Sustainable pastoralism represents a primary strategy for supporting goals of the Kunming–Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. Sixty-seven percent of biodiversity hotspots and 38% of key biodiversity areas globally include rangelands, but international conventions seldom recognize this vast biodiversity repository. We summarize four synergies between pastoralism and biodiversity conservation: working lands conservation, continuation of vital disturbance regimes, connectivity through transhumance corridors, and community-led governance. 

This report highlights the ecological, cultural, and economic importance of rangelands, which cover over half the Earth’s land surface and support both biodiversity and pastoral livelihoods.

It examines growing threats from land conversion and restrictive policies to climate change and calls for stronger integration of rangelands into global biodiversity and climate frameworks.

The paper discuss the main findings in the Special issue on Pastoralism in South Asia from the eight papers based on research conducted in the Himalayan region of South Asia. An overview is presented of pastoralism in the Himalayan region, including India, Pakistan, Nepal and Bhutan. Drawing parallels with the global stresses to pastoralists, papers in this special issue highlighted three sets of contemporary stresses to the pastoralists of the Himalayan region viz. (a) lack of herding labour, associated changing aspirations of youth and decline in traditional knowledge systems; (b) continued stresses from the state and between the formal and informal institutions; and (c) climatic stresses and associated impacts on the rangeland and livestock health.

The snow leopard (Panthera uncia), an iconic species of High Asia’s mountain ecosystems, inhabits vast, multi-use landscapes that sustain both unique biodiversity and millions of pastoral livelihoods. As global attention to snow leopard conservation has intensified over the past two decades, there is an urgent need to assess the scope, focus, and gaps within existing research to better inform policy and practice.

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This review synthesizes over a century of published scholarship, revealing strong ecological emphasis but limited geographical coverage, insufficient attention to human dimensions, and a critical lack of evidence evaluating conservation effectiveness—highlighting key priorities for future research and collaborative action.

Pastoralism among the Dokpa herders of North Sikkim is transforming amid geopolitical, socio-economic, and climatic changes, reshaping rangeland management and traditional livelihoods.

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Drawing on mixed-methods research, this study examines their unique seasonal grazing system, institutional governance under the Dzumsa, and emerging stresses including land fragmentation, wildlife conflict, and climate-related livestock loss.

This paper critiques the conservation–eviction–ecotourism model in the Indian Himalaya, showing how the removal of pastoralists from Khangchendzonga National Park transformed a cultural grazing landscape into a tourist economy.

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Based on mixed-methods research, it highlights social exclusion, livelihood loss, and ecological shifts, questioning the inclusivity and conservation effectiveness of fortress-style policies.

This study examines the long-term impacts of the 1998 grazing ban and pastoral evictions around Khangchendzonga National Park in Sikkim, highlighting how conservation-induced displacement reshapes mobility and livelihoods.

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Findings reveal that evictions deepen inequalities, fuel social conflict, and create new conservation challenges, questioning assumptions that such measures inherently benefit biodiversity.

Himalayan pastoralists have long relied on mobility to sustain livelihoods in fragile rangelands that are equally vital for biodiversity, including species like the snow leopard, yet socio-economic and climatic shifts are transforming these systems.

Focusing on the Dokpas of North Sikkim, this study examines changing rangeland management, emerging stresses on pastoral livelihoods, and evolving human–wildlife relations to inform more inclusive conservation planning.

This study documents traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) on livestock and resource management in Upper Spiti, highlighting how herders use nuanced knowledge of pasture, fodder, and seasonality to navigate social and ecological uncertainties.

Amid shifting aspirations, migration, and changing livelihoods, signs of TEK erosion and altered herding practices raise concerns for long-term livestock production, rangeland health, and conservation outcomes.

Drawing on ethnographic research in West Sikkim, this article explores tensions between ex-herders and the Himal Rakshaks following the 1998 grazing ban and pastoral evictions from Khangchendzonga National Park.

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It shows how conservation roles and recognition are locally contested, revealing the complex social inequalities and unintended consequences that can accompany state-led conservation initiatives.

This article follows Dr Rashmi Singh’s journey to Spiti as she explores traditional livestock rearing practices and pastoral knowledge in the high-altitude Himalaya. 

Pastoralism is seen to be pervasive in the cold deserts across the world. These cold deserts are also home to a unique assemblage of wildlife. While sharing the same space and resources, human societies and wildlife come in conflict due to competition over natural resources and predation by the carnivores. This study was conducted in North Sikkim to understand the human-wildlife relations and patterns in predation during Entire are is inhabited by seminomadic pastoral community locally known as Dokpa.

Examining decadal trends in five villages of Spiti, this study finds that livestock numbers have halved and herd composition has shifted, challenging dominant narratives of rising stocking densities.

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The decline reflects broader social and economic transformations and may have significant implications for agro-pastoral systems and wildlife conservation in the Trans-Himalaya.

This photo essay follows Aitamaan Limbu, one of the last sheep herders in West Sikkim, whose pastoral life endures despite grazing bans and restricted access around Khangchendzonga National Park.

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Set against wider debates on livestock, conservation, and traditional ecological knowledge, it documents a day in his life and the fragile continuities of pastoral culture in the Eastern Himalaya.