Madhav B Karki | Southasia Institute of Advanced Studies (original) (raw)

Papers by Madhav B Karki

The rapid retreat of the Himalayan glaciers leads to water-related hazards, such as glacier lake ... more The rapid retreat of the Himalayan glaciers leads to water-related hazards, such as glacier lake outburst ﬂ oods (GLOFs), and water stress, as a result of the decline in freshwater supplies during the lean season. Thus, there is a need to think and act seriously about cooperation among the countries in the Himalayan region for managing water resources and water-related hazards. According to the Fourth Assessment Report of the United Nations’ Inter- governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC 2007), the inci- dence and intensity of ﬂ oods in the Himalayan region are expected to increase as a result of an increase in extreme precipitation events during the monsoon season and glacial retreat, both, in turn, resulting from global warming. This poses a challenge for reducing the vulnerability of the more than 1.3 billion people living in the major river basins downstream from the Hindu Kush–Himalayan region. The overriding importance of climate change as a driver of environmental change makes it important to address disaster- reduction and water-management concerns in a holistic manner at the river basin level. Such an approach is being considered by the IPCC to be an adaptive measure for tackling the impact of climate change. The economics of water resource management also suggests the need for taking advantage of externalities while planning O 271Sustainable Management and Regional Cooperation for Himalayan Waters water management, i.e., production externalities reﬂ ected in the upstream–downstream linkages between communities, districts and provinces within or across national borders. While holistic basin-wide water resource management is an approach currently being promoted by water scientists and economists alike, in the Himalayan region the problem lies in the implementation of such a strategy because most of the Himalayan rivers are international rivers and involve transboundary water management. It has been suggested recently that regional cooperation on water management and water-related hazards can be facilitated by developing a broader perspective on regional economic coopera- tion that goes beyond the focus on water alone. This perspective would be based on water as a natural resource of central focus, around which cross-border economic exchanges (primarily trade) and development of infrastructure to facilitate them, can take place. This essay looks at these issues under three sections covering: (a) conﬂ ict and cooperation, (b) climate change impact and regional cooperation on water-related hazards, and (c) basin-wide regional

Nature-based Solutions for Resilient Ecosystems and Societies, 2020

Poster presented at "Workshop on Climate Change A meeting of young Scientists in Central... more Poster presented at "Workshop on Climate Change A meeting of young Scientists in Central & South Asian Region". Nepal being more vulnerable to the effect of climate change, a result of the absence of coping mechanisms, the Government of Nepal has proactively developed policies like NAPA and then LAPA, an applauding matter. These required rules, regulations and mechanism are either, not made nor effective, or reached the most vulnerable people, who are unaware of these processes. However, they do see the effects of climate change in their everyday life: summer and winter are getting hotter and colder, the local water sources are drying and disappearing causing acute shortage of water. Mountainous people have started being affected by the diseases of lowlands whereas in high-mountains and mountains, lowland vegetation have started to grow. Because of erratic rainfall, rising temperature and melting of glaciers, the mountainous and lowland people now live with the new dangerous reality of flash flood and landslides. Based on NAPA and LAPA, several government, non-government and international institutions are now implementing activities related to climate adaptation for enhancing the adaptation capacity of the most vulnerables. Water, health, sanitation, agriculture, biodiversity, food security and nutrition have been identified as the most vulnerable sectors to climate impacts and are taken as priorities for providing support to local vulnerable people. Keywords: NAPA, LAPA, Adaptation, Vulnerability, Climate change, Nepal

Agronomy, 2020

Under the new constitution adopted in 2015, Nepal embraced the federal structure of government co... more Under the new constitution adopted in 2015, Nepal embraced the federal structure of government comprising seven provincial and 753 local governments, each with their own legislative, judicial, and executive powers. Nepal’s agriculture sector provides livelihoods to about 60% of the population. However, its bottlenecks are rooted in poor implementation of agricultural policies and plans, low levels of investment, uncertain political commitment and weak governance, especially a lack of an effective service delivery mechanism to farmers. This study analyzed the impacts of federalism on the institutional arrangements and governance of the agriculture sector through both review of literature and field-level information gathering, particularly focusing on extension service delivery to farmers in Province 2. The findings highlight the impacts of federalism on agricultural governance mainly in functional overlapping, resource allocation, priority setting, coordination, human resource manage...

