Eastern Himalayas

Click map for larger view of the Kangchenjunga Conservation Area

Supporting local communities

Through the Kangchenjunga Conservation Area Project (KCAP), WWF partners with a coalition of local and indigenous communities in Kangchenjunga on conservation and development initiatives. WWF is focusing on conservation education, eco-tourism and women's empowerment as strategies to achieve long-term  results.

Because women play a significant role in utilizing, conserving, and managing natural resources, the KCAP emphasizes empowering women as a proven way to achieve conservation results in the community. 

To reach local women, WWF helped establish "Mother's Groups" to offer their members leadership education, literacy and bookkeeping classes, skill development and training for income generation. Each Mother's Group has scholarship funds they place in interest-bearing accounts. The interest earned is then used to fund stipends for female students who might otherwise not be able to attend school. in the KCA. 

The project also implements programs on sustainable development that include eco-tourism management, social services and basic healthcare. This outreach in turn compliments conservation awareness and agroforestry programs in the KCA. WWF is also working to ensure local stewardship of natural resources, and strengthening government infrastructure and human resources.