Eight Village Climate Change and Development Committees (VCCDC) were constituted in the eight project villages with membership of all households. The executive committee has equal representation of both the genders. Similarly proportionate representation of all caste groups, tribes and religious groups was ensured during formation of the executive committee.

To provide all-encompassing guidance for the site on organizational approach to climate neutral village initiative and stewarding water resources, a water resource management policy has been drafted. To achieve the policy goals, the VCCDC in collaboration with IRDT, will

• Communicate and reinforce sustainable water management practices to all stakeholders;
• Comply with applicable legal and other requirements;
• Consider environmental consequences and sustainability concepts in planning and decision making;
• Provide leadership in environmental conservation with focus on restoration of regional biodiversity;
• Strive to use water efficiently and minimize water loss in all uses of water;
• Strive to prevent pollution and promote reduction, reuse, recycle and proper disposal of waste;
• Strive to engage all stakeholders in efficient water management efforts, communicate periodically and facilitate mid-course corrections, if required, for greater effectiveness.

The problem recognition initiative undertaken at village level reveals that participants in the project area, in general, are not aware of the activities to be carried out. Keeping in view the above gap, focus has been laid on awareness creation, social mobilization, demonstration of technologies/interventions, engagement of CBOs in knowledge transmission, use of ICT tools in capacity building of the community and facilitation of intra-community experience sharing. As mentioned by the community, the indiscriminate use of water resources without proper planning for replenishment of water in these water sources, has led to remarkable decrease in the water table in the project villages during the last few decades. Continued deforestation, absence of water harvesting measures and lack of responsible use of water in the semi-arid region has left many dug wells dry throughout the year. The community welcomed the initiative of integrated water resource management in the project area.

At the inception stage of this innovative initiative, a lack of confidence among people was noticed. This was mainly because of lack of access to information, collective action and earlier attempts towards these goals. But gradual improvement in the level of confidence of people was observed during the processes of social mobilization, consensus creation for collective action and assurance for capacity building and continuous technical support throughout the project tenure.  A remarkable change in the confidence level of the members of VCCDCs is a bright example of this endeavour.

Change is a gradual process. The transition period between the discontinuation of conventional practices and adoption of more sustainable practices will vary from society to society and community to community. In the present scenario, the project team has been able to build rapport with the community during the first two quarters of the project. Strategic measures for capacity building of the community are underway. The behavioral change will be observed when the acquired knowledge by the individual will build his/her capacity for action, leading to tangible and intangible benefits. The self-experience will only transform the behaviour of the individual bringing out adoption of more sustainable and efficient practices. The whole process is at the inception stage now. 

The overall aim of this initiative is to enhance productivity, increase profitability, diversify choices for food and nutrition security, contribute to effective management of natural resources and empower communities through appropriate knowledge and skills transfer through ICT. It will allow appropriate dissemination of the results and take them forward for appropriate policy interventions and advocacy at the local, national and regional levels. The Theory of Change underlying this project is that alternative development trajectories are possible for individuals, families and communities with perception building and visioning exercises. It is possible that addressing better and effective management of natural endowments in these regions (e.g. biodiversity, trees, water and soil resources etc.) will increase productivity, conserve rich agro-biodiversity and natural resources in a socially equitable and environmentally sustainable manner. Therefore, perception building exercise was extensively undertaken during the village entry process. The concerned households underwent the exercise and expected a water neutral/ water surplus village in next few years.

The project focuses on integrating individual efforts with community efforts that ensures cost-effective, sustainable solutions to poverty and food and nutrition security challenges in an environmentally sustainable manner.  Throughout the period of the project, environmental impacts will be tracked, measured and reported on through regular monitoring and evaluation of environmental indicators and participatory reporting of end-users.  The findings will be shared through simple yet effective means of communication so that individuals can correlate the effectiveness of collective action to benefits at individual levels. This will further be promoted by providing platforms for experience sharing to those individuals/households who have adopted sustainable practices.

WHAT BENEFITS THE COMMUNITY AND OTHER STAKEHOLDERS SEE IN ADOPTING THE CHANGE WHICH WILL HELP IN ACHIEVING THE VALUE PROPOSITION MENTIONED ABOVE?

This is the first year of intervention with the inception coinciding with the end of the Kharif season 2015. The benefits of the ongoing intervention will be realized during/after the second half of 2016 only (specific to the interventions and seasonality).

ONCE PEOPLE HAVE MADE A CHANGE, WHAT CAN WE DO TO HELP THEM KEEP DOING IT THOSE ACTIONS WHICH WILL HELP IN ACHIEVING THE VALUE PROPOSITION MENTIONED ABOVE?

Outputs from the project are intended to cause changes in behaviour of individuals, households, communities, and governance organizations.  Those changes in behaviour are called outcomes in this project framework. Outcomes in turn generate impacts; the intended impacts for this project are efficient water governance, increased income and productivity, and improved water resources management. The behavioural changes will be reinforced by periodic capacity building and knowledge and experience sharing exercises organized by the community based organizations (VCCDCs) even after the completion of the project.

Organizing regular meetings and discussions, organizing refresher training programmes and interface with technical experts through the community based organizations (VCCDCs) will be continued to refresh the knowledge of farmers. The VCCDCs will be empowered to independently plan and organise such events effectively in collaboration with local Panchayat Raj Institutions (PRIs) and government departments.