The chapter describes the important role the non-timber forestry and agro-forestry sub-sectors pl... more The chapter describes the important role the non-timber forestry and agro-forestry sub-sectors play in Nepalese economy. Domestic consumption and export values of raw as well as processed non-timber forest products (NTFP) such as herbal medicine, aromatic oils, natural dye, fiber and nutrition supplements generated by these sub-sectors are on the rise. Agro-forestry is the mainstay of Nepal’s mountain farming systems. Sub-sector-related policy, institutions and regulatory frameworks are carefully reviewed since they play a critical role in the healthy development of these sub-sectors. Gaps in policy and legal framework, implementation hurdles are preventing good potential for growth and their contribution in agriculture development.

11.1 In t roduct ion Mountain communities in South Asia, especially those who live in the Hindu K... more 11.1 In t roduct ion Mountain communities in South Asia, especially those who live in the Hindu KushHimalayan region, are characterised as marginalised communities in terms of their access to capital, technology, and decision-making authority; fragile in terms of the health of the ecosystems they live in; and vulnerable in terms of their overwhelming dependence on natural resources. The region is facing greater and more difficult challenges than ever before in achieving balanced economic growth, alleviating poverty, and sustainably managing their renewable natural resources. People’s dependence on forest and related natural resources is historic, cultural, and inevitable as other viable alternatives for earning a living have been few and far between. As the economies of the predominantly mountainous countries in the region are gradually liberalised and a wave of consumerism is setting in, the income needs of the people have been steadily growing. The consequence of this trend has be...

International Journal of Multidisciplinary Studies, Dec 28, 2017

South Asia region is one of the most vulnerable to climate induced hazards and risks. A recent AD... more South Asia region is one of the most vulnerable to climate induced hazards and risks. A recent ADB publication predicts that the region is at risk of losing up to 8.8% GDP due to climate change by the end of the century. Climate change directly or indirectly affects all sectors of economy and livelihoods of nations and communities requiring adaptation, mitigation and disaster risk reduction measures so as to reduce and manage increasing risks and stresses. It is therefore logical that all of the South Asian countries have placed adaptation issues on high prioritymany already mainstreaming and integrating climate change risks in their socioeconomic development policies, plans and programs. Synergy is also gradually developing among sustainable development, environmental conservation and climate change adaptation including disaster risk reduction. Developing capacity of the closely interwoven socio-agro-ecological systems that prevail in South Asia seem to be the running thread among these three important pillars of human development and nature conservation. Recognizing that climate change is one of the newest drivers of change, this paper describes why the current state of scattered, fragmented and micro scale adaptation work in the region need to scale up and scale-out for building a resilient and prosperous South Asia. Multiple approaches are adopted and practiced to design and implement adaptation programs. Participatory visioning and planning of adaptation goal and action is an accepted practice in South Asia countries that are reflected in most of the community-based and ecosystem based adaptation (CBA and EbA) work being undertaken by governmental, non-governmental and community based agencies. However, these local plans are confined to limited budget, geography, population and scope often aimed at reducing the direct and urgent impacts. Given that climate change impacts are not limited to any administrative, ecological and political boundaries as well as it has slow onset process, there is a need to upscale (vertically to policies and programmes) as well as out-scale (horizontally) to larger areas, population and landscape to make adaptation sustainable and resilient to deal with increasing frequency and severity of climate induced risks and hazards. For a tangible and sustained adaptation impact, emphasis need to be laid on identifying innovative ideas and practices that contribute towards improved ecosystem and social services, help make infrastructures more climate resilient, and human development more sustainable. This way, we can achieve adaptation at scale which can also help achieve transformative adaptation. In fact, scaled-up and scale-out and transformative adaptation work underpin sustainable development and biodiversity conservation that can help South Asian countries achieve both Sustainable Development Goals and Aichi Biodiversity Targets.

