Independiente Diálogo
Enfoque geográfico:
India
Major focus
The Seaweed Dialogues in India were held to focus on mapping the seaweed landscape in India, and understanding how seaweed impacts ecology, climate change, livelihoods, and nutrition in India. In India, the states of Gujarat and Tamil Nadu dominate large-scale seaweed production. 282 seaweed species have been reported along Tamil Nadu's 1,000km (621 miles) coastline alone and in total, as many as 841 species of seaweed thrive along the Indian coast, though only a few are cultivated. The government’s policies are likely to stimulate production further across various states. As seaweed garners
... Leer más importance, we aimed at hosting a conversation that provided an understanding of what the seaweed space currently looks like in India. We also wanted to understand how it can engage audiences in safe production and responsible consumption of seaweed without adversely affecting biodiversity and the ecosystem. The Dialogues were aimed at creating a platform for a rich and engaging conversation from individuals, organizations, experts, and novice enthusiasts from various sectors. Since the industry is at its nascent stages in India, we invited participants from technology, policy, innovation, conservation, and food to discuss all the facets of seaweed. Our focus was to bring together as many experts, who often operate in silos, to come together and engage. We also began an online community called Seaweed Saturdays as a precursor to the Seaweed Dialogues to provide context to individuals who may have expertise in livelihoods, or innovation, but are still new to seaweed. The reason for bringing these individuals together followed Action Track #1 “Ensure access to safe and nutritious food”, as India has a high proportion of vegetarians who often lack protein, and seaweed has the ability to bridge that gap. It is touted as the next “superfood” but also holds the potential to meet the nutritional requirement for a larger population. This was a part of our conversation in the Discussion Group labeled “Conservationist Approach to Cooking and Eating with Seaweed,” We focused on Action Track #2 “Shift to sustainable consumption patterns” - by bringing in speakers and participants from demand markets, e.g. innovators and chefs. The goal of this was to look beyond seaweed as a superfood and explore how to sustainably use the ingredient. The conversation also involved how to sustainably source particular species of seaweed and the building of direct connections with the communities involved in farming and harvesting seaweed. This was a part of our Discussion Groups labeled “Sustainable Seaweed Innovation” as well as “Conservationist Approach to Cooking and Eating with Seaweed.” Action track #3, “Boost nature- positive production” was a part of our conversation on sustainably farming seaweed, and the Discussion Groups “Mapping Seaweed in India” and “Seaweed Production & Policy”. The first aimed at using technology to map seaweed species along our coastlines, while the second looked at the benefits of growing seaweed for the environment and coastal communities. It also evaluated how to do so conscientiously, and explored how policy can shape better practices. Currently, India has no policy that looks at seaweed, but as it increases the budget spends for seaweed, we wanted to bring in the discussion of how policy can be a tool in ensuring native species are encouraged and the biodiversity is retained, in an effort to balance people, planet, and profits. Action Track #4 “Advance equitable livelihoods” and Action Track #5 “Build resilience to vulnerabilities, shocks, and stress” were both a part of our Discussion Groups “Equitable Livelihoods” and “Seaweed Production & Policy”. We explored how the coastal communities, and primarily the women in these communities, can be provided fairer rates, and what can be done to safeguard their lives and incomes by evaluating safety standards and market practices. Post our dialogues, our focus remains to continue these multi-disciplinary conversations in an effort to chart the actions that are required to positively impact the production and consumption of seaweed in India via Seaweed Saturdays. Leer menos
Línea(s) de Acción: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
Palabras clave: Data & Evidence, Environment and Climate, Governance, Human rights, Innovation, Policy, Women & Youth Empowerment