;
and support networking of experts and resource
persons. An MOU was signed between the Institute of
Tibetan Plateau Research (ITP), the Chinese Academy
of Sciences (CAS), and ICIMOD to promote academic
exchange and research on the natural environment of
the Tibetan Plateau and surrounding areas.
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