Agronomy

Water, energy, and biodiversity are essential components for building a sustainable food system i... more Water, energy, and biodiversity are essential components for building a sustainable food system in a developing country like Nepal. Green Revolution technologies and the package of practices largely ignored the role of ecosystem services, leaving a large population of small farmers’ food- and nutrition-insecure. Biodiversity, especially, agrobiodiversity is in decline and this vital cross-cutting element is less discussed and interlinked in nexus literature. The interlinking food system with water–energy–biodiversity nexus, therefore, is essential to achieve a resilient food system. It ensures the vital structures and functions of the ecosystem on which it is dependent are well protected in the face of increasing socio-economic and climatic stress. This paper reviews the food system of Nepal through the lens of the food–water–energy–biodiversity (FWEB) nexus to develop a more robust food system framework. From this approach, food system foresight can benefit from different nature-ba...

Mountain Research and Development, 2011

... Klein Tank, AMG, TC Peterson, DA Quadir, S. Dorji, X. Zou, H. Tang, K. Santhosh, UR Joshi, AK... more ... Klein Tank, AMG, TC Peterson, DA Quadir, S. Dorji, X. Zou, H. Tang, K. Santhosh, UR Joshi, AK Jaswal, RK Kolli, AB Sikder, NR Deshpande, JV Revadekar, K ... http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/0959-3780(91)90004-D. CrossRef, CSA. Wescoat Jr, JL, S. Halvorson, and D. Mustafa. 2000. ...

Conservation and Utilization of Threatened Medicinal Plants

Medicinal, aromatic, wild food and other health and wellness-related natural plant resources foun... more Medicinal, aromatic, wild food and other health and wellness-related natural plant resources found in Himalayan highlands include rare, endangered and threatened plant species and non-timber wild products. These are commonly described as NTFPs and MAPs. Sustainable wild harvesting and primary processing of these herbs for addressing poverty of poor pastoralists, farmers and local traders is a major challenge. Medicinal plants not only play a pivotal role in providing primary healthcare for poor people in mountain areas; increasingly, these niche products are being gathered, processed and sold in national and international markets for higher cash income. Prominent examples of high-value but threatened medicinal plants that are commonly used in the Ayurvedic and Tibetan systems of traditional medicine (Sowa Rigpa) are as follows: Ophiocordyceps sinensis, Neopicrorhiza scrophulariiflora, Picrorhiza kurroa, Nardostachys grandiflora, Dactylorhiza hatagirea, Podophyllum hexandrum, Aconitum spp., etc. Experience gathered to date suggests that technical, socioeconomic, institutional and policy inputs and instruments are required to develop niche and high-volume production in pastoral systems. This chapter analyses and recommends the following actions in enhancing future scope: (a) raising awareness through different formal and informal education means, (b) skill development in sustainable harvesting as well as grazing management, (c) production of organic and sustainably managed products, (d) integration of agricultural and pastoral livelihoods with off-farm activities through value chain development of major niche products that have high-value capturing 94 potential, (e) improvement of degraded pasture and farmlands to enhance productivity of niche products and services, (f) conservation through sustainable use-oriented policy and legal reforms to implement integrated strategies of linking conservation of wild fauna and flora with sustainable pastoral production systems and (g) expansion of ecologically sensitive low-input high-return tourism, using pastoralists to provide services, particularly through their indigenous knowledge and improved local production practices. These measures are expected to help Himalayan countries to achieve several SDGs especially goal nos.1 and 2.

