Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Shri Bhupender Yadav, today inaugurated a 2-day International Workshop on the theme ‘Tiger Landscapes: Conservation, Bioeconomy and Ecotourism as Pillars for Livelihood and Income Generation’, in New Delhi. The workshop is being jointly organized by the International Big Cat Alliance (IBCA), the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA), Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC), during 2nd – 3rd September, 2026.

Dignitaries on dais included Secretary (EFCC), Shri Tanmay Kumar; DG (Forests) & Special Secretary (EFCC), Shri Sushil Kumar Awasthi; DG IBCA, Shri S.P. Yadav; Country Director for India (ADB), Ms. Mia Oka, besides senior officials from the Ministry, IBCA, NTCA, ADB and representatives from Tiger-range countries. The deliberations would focus on recognizing tiger landscapes as natural capital, highlighting the value of ecosystem services, and exploring how conservation, bioeconomy and ecotourism can serve as key drivers of sustainable livelihoods, local income generation and long-term ecological security.

Addressing the inaugural session, Shri Yadav highlighted India’s remarkable conservation journey under Project Tiger, emphasizing that the survival of tigers is intrinsically linked to the health of forests, grasslands, rivers, prey species, wildlife corridors and local communities. He noted that tiger landscapes represent valuable natural capital, providing critical ecosystem services such as water security, carbon sequestration, climate regulation, biodiversity conservation and livelihood support. The Minister underscored the need to move beyond species-centric conservation towards integrated landscape management that simultaneously advances ecological security and socio-economic development. He emphasized the importance of nature-based solutions, innovative financing mechanisms and community-based ecotourism.

Shri Yadav stressed, “Conservation with harmony and Human-nature coexistence should be the foundation of ecological conservation”. He highlighted that conservation of land means protection of quality food, which ultimately is essential for survival of human species. The Minister stated that the world is facing the challenge of desertification and depletion of soil moisture and degradation of soil quality. Conservation of Tiger Landscapes assumes prime importance in this scenario, by tapping into the native community's wisdom for facilitating sustainable social-economic development, besides protection of nature.

The Minister called on the participants of the workshop to deliberate on the need to codify the traditional knowledge and incorporate that wisdom within policy making in the fields of Conversation, Bio-economy and Eco-tourism. This workshop should focus on Knowledge sharing, capacity building, native knowledge sharing and transforming the nature of policy making. IBCA must take lead to bring together native wisdom from the Global South in devising the Ecological conservation policies, he added.

During the event, the International Big Cat Alliance (IBCA) and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) formalized their partnership through the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), marking an important step towards strengthening collaboration in landscape conservation, sustainable development, capacity building, knowledge exchange, and nature-positive financing initiatives. Shri Yadav also highlighted the growing role of the International Big Cat Alliance (IBCA), under the vision of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, as a global platform for cooperation among countries and institutions working for the conservation of the seven big cat species.

Welcoming the partnership between IBCA and the ADB, Ms. Mia Oka informed that 2026 marks the completion of 40 years of ADB's partnership with India. She highlighted that India brings its vast experience of ecological conservation and sustainable social-economic development, to share with the Big Cat range countries. Ms. Oka highlighted the role that ADB would play in bringing together big cat range countries and sharing India's rich conservation experience as well as creating sustainable financing opportunities for ecological conservation.

The Workshop has brought together distinguished international experts and government representatives from Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, Malaysia, Nepal and Vietnam, along with senior officials from the MoEFCC, representatives of State Forest Departments and Tiger Reserves across the country, development partners, researchers, conservation practitioners and other key stakeholders. It provides a unique platform for sharing experiences, promoting regional and international cooperation, and identifying innovative approaches to strengthen landscape conservation while advancing sustainable development objectives.

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VM