Scaling up Agroecology in the Himalayas Together

• Ms. Louise Luttikholt , Executive Director, IFOAM – Organics International  

• Dr. Gerd Müller, Minister for Economic Cooperation and Development, Germany  

• Mr. H.E. Narendra Singh Tomar (TBC), Ministry of Agriculture and Farmer Welfare, Ministry of Rural Development, India 

• Dr. Rajiv Kumar, Vice-Chairman, NITI Aayog  

• Mr. Dominik Ziller Vicepresident, International Fund for Agricultural Development 

• Mr. P. V. S. Suryakumar, Deputy Managing Director, National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development  

• Mr. H.E. Walter Lindner, Ambassador of Germany for India and Bhutan  

• Mr. H.E. Prem Singh Tamang, Chief Minister Sikkim 

• Mr. Sundar Anbalagan, Executive Director, Sikkim Organic Farming Development Agency  

• Mr. H.E. Shri Jai Ram Thakur, Chief Minister, Himachal Pradesh 

• Dr. Rajeshwar Chandel, Executive Director, Himachal Pradesh  

• Concluding remarks - Prof. Dr. Claudia Warning, Director-General for Asia, SouthEastern and Eastern Europe, Middle East and Latin America, Civil Society at the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development

• Mr. Ashok Khosla, Founding Councillor, World Future Council Founder, Development Alternatives  

• Ms. Dr. Yogendra Kumar Karki, Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development, Nepal  

• Ms. Xhona Hysa, Global Policy Expert, IFOAM - Organics International  

• Dr. Hari Bahadur KC, Head of Planning and Policy, Ministry of Agriculture and livestock development, Nepal  

• Ms. Renate Künast, Member of Parliament and former Agriculture Minister, Germany  

• Mr. H.E. Lyonpo Yeshey Penjor, Minister of Agriculture, Bhutan  

• Ms. Anne-Sophie Poisot - Deputy Team Leader for Pest and Pesticide Management – Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations  

• Dr. Pema Gyamtsho, Director General International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development  

• Ms. Kesang Tshomo, National Organic Flagship Programme Manager, Ministry of Agriculture, Bhutan  

• Concluding remarks Mr. Philipp Knill, Head of Division India and South Asia, German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development

About the World Future Council

The World Future Council (WFC) works to pass on a healthy and sustainable planet with just and peaceful societies to our children and grandchildren. To achieve this, we focus on identifying, developing, highlighting and spreading effective, future-just solutions for current challenges humanity is facing and promote their implementation worldwide.

In close collaboration with international organisations, experts, and parliamentarian networks, we identify sustainable and future-just laws and measures worldwide. We communicate directly to policy makers, and the results of our work feed into our educational work, supporting decision makers in implementing good policies.

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About the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ)

The Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development is a cabinet-level ministry of the Federal Republic of Germany. Its main office is at the former German Chancellery in Bonn with a second major office at the Europahaus in Berlin.

Founded in 1961, the Ministry works to encourage economic development within Germany and in other countries through international cooperation and partnerships. It cooperates with international organisations involved in development including the International Monetary Fund, World Bank, and the United Nations.

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About IFOAM - Organics International

IFOAM - Organics International builds capacity to facilitate the transition of farmers to organic agriculture, raise awareness of the need for sustainable production and consumption, and advocate for a policy environment conducive to agro-ecological farming practices and sustainable development.

Together with our members in over 100 countries and territories as well as regional bodies and sector platforms, we are leading change, organically!

There is a building momentum of policies driving transformation in the Himalayan region, many of them based on the principles of agroecology and organic agriculture. We already see these policies at work: farmers have increased incomes through diversification, integrated traditional farming systems, reduced their dependency on external synthetic inputs, increased climate resilience, found alternative marketing channels, and promoted greater empowerment of women.

The Hindu Kush Himalayan (HKH) region spans over eight countries in an area of 3,500 kilometres. Its river basins make up a precious reservoir that provides water to 1.9 billion people. Its ecosystems, meanwhile, support the livelihoods of some 240 million people. With the main occupation agriculture, the HKH mountain system is a place where the responsible management of resources, climate adaptation, mitigation, and resilience remain at the heart of its people and their livelihoods.

Over the last 10 years, Indian, Bhutanese and Nepalese policymakers have increasingly recognised the need to transition towards sustainable agricultural systems in order to preserve their natural resources and improve livelihoods for rural populations. Political commitment has been concretely implemented with varying degrees of intensity, including policies and programmes with specific budget earmarks for measures supporting organic farming and agroecology. The most successful policies created overarching, integrated approaches that spanned from natural resource management to socio-economic measures that improve livelihoods.

Bringing together policymakers, policy advisors, advocates and researchers from the Himalayan region, this event will give organic and likeminded stakeholders working toward sustainable agriculture, value chains, and consumption a space for exchange. They’ll be able to share ideas and innovations, learn from each other, exchange on recent policy trends for sustainable and equitable food systems, and forge new alliances within the KHK region.