The Habitats Trust Grants Announces Conservation Champions for 2020
Grants amounting to Rs. 84 Lakhs across four categories awarded to protectors of India’s natural habitats and indigenous species
Noida, Uttar Pradesh, New Delhi, Delhi, India: The Habitats Trust, founded by Roshni Nadar Malhotra, Chairperson of HCL Technologies, today announced the recipients of The Habitats Trust Grants 2020. The Habitats Trust Grants is an annual initiative aimed at securing India’s biodiversity by bolstering efforts of conservationists on-ground by bridging the resource gap along and providing critical support to make their work more sustainable.
Winners for The Habitats Trust Grants 2020 are:
| Grant Category | About the Category | Grant received | Grant Winner | About the winner |
| Strategic Partnership Grant | This grant reaches out to mid to large sized field-work oriented organisations to create a two-way partnership for the common cause of conservation. | Rs. 25 lakhs | The Corbett Foundation | Conservation and recovery of the great Indian bustard in Kutch |
| Lesser-known Habitats Grant | This Grant is open to organisations working to secure and regenerate the overlooked and unaddressed habitats of the country that are in urgent need of conservation attention. | Rs. 20 lakhs | SEEDS Trust | Conserving the Ayyalur habitat and its biodiversity |
| Lesser-known Species Grant | This grant aims to support organizations working to secure a future for lesser-known endangered species, which have not been awarded the same level of protection as more charismatic species such as tigers, leopards, elephants and rhinos. | Rs. 15 lakhs | Bat Conservation India Trust | Research and conservation to prevent extinction of the Kolar-leaf Nosed Bat |
| Conservation Hero Grant | Across the country there are grassroots conservationists working dedicatedly with little or no support, to protect the biodiversity. The work they do in their individual capacity has a huge positive impact on conservation in the country. This grant aims to recognize these conservation heroes and provide them a platform to expand their activities and garner further support for their work. | Rs. 10 lakhs | M Suraj | Anti-snare walks in Protected Areas of Chhattisgarh to curb poaching |
Congratulating the winners, Ms. Roshni Nadar Malhotra, Founder & Trustee, The Habitats Trust said, “The global pandemic set off ripple effects across nations as it upended every aspect of human life. While to many it may have appeared that the slow-down of human activity benefited nature, the reality was different, as the pandemic adversely affected natural habitats and wildlife on account of our National Parks and Reserves being left exposed and vulnerable. India saw an increase of 151% in poaching cases during the lockdown as per a report by TRAFFIC. However, we’ve seen conservationists, surmounting numerous hurdles and make heroic efforts to continue pushing ahead with their mission of protecting vulnerable biodiversity even in these difficult times. As part of our commitment, we are honoured to extend our support to them and their projects that are aimed at restoring and protecting critical ecosystems to help better preserve our natural biodiversity.”
The Habitats Trust Grants’ recipients were selected through a rigorous five-stage process that took into account the expected impact, relevance and scalability of the project; the applicants’ capacity to deliver and finally the long-term sustainability of their proposed work post the one year grant period. The Trust received over 4300 registrations this year and chose 12 finalists after conducting a thorough evaluation and due diligence by an external auditor. The Habitats Trust Grants team also visited the finalists’ project sites across the country to assess the scope and potential conservation impact of the applicants’ proposed projects.
The four recipients of the Grants were chosen from a total of 12 finalists (four in each category) by an eminent jury that included Dr. M. K. Ranjitsinh, Wildlife Expert and the prime architect of the Wild Life (Protection) Act of 1972 (the first central legislation on wildlife conservation in India); Bahar Dutt, Wildlife Biologist, Author and Environmental Journalist; Brian Heath – Founder and CEO for the Mara Triangle Conservation Area, Kenya and Roshni Nadar Malhotra, Chairperson of HCL Technologies, Founder and Trustee of The Habitats Trust.
While The Habitats Trust awarded full financial grants to one recipient in each category, other finalists were also awarded 10 percent of the grant amount in their respective categories, to ensure that their efforts and work is recognized. The total grants awarded by The Habitats Trust Grants 2020 is Rs. 84 lakhs.
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