Knowledge Exchange and Learning Between Communities

The Elopa-Etugu Community Eco-Cultural Preserve (EECEP), a Community Conserved Area (CCA) in the Lower Dibang Valley of Arunachal Pradesh, regularly hosts communities from across Northeast India to share knowledge, field experience, and best practices to community-led conservation and management of Community Conservation Areas. These exchange visits provide opportunities for visiting communities to observe on-ground management practices, discuss challenges, and learn from real experiences of establishing and managing CCAs.

Through these interactions, EECEP also supports other communities that are in the process of establishing CCAs on their own lands. The exchanges help build understanding on governance systems, habitat management, and community participation, and allow communities to adapt and apply suitable practices in their own contexts.

EECEP’s wider conservation impact is also reflected through these learning exchanges. So far, six communities have been hosted for exposure visits to EECEP sites, where they engaged with community members, rangers, and coordinators to understand management practices in detail. In addition, members of EECEP have been invited by four communities to advice them and share experience on setting up and managing community-led conservation.

These ongoing exchanges strengthen connections between communities, support peer learning, and help spread practical conservation approaches across the region.

About Dibang Team 

The Dibang Team is a collective of Idu Mishmi people from the twin districts of the Dibang Valley of Arunachal Pradesh, India. We have been working to conserve the region’s bio-cultural diversity while creating sustainable livelihoods. We combine Western science with Idu knowledge, culture, and spirituality to strengthen our cultural and traditional institutions, ensuring that the region’s biocultural diversity continues to thrive for generations.