Eco Himal is registered as a non-profit-making organisation in Salzburg, Austria and as an international non-governmental organisation (INGO) with a Regional Office in Kathmandu, Nepal. Eco Himal has been working with local grass-root organisations in the Himalaya since 1992, and promotes development projects with primarily social, ecological and cultural focus. In line with the principles of the Austrian Development Co-operation, these projects aim at generating income and bringing long-term bene-fits to the lives of the local population and are targeted at the Hindukush-Himalaya region.
Our involvement in Nepal focuses on four sectors:
Small Hydro-power and Promotion of Solar Energy
Poverty Alleviation and Biodiversity Conservation
Sustainable Tourism and Manpower Development
Cultural Co-operation and Heritage Conservation
Poverty Alleviation and Bio-Diversity Conservation
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Over 80% of Nepal’s population are subsistence farmers who live exclusively off their land. Population growth, soil erosion and environmental degradation, field fragmenta-tion and low yields are increasingly impoverishing the village people. In 1994, Eco Himal has set up the Integrated Rural Development Project Arun Valley in the buffer zone of the Makalu-Barun National Park, located in the northeast of Nepal. In the remote project area located at an elevation of 700 and 2’200 metres the forest re-sources were over-utilised in the absence of additional income sources. The project’s main objective is poverty alleviation through building paths and bridges, drinking wa-ter systems, improving the agricultural output, promoting additional income sources like cloth from allo-fibre, cardamom production and fruit plantation, provision of liter-acy programs, adult education, awareness raising and small-scale health services. The main strategic feature is the participatory approach, i.e. planning and implement-ing project activities through the local Community Development Committees (CDCs) and Co-operatives, initiated by Eco Himal
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Distant Paths - Towards Sustainable Mountain Tourism
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Tourism has become one of Nepal’s most important economic sectors. Eco Himal pursues a policy of promoting a form of tourism which is appropriate to the needs of the local population as well as the visitors, and suitable for the fragile natural envi-ronment. The Rolwaling Eco Tourism Project operates in the area south of the holy mountain Gauri Shankar in north-eastern Nepal. As in all Eco Himal projects, the lo-cal people themselves are the driving force behind the project activities. Austria’s contribution is designing a sustainable tourism by building up physical infrastructure and providing funding, technical and logistic know-how, training and overall co-ordination.
Eco Himal puts emphasis on quality tourism by training programs such as the Thame Mountaineering School which provides advanced mountaineering training for trekking guides and high-altitude sherpas and female outdoor leadership training for Nepali women in the trekking business. In collaboration with the Klessheim Tourism College, a Training Program For Nepalese Tourism Management Personnel has been set up.
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Energy from the Top of the World
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Only 15% of Nepal’s households have access to electricity. Austria financed the con-struction of the Small Hydropower Plant in Thame – Namche Bazar in the Mt. Ever-est Region with a capacity of 600 kW. Electricity preserves the mountain forests through reduction in firewood consumption, and promotes business activities as well as eco-friendly tourism.
Since 1993, Eco Himal has provided management support and trained a local Sherpa team which is operating the plant. The ownership structure gives the Sherpas decision-making powers: 85% of the shares belong to the local communities, only 15% to the state-owned electric utility. A socially graded tariff system guarantees that poor farmers have access to electricity as well. Since 1999, the local power com-pany, Khumbu Bijuli Company, managed by elected representatives of the communi-ties, has been fully responsible for operation and management of the plant. Projects like the Village Development Project Thame Valley and the Drinking Water and Sew-age System in Namche Bazar complement Eco Himal’s regional development ap-proach in the Sagarmatha National Park.
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Cultural Co-Operation
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The Kathmandu Valley is one of the most important sites on the UNESCO world cul-tural heritage list. Its ancient palaces, temples and courtyards are cultural monu-ments and architectural gems, but sadly most of them are falling into ruins. Eco Hi-mal – together with international and local experts - restores the Keshar Mahal Gar-den of Dreams, a historical garden and architectural ensemble, in the centre of Kathmandu. The key feature of the project is the utilization of a dormant resource to serve as a vehicle for capacity building in a variety of fields critical to the develop-ment of quality tourism and architectural preservation: garden conservation, eco-tourism, and cultural resource management. The revitalisation not only includes the physical structure but also the introduction of new functions for locals and tourists: cafés, restaurants, exhibition facilities.
Eco Himal works with small culture groups and supports old traditions and new waves. Nepal’s first independent public radio station, Radio Sagarmatha, receives technical assistance and funds for training of journalists, and a series of traditional music productions is supported in collaboration with the Kathmandu University De-partment of Music.
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A Flock of Sheep - Help for Tibet
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Together with our Tibetan partner organisation TARA (Tibet Assistance to the Re-mote Areas) and our sister organisation Eco Himal Italia we conduct projects in very remote areas, which lag far behind the towns in regard to infrastructure improve-ments, and have hardly seen any rise in the standard of living in the last 40 years. Funding mainly comes from private sponsors and relies on the continued support of committed persons who care for the destiny of the Tibetan people
Since 1992, Eco Himal has built and furnished Tibetan primary schools in very re-mote rural areas. Each school will be provided with a flock of sheep, a traditional way of generating income for the school and providing food to the pupils. Eco Himal also supports the renovation of small monasteries, a small hospital, food aid for nomads, a traditional Tibetan medical centre and the revitalisation of a traditional weaving and dying centre
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