Indian biologist conferred United Nation’s highest environmental honour 

With climate change impacting the world in more ways than one, it has become imperative to protect the Earth’s environment. Environmentalists and conservation biologists are the ones who guide us in the right direction to do exactly that. Recently, an Indian conservation and wildlife biologist named Dr. Purnima Devi Barman has received the United Nations’ highest honour for her contribution in protecting the environment. It is known as UN Environment Programme’s (UNEP) Champions of the Earth Award 2022 and the category in which she has been honoured is ‘Entrepreneurial Vision.’ Each year, this award is conferred to individuals for their ‘transformative action to prevent, halt and reverse ecosystem degradation.’ 

Dr. Barman led the Assam-based ‘Hargila Army’ from the front. It is an all-female grassroots conservation movement dedicated solely to protect the endangered Greater Adjutant Stork, the bird that happens to be one of world’s rarest storks, from rapid extinction (due to loss of their habitats). Guess how they ensure this? By creating and selling textile items with bird motifs on them. This helps raise public awareness about the bird species (that they aren’t bad omen or disease carriers). Interestingly, the word ‘hargila’ refers to the bird itself in Assamese and literally translates to “bone swallower.”  

In fact, Barman’s ground-breaking conservation efforts have empowered thousands of women, turned them into small-scale entrepreneurs and improved their livelihoods. Her army of women now stands at nearly 10,000 who secure the nesting sites, rehabilitate injured storks and even arrange ‘baby showers’ to mark the arrival of newborn storks. Not only that, the bird species is also regularly represented in folk songs, poems, festivals and plays.  

Apart from being the pioneer of the ‘Hargila Army’, Dr. Barman is also the Senior Project Manager of the Avifauna Research and Conservation Division, Aaranyak. Raised by her grandmother in the heartland (along the banks of River Brahmaputra) of Assam, Barman has been a bird lover since her girlhood and has dedicated much of her life and career to saving endangered bird species. This has ensured that the conflict between humans and wildlife is resolved simply by conserving and restoring ecosystems. What’s more impressive is that, since Barman initiated her conservation programme (in 2007), the number of nests in the Assamese villages, such as Dadara, Pachariya, and Singimari (all in the Kamrup District where the storks are most concentrated) has risen from 25 to 250, making this the largest breeding colony of the bird species worldwide. On top of this, Barman also helped build tall bamboo nesting platforms for the storks to hatch their eggs. This significant step, taken in 2017, has further saved the bird species from extinction.  

For those unaware, the Champions of the Earth Award was introduced in 2005 and has till date recognised the efforts of 111 laureates, 26 world leaders, 69 individuals and 16 organisations for their contribution in protecting the natural world. This year saw a record nomination of 2200 from around the globe.