THIRD LANTANA MELA AT MM HILLS
Mela brings artisans, forest department officials, policymakers, researchers and others together to share experiences and discuss problems and prospects
Bangalore, 3 October 2007: For the third year in a row, the Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE) is organising a Lantana Mela at MM Hills. Lantana Mela - 2007 will be held at MM Hills on 6 October. The Chief Guest Mrs Parimala Nagappa, MLA - Hannur, will also lay the foundation for a Community-Based Conservation Centre (CCC) at MM Hills. The Lantana Mela is meant to provide a platform for Lantana artisans to share their experiences, spread awareness of Lantana craft and facilitate discussion on problems and prospects. It will include an exhibition of Lantana crafts and an interaction session with artisans.
Last year's mela, Lantana Confluence - 2006 was inaugurated by Prof David Ehrenfeld Distinguished Professor of Biology at Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey and founder editor of the journal Conservation Biology. It was attended by more than 300 participants and brought together a host of people representing different sections of society and artisans working on Lantana, researchers, self help group members from MM Hills, representatives from the Ford Foundation, Covenant Centre for Development, Karnataka Forest Department and the media. The Confluence raised several issues related to resource availability and sustainability, impact of harvest and regeneration of native biodiversity, training and development, design and quality, pricing, marketing and credit facilities.
Earlier, at the inaugural Lantana mela 2005, artisans from four states of India-MM Hills (Karnataka), Natham (Tamil Nadu), Chithoor (Andhra Pradesh) and Dehra Dun (Uttaranchal)-met and agreed to establish a network amongst themselves to better coordinate efforts to improve quality and popularise Lantana products in the country.
Lantana camara is considered one of the ten worst weeds in the world. It has invaded forests and farmland all over the country and has proved to be a nightmare for forest managers and farmers alike. It is estimated that Lantana has invaded 60 percent of the forest land in MM hills. The ATREE intervention here aimed at conservation by substitution-using Lantana instead of bamboo to enhance livelihoods and restore native biodiversity.
Lantana craft has enabled tribal artisans to earn a livelihood from a widely available weed. There is support from the Forest Department to harvest Lantana from the forest. Income levels have increased and there has been an increase in the number of work days (days in which they earn an income). The Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation (TRIFED) has come forward to support the Lantana Craft Centre and assist artisans in marketing products through their well connected networks throughout India. The last year also saw the visit of scientists from Missouri Botanical Garden Madagascar Programme in September 2006. Madagascar is one of the world's biodiversity hotspots facing a serious threat from Lantana invasion in some parts. The team is excited about the possibility of replicating this intervention in Madagascar and this is a good example of south-south cooperation in conservation.
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| Lantana Confluence - 2006 and (right) Prof Ehrenfeld inaugurating the Lantana Craft Centre |
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| Images from the Lantana Confluence - 2005 |
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