Wetlands and Sustainable Livelihoods

Coordinator: Sanowar Hossain
Email: sanowarb@bangla.net

Wetlands are important and fragile ecosystem around the world. Especially across the Asia, the mighty river systems like the Ganges, the Brahmaputra, the Mekong, and the Yangtze etc have created vast areas of seasonal floodplains and perennial wetlands. Great civilizations evolved and thrived on these rivers and its wetlands. Cultures, customs and specialized professions have developed depending on the bounty of goods and services offered by these ecosystems. Lives and livelihoods of millions across Asia still depend directly on the wetlands and its goods and services. Sustainable management of wetlands can directly contribute to poverty alleviation and help nations to attain their MDGs and PRSPs. It requires innovative approaches to involve communities to manage the wetlands and equitable sharing of benefits derived from the management. There are numerous examples of successful community based management of wetlands that support livelihoods of the communities living around and beyond. This workshop session calls for papers that capture aspects of role of wetlands in supporting livelihoods as well as approaches to attain sustainable livelihood.