Ranjan Panda, head of the Indian conservation organization MASS, is heralded as a climate crusader for his work addressing desertification in Orissa.
In an interview with Indian newstation NDTV, Ranjan discussed the impacts that climate change and increasing desertification will have for Orissa’s residents in the coming years, including severe water shortages and the accompanying social ramifications. For example, in one village that was suffering from water shortage, no one would marry the young men there.
MASS created a special focus group to specifically examine the impacts of desertification and implement conservation measures called ‘Water Initiatives Orissa’. This multi-stakeholder campaign’s goal is to increase the use of traditional water harvesting techniques such as irrigation. “No one wanted to marry their daughters with anybody in this village because of water problems. Now we have marriage proposals round the year,” said Saniara, of Tellibenna village, Orissa, where traditional irrigation techniques were implemented with this group’s help.
In 2006, Water Initiatives Orissa received funds from Greengrants to support a study of water management techniques. This study is aimed at evaluating the World Bank-supported ‘Orissa Water Resources Consolidation Project.’ Because this community-based water management model is being promoted as a success by government agencies, it is vital to determine its actual impacts for local citizens.
Global warming has serious implications for water use and availability in many regions around the world. While it is a global challenge, activists such as Ranjan are proving that solutions are indeed possible at the community level.
To read the full text of NDTV’s interview, click here.