By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, May 23: The North East Society For Agroecology Support (NESFAS), in collaboration with the Meghalaya Biodiversity Board (MBB), observed the International Day for Biological Diversity (IDB) at Karukol, South Garo Hills, under the theme ‘Acting Locally for Global Impact’.
The event brought together government officials, forest experts, community leaders, and students to address the protection of regional ecosystems.
BDO of Baghmara and Siju, Chengreng D. Sangma, who was the chief guest, highlighted the link between biodiversity survival and the preservation of indigenous culture.
He cautioned that the loss of local dialects accelerates environmental degradation.
“Biodiversity loss is often accelerated not just by environmental degradation, but by the systemic loss of indigenous languages,” Sangma stated.
“When a community forgets the traditional names of plants in their local dialects, they lose the generational knowledge of its medicinal properties, its history, and its ecological place of origin,” Sangma added.
He also urged the student community to preserve and actively use the traditional A•chik and A•tong dialects when identifying regional flora, as he argued that language is a vital repository of conservation data.
On the other hand, Baghmara Range Officer Eliazer Ch. Momin discussed ecological interdependencies and noted that protecting forests is inseparable from protecting wildlife like elephants, which aid forest regeneration through seed dispersal.
Similarly, Rongchekgre Nokma Bethuel G. Momin reminded the gathering that human well-being is dependent on the equilibrium of coexisting floral and faunal populations.
Meanwhile, Karukol Higher Secondary School Principal Betroy M. Sangma encouraged students to plant and nurture trees as a core civic duty.
The programme featured an exhibition of indigenous wild edibles and rare medicinal plants. A student from Karukol Higher Secondary School also presented a brief on local plants historically used for wound healing.
The event concluded with a capacity-building workshop for the local Biodiversity Management Committee (BMC). Facilitated by Lianchi Sangma of the MBB, the session focused on documentation methodologies for People’s Biodiversity Registers (PBRs) to ensure the legal protection of traditional knowledge.
