Women’S Role in Biodiversity

Women’s Role in Biodiversity

Khilendra Basnyat

The sheer diversity of life is of intrinsic value. It not only provides a foundation for the continued existence of a healthy planet but also our welfare.

Biologists believe that ecosystems rich in biodiversity gain resilience and are able to recover readily from drought or human induced habitat degradation.

When ecosystems are diverse, it has been observed that there are many pathways for primary production and ecological processes such as nutrient cycle. Consequently, if one is damaged or destroyed an alternative path may be used and the system can continue working as usual.

Mountains occupy about 20 percent of the world’s land area. They are home to about 10 percent of its population and possess a great diversity of flora and fauna.

Mountains exhibit diversification in age and distribution although one may find them from the humid coasts to the dry interior regions. They include a wide range of microclimates and ecosystems such as rainforests, grasslands, tundra, bare rocks and glaciers.

Some visualize mountains as dead monolithic rocks, unchanging and impregnable. However, they are realizing now that mountains are magnificent ecosystem, offering various services to each and its inhabitants.

Mountains are as fragile as any other ecosystems in the world. They have unique biodiversity as well as cultural biodiversity.

Agricultural diversity and cultural diversity go simultaneously in some mountainous regions. For example, in the Hindu Kush Himalayan region, each region’s diverse ethnic groups grow their own variety of forests and spices.

Mountains possess endemic species of repositories of genetic diversity. They have more lichens and ferns than lowlands. Actually, plants and animals have been reported above 5000 meter. In addition, mountains act as critical corridors for migrating animals.

Most species of flora and fauna are lost in the valleys and plains being unable to bear the pressure from development activities. However, until now mountains have functioned as a sanctuary for a variety of flora and fauna.

Mountains forests are of paramount importance for human survival. Both highland and lowland communities throughout the world rely on mountain forests for their physical, cultural and economical survival.

Forests on mountains slopes not only help reduce soil erosion but also prevent landslides, avalanches, and flooding. Mountain forests ensure that highland and lowland communities have reliable supply of safe water. They can be sources of food, fuel, fibers and medicines.

Biodiversity is very significant for preserving and maintaining nature’s ecosystem. It includes the variety of plants, animals, micro organism, the genes they contain and the ecosystems they form.

Mountains are conducive to great diversity which is the building block of the agricultural system in marginal environment. People can use this biodiversity to create integrated and robust ways of producing food which is essential for human survival.

The biodiversity found in mountain forests is significant for its commercial potential. Moreover, each species plays a specific role in maintaining a vibrant as well as stable ecosystem.

The potatoes and corn of today also exist in a wild state. The farmers of Andes often tolerate undomesticated ancestral plants even in their own fields in order to encourage cross-fertilization between domesticated and wild varieties, resulting in new ones and increased biodiversity.

Cross-fertilization between wild and domesticated varieties has been observed in Ethiopia for sorghum. In the beans fields of central Africa, the rate of cross-fertilization among different varieties sharing the same plot of land is about 4 percent. Due to cross- fertilization, beans with new characteristics appear, and farmers plant them separately in order to document their characteristics.

In the Himalayan region, domestic and wild varieties of common orange and mango trees often grow simultaneously. Actually, wild and domestic trees fertilize each other, blending their genes, thereby supporting increased biodiversity.

World’s seeds have been continually lost since the past century. They represent a kind of still life of the world’s agricultural biodiversity refrigerated in the gene banks, which are mostly located in the plains.

Today the conservation of local varieties in farmer’s fields is threatened by modern agricultural practices. It has been found out that even the resource has not provided proper consideration to the utilization of local genetic materials.

Nepal has a quintessential mountain environment. It has more than 2,000 indigenous varieties of rice, including aromatic type.

According to local farmers, of the 75 traditional varieties inventoried in Pokhare valley, 17 have already been lost. These farmers argue that there are another 47 varieties which are in the process of being lost. They are of the opinion that some of these varieties are only found in Nepal.

Nepal has indigenous species of cucumbers, cowpeas, garlic, gourds, mustard, peppers, pumpkins, and tomatoes. However, due to increasing commercial seed distribution network here, the native variety of species is being lost day by day.

Research has made it clear that corn originated in the mountains. It has been found out that in Mexico and Guatemala, traditional and wild varieties of corn have been quickly vanishing.

In the mountainous region, the most distinct division of labor is in regard to management of genetic resources which is usually done by women. In most mountain communities, women are guardians of seeds. Therefore, if they are well trained, they can play a vital role in protecting the mountain diversity in future.