Mission of the research initiative

Livelihoods in the Indian Sundarbans have been facing an increasing threat from climate change. Frequent coastal cyclones, rising sea levels, high soil salinity, declining agriculture, and reduced local income from other sources have created challenges to Sundarbans’ socioeconomic development while adversely affecting the ecology and the ecosystem of the region. Growing population and use of land for commercial purposes have also led to deforestation in the last two decades. The biological composition of the forests, which includes soil health, soil pH, and reduced freshwater, are being altered due to global warming and climate change, causing agricultural household members to leave their farmlands as migrant labourers. The region needs extensive research in the wake of climate change to understand the evolving livelihood patterns so that policies can be informed to improve the ecosystem and livelihood in the Sundarbans, India.