“The International Day of Biodiversity is an apt occasion to reinforce our commitment to integrating biodiversity conservation into business practices through measurable, science-led, and outcome-oriented initiatives. We believe that protecting ecosystems is not separate from business growth, but essential to building long-term resilience, operational efficiency, and sustainable value creation. As industries evolve, businesses that invest in nature-positive practices will be better positioned to drive responsible growth, strengthen stakeholder trust, and future-proof operations,” said Tejashree Joshi, Head of Environmental Sustainability, Godrej Enterprises Group.

Decades-long continuous scientific efforts have resulted in improving the biodiversity index of Godrej’s Vikhroli campus by 19% in FY 2024-25. This critical mangrove habitat provides various ecosystem services, including Carbon sequestration. The Vikhroli mangroves currently hold over 23lakhs tCOe of sequestered carbon, significantly contributing to mitigating the impacts of climate change for the city of Mumbai. The awareness initiatives around mangroves reached nearly 1,20,000 beneficiaries over the last three years, through various Mangrove Awareness programmes, including Magical Mangroves in collaboration with WWF-India, underscoring the Group’s effort to combine on-ground action with public engagement. Its involvement and support of the India Business & Biodiversity Initiative (IBBI) aligns its operations with global biodiversity goals and integrates nature-positive practices across its value chain.

Further strengthening its efforts, Godrej Enterprises Group supports collaborative initiatives such as the India Wetlands Coalition, aimed at corporate participation in conserving critical wetland ecosystems and addressing nature loss beyond the campus and statute, and the Mangroves Coalition that aims to support stakeholders like government, citizens, and local communities to better protect, manage, and coexist with their city’s mangroves

The post Godrej Enterprises Group Achieves 19% Increase in Biodiversity Index at Vikhroli Campus appeared first on NRI News.

Human actions like habitat destruction, pollution, overexploitation, climate change, and invasive species threaten biodiversity, causing ecosystem disruptions, habitat loss, and straining community resources. Urgent conservation is essential for rural communities and their natural heritage. The People’s Biodiversity Register (PBR), mandated by the Biological Diversity Act, of 2002, documents, and helps preserve local bio-resources along with traditional knowledge.

A total of 27 students across multiple post-graduate specializations including Botany, Zoology, and Environmental Science are enrolled in this course. The course will include classroom sessions and on-field activity in Sakhar and Gunjawane villages in Pune, providing hands-on experience as well as course credits for the students under the National Education Policy.

The program will commence from 1st Jan 2024 till 15^th January 2024.  It will include theory sessions conducted by SCF at the Fergusson College and on-field data collection organized by the Raintree Foundation at Sakhar and Gunjawane villages. The course will offer practical exposure to the students of the respective departments, helping raise their awareness towards the ground reality of biodiversity management, and the importance of PBR in creating village management plans. While at its core the PBR is a document that contains comprehensive information on the locally available bio-resources, their medicinal use, and traditional knowledge, it has the potential to be used to foster community stewardship for sustainable development, conservation effort, and benefit-sharing.

Commenting on the initiative, Ms. Namita Dandekar, Chief Operating Officer, of Raintree Foundation said, “Documentation of traditional knowledge is critical not just for understanding the community’s generational interaction with their natural resources and heritage but is also important for ensuring greater community participation and ownership of biodiversity conservation efforts. Through this experiential educational program in partnership with Srushti Conservation Foundation and Fergusson College, Raintree Foundation will offer practical, on-ground exposure to students interested in working in environmental conservation, while also working with community resource persons to develop documentation of local oral traditions and knowledge that are rapidly fading away.”

Program Details:

Classroom Sessions/ Theory Sessions – January 1^st – 5^th, 2024

The Dept. of Environmental Science at the Fergusson College will organize the Theory sessions for DESPU students from January 1st to January 5th, 2024. These theory sessions will be led by Srushti Conservation Foundation, Pune. The sessions will cover topics such as a general introduction to climate change and biodiversity, discussions on documenting traditional knowledge and natural resource systems, an introduction to the PBR concept including its importance, history, general structure, purpose, and application. Additionally, there will be discussions on PBR do’s and don’ts, an introduction to Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) techniques, and activities focusing on awareness generation among people, ground preparation for PBR development, and daily games.

On-field data-collection – January 6^th – 15^th, 2024

On-field data collection is scheduled in Gunjavane and Sakhar villages from January 7th to January 15th, 2024. This nine-day activity comprises five days of fieldwork, involving visits to Gunjavane and Sakhar, documenting oral histories of local biodiversity, which are gradually fading, preparation of documentation and awareness materials, collation, compilation, and editing of the PBR document. On the final day, students will be required to take an exam for certification. The program will conclude with certificate distribution and submission of the prepared PBRs to the Maharashtra State Biodiversity Board for approval.

The post Raintree Foundation partners with Srushti Conservation Foundation to facilitate a Certificate Course in Peoples Biodiversity Register Development for Masters students at Fergusson College, DESPU appeared first on NRI News.