Concept note Call for abstracts

Background

The Kailash Sacred Landscape Conservation and Development Initiative (KSLCDI) promotes transboundary cooperation and sustainable development in the Kailash landscape. This landscape is spread over 31,000 sq.km across parts of China, India, and Nepal, around the sacred Mt Kailash.

KSLCDI is currently in its second phase of implementation with a focus on three components: 1) transboundary cooperation, 2) ecosystems management at scale, and 3) resilient livelihoods.

The Kailash CAFE

The COVID-19 pandemic has proven that physical distancing is no obstacle to interacting – exchange of information and ideas can be effectively achieved through digital platforms. These innovative platforms are low-cost, time saving, and have a low carbon footprint.

The Kailash Consortium of Academics and Researchers for Experience-sharing (Kailash CAFE) is a digital platform that will bring together researchers working across multiple disciplines within the Kailash Sacred Landscape. It will provide them an opportunity to share their findings with peers and other interested stakeholders, exchange ideas and methodologies, and explore research collaboration and networking opportunities.

Objectives

The Kailash CAFE 2021 aims to achieve the following objectives:

• Share knowledge, research findings, and expertise
• Establish a platform for people-to-people exchange
• Determine areas for future interventions

Expected outputs

Bringing together individuals conducting a variety of research in the landscape, Kailash CAFE 2021 is expected to:

• Increase understanding of the diversity of research conducted in the landscape
• Foster research collaboration among academics and researchers
• Publish a special issue of research papers from the landscape
• Organize annual editions of the Kailash CAFE for sharing of research findings and experiences