Pune, September 15, 2025: The Department of Environment and Climate Change, Government of Maharashtra, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Watershed Organisation Trust (WOTR) and its research arm, WOTR Centre for Resilience Studies (W-CReS), to integrate Ecosystem-based Adaptation (EbA) into the state’s development framework.
The initiative aims to embed ecosystem services into policy, engage communities in co-creating solutions, and strengthen institutions to tackle climate risks. It is also highlighted in the Maharashtra State Action Plan on Climate Change (MH SAPCC): Pathways for 2030.
Maharashtra, home to over 112 million people, is heavily dependent on agriculture, which employs nearly half the workforce and contributes 11% of the state’s GDP. However, drought-prone areas and erratic rainfall have made water scarcity and crop losses recurring challenges. The partnership seeks to address these risks by conserving biodiversity, regenerating ecosystems, and improving resilience in farming communities.
The MoU is structured around three key pillars: regenerating ecosystems and conserving biodiversity; promoting sustainable and equitable community management of natural resources; and enhancing adaptive capacities of rural institutions and communities to secure resilient livelihoods.
“Ecosystem-based Adaptation must become the backbone of Maharashtra’s development journey. Only by undertaking adaptive and risk-mitigating action and weaving nature into policy and practice, can we build climate resilience and secure both incomes and biodiversity for the future,” said Marcella D’Souza, Director, W-CReS.
Abhijit Ghorpade, Director, State Climate Action Cell, Department of Environment and Climate Change, Government of Maharashtra, added, “EbA should become the bedrock of public policy. Sustainability is the lens through which all our developmental projects, schemes and programmes should be viewed and analysed. By working with WOTR and W-CReS, we aim to embed resilience into every layer of Maharashtra’s development agenda and action. This collaboration will ensure that vulnerable communities are better prepared for droughts, floods, and other climate shocks.”
WOTR and W-CReS have restored over 3.84 million hectares of degraded land and improved water security for 8.4 million people across 10 states in India. The collaboration is expected to strengthen Maharashtra’s preparedness for climate change while expanding the reach of ecosystem-based adaptation solutions.
