On a crisp clear morning as the first rays of the sun illuminate India’s snow-clad peaks, a young man can be seen walking slowly through a marshy meadow. Vikas Rana is a part of a group of 30 young people from the state of Uttarakhand who have completed training to protect one of India’s most precious natural resources.
Pencil and ruler in hand, he crouches over the ground from time to time, taking measurements and jotting down notes.
The Himalayan region is distinguished by many high-altitude wetlands. At higher than 3,000 metres above sea level, ponds, lakes, meadows and marshes form mainly from glacial melt water.
Wetlands are vital to mountain ecosystems. They regulate the flow of many important rivers by absorbing excess water during the rainy season and releasing it during the dry months. This ensures water year round and reduces the risk of floods. Due to their relative isolation, they provide a safe habitat for many rare and endangered species.
UNDP’s SECURE Himalaya initiative is working with communities in Himalayan regions to protect high-altitude wetlands. The programme is supported by the Global Environment Facility in partnership with India’s Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change.
“Our objective is to create a bridge between conservation and livelihoods,” said Aparna Pandey, State Project Officer for SECURE Himalaya in Uttarakhand. “By giving youth new skills, we want to encourage them to take pride in their natural heritage, rich culture and traditions, and inspire people around them to do the same.”
Under the programme, community-governed conservation institutions are mobilized to monitor the health of wetlands. Volunteers like Rana learn technical skills like bird and wildlife monitoring. Their labour fills the shortage of workers that local governments often face.
“Every minute was a great learning. We were taught to recognize track marks of different animals and other signs of their presence,” says a beaming Rana.
Human settlements have existed around high-altitude wetlands in the Himalayas for centuries. These communities are a rich repository of traditional knowledge that has evolved in harmony with nature. Their cultures have developed around a deep respect for nature and all living beings. As progenitors of life, wetlands are sacred, and all mountain cultures have customs and traditions to ensure their protection and sustainable use.
They also create the conditions for the pastureland that supports agriculture and livestock rearing. Medicinal herbs and plants growing in these regions are used in both traditional and modern medicine.
“These wetlands give us everything – food, water, grass for our sheep. In the last few years, they have started drying up earlier than usual. We also see less birds these days, which is not good. I tell my grandchildren we must do something,” says Nawang Chonjor, a resident of Sumdo village, which lies between two wetlands of global importance – Tso Kar and Tso Moriri.
Rana and his fellow volunteers are here because the climate crisis is threatening high-altitude wetlands and the communities living around them. Many wetlands are drying up due to global warming, a change in weather patterns and unsustainable tourism. The natural habitats of wildlife are being disturbed, especially migratory birds who travel thousands of miles each year and use these areas as stopover sites or breeding grounds.
Loss of water affects irrigation for farming and fodder for livestock, the main ways to earn a living in these regions. It also increases the risk of natural disasters such as flash floods.
Protecting high-altitude wetlands and communities go together. We need to combine the centuries’ old traditional knowledge of these ecosystems with modern science to ensure wetlands continue to flourish and sustain the communities who depend upon them.
© 2026 United Nations Development Programme
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