The Community Led Assessment, Awareness, Advocacy and Action Programme for Environment Protection and Carbon Neutrality in Himachal Pradesh (CLAP for Himachal) was launched with the vision to develop Himachal Pradesh as the first climate resilient State by mobilising community responsibility for environmental assessment, environment protection and carbon neutrality.

• To estimate the carbon footprint of the panchayat and identify the sectors that contribute most to carbon footprint and environmental degradation

• To provide an understanding of the current environmental conditions to each panchayat

• To propose potential measures and actions to remedy the ill-effects

• To facilitate the mobilisation of the above activities in a participatory manner, building on local traditional knowledge

• To monitor the progress of the panchayat with respect to carbon footprint and environmental parameters

Keeping in perspective the objectives, the priority sectors for assessment have been identified as energy, natural resource management, land use and waste management. Within these broad priority sectors, all parameters that are important not only in the context of carbon emissions, but also for indicating environment quality, are considered, as indicated below.

Energy - Considers fuel consumption for transport, domestic purposes and also electricity consumption

Natural Resource Management - Considers air and water quality, water availability, biodiversity status

Land Use - Considers agricultural practices, land use change patterns and forestry related practices

Waste Management - Considers quantum and nature of waste generated and the practices adopted for its recycling and disposal

Sectors such as industry that are not under community control have been kept beyond the purview of the assessment. However, the impact of industry, as cited in official records, are reflected in the results as a distinct component, so that while actual carbon footprint and environment quality is recorded, the community is not deemed directly responsible.

The conceptual framework of the assessment exercise is deliberately dual in its overarching objective - of assessment, as well as awareness. Thus, the objective is not merely to embark upon a data collection mission, but to stimulate dialogue and discussion amongst the community on the environmental scenario through the assessment process. And how is it linked to their actions, livelihoods secondary data is also sourced and used for the analysis. While the existing secondary data helps in probing for relevant information from the community respondents, the primary data gleaned feedbacks into the validation of the secondary data in a complementary process.

The assessment results are communicated not as dry data, but through a set of three report cards - the carbon card, the state of environment card and the environment action card. The cards utilise a simple star rating system that can be easily understood by the lay-person with even the different sectors being represented by icons that are self-explanatory. The star has been deliberately chosen as the symbol of communication, as the idea is not to paint a picture of gloom, but one of hope, spurring the community to take and demand ameliorative action.

The carbon card indicates the carbon footprint of the panchayat, as also the total emissions and sequestration. Along with appreciable percentage change in terms of improvement or deterioration, sector-wise footprint is also indicated, so as to facilitate the prioritisation of action. The state of environment card depicts environment quality with respect to air and water and also the biodiversity status of the assessment area. The environment action card indicates the extent to which the practices being followed in the assessment area are contributing to reduction in footprint and environment protection. Looking at it from the climate change perspective, it may be said that the carbon card recognises success of mitigation measures, while the environment action card appreciates the adoption of adaptation measures.

As the impact of climate change and deteriorating environment affects all stakeholders, but in different ways, the assessment exercise has been designed to be multi-stakeholder in nature, so as to gain maximum insights into the impact and perceptions of climate change. The stakeholder involvement in the assessment process also ensures that there is acceptance and ownership of the results generated. Thus, besides panchayat representatives, participation of women, youth, representatives of different livelihood groups, such as farmers, artisans etc are also ensured.

Panchayat representatives are key stakeholders in the assessment process, as all developmental activities in the rural areas are planned and implemented through panchayats as the nodal institution. This sets the stage for environmental mainstreaming through participatory processes in local development planning. Moreover, being peoples’ representatives, they are well positioned to mobilise participation and support of the community.

Our experiences field testing the carbon-environment assessment tool in rural Himachal Pradesh have been interesting and encouraging. The discussion and debate that builds around the participatory exercises throw a wealth of information and traditional knowledge, offering valuable insights into the inherent climate consciousness of the people. The eco-cards too generate considerable interest. With the pilot phase over, the exercise is slated to be replicated across multiple spaces. We eagerly look forward to the wealth of information, a vibrant grassroots dialogue on environment and climate change and the expected stories of change as these would be the true indicators of the success of the tool.

There are three distinct aspects to the assessment exercise – the collection of data from primary and secondary sources, the scientific analysis of the data and the communication of the data and analysis results in a way that they are easily understood by all stakeholders.

Both primary and secondary data are collected for the purpose of assessment. For primary data collection, community interface workshops are organised with the participation of all important stakeholder groups. A questionnaire survey is conducted using PRA tools and techniques. The testing of air and water provides primary data with respect to environment quality. Secondary data is collected from local officials and available government records.

The data collected is analysed to not only determine carbon footprint and environmental quality status, but also to prepare the eco-cards for information and communication. Data analysis is mostly based on internationally accepted methodologies and formulae with the assumptions based on the Indian context as indicated in various scientific studies.

The findings of the assessments are presented in a report card with three separate sheets – a carbon card, a state of environment card and an environment action card. The status and performance (improvement or deterioration) with respect to emissions and environment quality is represented through stars and crosses for the simplicity of communication. Improvement or deterioration is measured against the baseline and is accordingly represented by stars and crosses. Ameliorative action taken by the community is also similarly appreciated through stars and detrimental activities indicated by crosses. Improvement is recognised by a range of one to four stars, whereas deterioration is indicated by a range of one to three crosses as described below. q