1xbet

Back to news
3 Jul 2015 | News

Two senior ICIMOD staff in Silk Road think tank

1 min Read

70% Complete

ICIMOD’s Director Programme Operations Dr Eklabya Sharma and Livelihoods Theme Leader Dr Golam Rasul have been named members of the Silk Road Economic Belt think tank. This is a leading think tank with globally recognized scientists in the areas of policy and strategic analysis.

The creation of the think tank follows the June 2014 international conference on ‘Ecology, Environment and Sustainable Development of Silk Road Economic Belt’ organized by the Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research (IGSNRR), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), in Beijing, China.

Among others, the IGSNRR conference had recommended the establishment of ‘The International Scientific Alliance of the Silk Road Economic Belt’, under which providing scientific think tank support for governments of the nations along the Silk Road was a major objective.

The idea of developing the ancient ‘Silk Road’ as new ‘Economic Belt’ was mooted by Chinese President Xi Jinping in a speech in Kazakshstan in 2013. The fabled old Silk Road in the higher latitude runs through China, Mongolia, Russia, Central Asia, and Europe, while the other longitudinal Silk Road connects the Mongolian north to northeast India and also connects north of central Asia to Afghanistan, Pakistan, and India. The sea route connecting Europe, Africa, and Asia fall in the Silk Road Economic Belt. However, the old Silk Road gets most of the emphasis.

According to Dr Eklabya Sharma, the think tank should bring the modern-day paradigm to the ‘Silk Road Economic Belt’ development concept. “It should also provide ideas and means of connecting northern Silk Road Belt with southern Maritime route in terms of both environmental sustainability and economic prosperity,” he said.

Dr Eklabya Sharma said improving the livelihoods of the local people while taking care of the environmental safeguards in implementing development programmes in the Silk Road Economic Belt is crucial. At the Beijing conference, Dr Eklabya Sharma also emphasized the establishment of ‘Silk Road Economic Belt Information System’.

Stay current

Stay up to date on what’s happening around the HKH with our most recent publications and find out how you can help by subscribing to our mailing list.

Sign Up

Related Contents

Continue exploring this topic

Preserving Traditions and Strengthening Livelihoods through Transboundary Yak Conservation

Nepal, India, and Bhutan – which share the transboundary Kangchenjunga landscape in the eastern Himalaya – have been connected through ...

17 Mar 2016 News
ICIMOD at the Mountain Futures Conference – Nurturing seeds for Change in the Anthropocene

An ICIMOD delegation participated in the Mountain Futures Conference: Nurturing Seeds for Change in the Anthropocene, held in Kunming, China from ...

10 Jan 2019 RMS
RMS to facilitate uptake of solutions for resilience building in the HKH

The HKH is undergoing significant changes. Recognizing these changes and building resilience is key to safeguarding livelihoods in rural mountain ...

26 May 2015 News
Indian farmers meet local entrepreneurs in Dadeldhura

ICIMOD and the Central Himalayan Environmental Association (CHEA) organized a five-day visit for the farmers/ beekeepers and the staff of partner organization ...

29 Jul 2015 News
Hands-on training on Flood Early Warning System

A five-day regional hands-on training on community-based flood early warning system (CB-FEWS) was organized in Kathmandu, Nepal, from 8-12 June ...

17 Nov 2015 News
Recovery and Resilience in Nepal

Journalist training workshop investigates earthquake recovery, climate change John Crump, senior science writer with GRID-Arendal, recollects his experiences from ...

15 Apr 2015 News
Symposium on glaciology in Asia

The glaciers and rivers of the world’s highest mountains took the ...

8 Aug 2018 Cryosphere
Three students graduate from KU’s glaciology programme

In December 2018, three new students – Aman Thapa, Anushilan Acharya, and Reeju Shrestha – graduated from this MS programme ...