The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has inaugurated a two-day international workshop in New Delhi focused on tiger conservation and sustainable livelihoods. The event, which began on 2 September 2026, brings together government officials and conservation experts from multiple countries to discuss how tiger habitats can support both ecological protection and economic development for local communities.
What the workshop covers
The International Workshop on ‘Tiger Landscapes: Conservation, Bioeconomy and Ecotourism as Pillars for Livelihood and Income Generation’ is being jointly organised by the International Big Cat Alliance, the Asian Development Bank and the National Tiger Conservation Authority. The workshop runs through 3 September 2026.
Participants include government representatives and forest officials from Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, Malaysia, Nepal and Vietnam, along with Indian state forest departments, researchers and conservation practitioners. The discussions centre on treating tiger landscapes as natural capital that provides ecosystem services such as water security, carbon storage and climate regulation.
During the event, the International Big Cat Alliance and the Asian Development Bank signed a formal agreement to strengthen cooperation in landscape conservation, sustainable development, capacity building and financing for nature-based projects.
Environment Minister Shri Bhupender Yadav emphasised that conservation must balance ecological security with socio-economic development. He called for integrating traditional knowledge systems into policy-making on conservation, bioeconomy and ecotourism, and urged the International Big Cat Alliance to incorporate wisdom from communities in the Global South when designing conservation strategies.
What this means for you
This workshop signals efforts to link tiger protection with income opportunities for people living near wildlife reserves. If successful, such approaches could create jobs through ecotourism and sustainable resource use while maintaining forest health. For those involved in forestry, wildlife management or rural development, the partnerships formed here may influence future project funding and policy directions across the region.