Mountains of Southeast Asia and the Pacific (SEAP) region spread across two geographic regions – ... more Mountains of Southeast Asia and the Pacific (SEAP) region spread across two geographic regions – mainland Asia and island/archipelagic states in the Pacific Ocean – and constitute one of the world’s highest and also most severely threatened biodiversity pools. A number of indigenous peoples who are marginalised, poor, and underserved by their respective states live in the structurally weak and fragile mountains. They are made even more vulnerable by increased frequency and intensity of rainfall, extreme temperatures and severe tropical storms. Increasing population and economic pressures are driving migrant lowland settlers towards the SEAP Mountains while extractive companies harness timber, minerals and water resources without giving local communities their due share. In general, the mountains have not been mainstreamed in governance in most Southeast Asian countries. This highlights the immediate need for policy reforms to protect social and ecological systems in the mountains fo...

Mountain Research and Development, 2009

Yunan province of China is a treasure trove of the great medicinal plant diversity (an estimated ... more Yunan province of China is a treasure trove of the great medicinal plant diversity (an estimated 265 families, 1345 genera, 4758 species). Rapid economic development of China has drastically changed verdant landscape of one of the most important biodiversity hot spots of the world and the province is facing the obvious difficulty of conserving its vulnerable species and habitats. Chinese officials have taken a number of steps to conserve Yunan's unique biodiversity especially, medicinal plants. These include enhancing laws and policies, strengthening educational outreach, creating nature reserves, using ex situ conservation, promoting international cooperation and exchange, fortifying investment in conservation and improving oversight of the import and export of medicinal plants.

World Resource Review;(United States), 1991

Description/Abstract Nepal's Middle Hill regions have been excessively deforested. The gover... more Description/Abstract Nepal's Middle Hill regions have been excessively deforested. The government has launched a community-based reforestation project with help of international donors. However, results have been far from satisfactory. Plantation targets have not been met and survival rates of the planted trees are poor averaging around 60%. Social factors are given more blame than technical ones for these failures. However, an analysis of the available information indicates, rather, that about two-thirds of the failures were due to ...

ICIMOD, based on its past experience and knowledge base, realizes that national and sectoral poli... more ICIMOD, based on its past experience and knowledge base, realizes that national and sectoral policies have failed to make a significant impact on poverty reduction, natural resource conservation, and environmental quality maintenance in the mountains. Growing evidences suggest that purely technical solutions are neither effective nor sustainable unless they are supported by favourable policies and institutions. While policy decisions are prerogative of the RMC governments; relevant information and knowledge, and proper ground-level understanding are necessary for the policy makers to make right choice in terms of formulating appropriate policy. Being a non-political regional organization, ICIMOD, therefore has an important roles to support and facilitate informed decision-making by concerned agencies at national and sub-national levels, Founded in 24 years before by the RMCs with support of international partners, ICIMOD’role is to build up a regional knowledge base through generati...

... and Sagun Bista Action research on non-timber forest products in central 101 mid-hills region... more ... and Sagun Bista Action research on non-timber forest products in central 101 mid-hills region, Nepal Damodar P. Parajuli Resource base ... by small farmers through 185 training and capacity building: Experience of the HPPCL, Nepal Dhruv R. Bhattarai and Pradip Maharjan 5 ...

In an effort to develop effective institutions for the management of forest resources, a number o... more In an effort to develop effective institutions for the management of forest resources, a number of community based forest management (CBFM) policies and practices have evolved in South Asia. Most important of them are community forestry (CF) in Nepal and joint forest management (JFM) in India. Although both the approaches aim at promoting community-based forest management, their nature and characteristics vary considerably which, in turn, has difference implications in resource governance and livelihoods. Based on primary and secondary information, this paper makes an attempt to understand the nature of the two systems and their strengths and weaknesses. The analysis reveals that there are considerable between two systems in respect of level of institutionalisation, tenurial arrangement, degree of participation, decision-making authority, rights and obligations, and benefit sharing. While CF management model is supported by state legislation, JFM is based on the Govt. of India circu...

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Michigan State University. Dept. of Forestry, 1992. Includes bibliographical ref... more Thesis (Ph. D.)--Michigan State University. Dept. of Forestry, 1992. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 242-244).