Keystone Foundation

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The concept of keystone emerges from the nest-building behaviour of some birds in nature. These permanent nest structures serve as habitat for several life forms. Such keystone species become crucial in providing opportunities for other associated beings to grow and evolve. Thus, Keystone Foundation is born out of a simple ecological principle of the interdependence of natural systems.

Keystone Foundation has completed ten years in the Nilgiris, working with indigenous communities on eco-development initiatives. The Foundation's work has been concentrated in the areas of apiculture, micro-enterprise development, non-timber forest produce, land and water management, revival of traditional agriculture, and other issues concerning indigenous communities.

Mission

"Our Mission is to enhance the Quality of Life and the Environment with Indigenous Communities using Eco-development Approaches"

Goal

To work on issues of Natural Resources and Rural Development, with Indigenous People in mountainous and adjoining regions, addressing the challenges of conservation, livelihoods and enterprise development, through appropriate - knowledge & action, technologies, socio-economic innovations and institutions.

Programme Areas

Keystone has been working in the last 10 years on Apiculture, Land Development, Organic and Fair Trade Marketing, and Non Timber Forest Produce with indigenous communities. A strategic outlook for the next decade keeping these program areas as the basis to holistically approach the issues of Livelihoods, Conservation & Enterprise was necessary.
In the coming 10 years, an integrated approach towards indigenous people will be made through the three programme areas of Natural Resources Management, Enterprise Development and Institutional Development & Local Governance.

Programme Principles

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The following principles will be adopted by all programmes in the organization:

  1. Social, gender impacts and analysis along with participatory planning, analysis, management, monitoring and evaluation will be carried out
  2. Use and documentation of indigenous knowledge and culture
  3. Environmental sensitivity, institutional options for sustainability, and an enterprise orientation
  4. Advocacy and policy engagement with different role players
  5. Networking for enabling a global-local sharing
  6. Integrated and innovative design, approach, technology, process and delivery
Programme Areas

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Natural Resource Management
Apiculture - Honey hunting and Beekeeping - exploring the role and linkage of honeybees and traditional communities in rural development and culture. Understanding the role of bees as biodiversity indicators and pollination agents of wild and cultivated plants.
Biodiversity - NTFPs, Conservation & Community - ecological monitoring of NTFPs, harvesting systems and technology, trade and value addition aspects, information and documentation of NTFPs collected and the role of forest communities in conservation.
Water Resources - study communities & water management systems in hill areas and their livelihood systems. Implement small drinking water projects for indigenous communities. Research on issues of access, control, use, up-land and low-land water sharing mechanisms and advocate changes in hill water policies.
Land Resources - revive traditional agriculture systems with indigenous communities which have a direct contribution to food security and improvement of household nutrition. Implement soil and moisture conservation measures; establish seed banks of threatened hill food species; understand the present trend of growing cash crops against food crops and accordingly design and implement interventions.
Enterprise Development
Local Marketing - promote local trade and marketing in local / rural areas with indigenous groups and establish a chain of Green Shops in urban areas. Diversify food, craft and artisan products for larger benefits to primary collectors and producers and build their stake in the enterprise.
Certification - initiate organic certification for small farmers to retain the biodiversity in small homestead farms and arrest drastic land use change. Contribute to the knowledge of forest - certification for encompassing biodiversity and cultural practices which go beyond non-chemical presence.
Value Addition - add value and generate income at the village level through products brought out from projects and produced & gathered traditionally in farms and forests.
Institutional Development & Local Governance
Study the traditional organizations amongst indigenous hill communities. Initiate through a participatory process, the establishment of village institutions which will manage, handle and spin-off future activities at the following levels:
Producer Groups - village production units value-adding natural resources through training and enterprise development.
Farmer Groups - forest communities that traditionally collect NTFPs and are diversifying into land based activities of high value spices, and food crops.
Traditional indigenous institutions - cultural activities or gathering territories, ancestral domains which bind forest communities together. Understand both the historical aspects and the present context and trends to arrive at contemporary, relevant forward-looking institutional models.

 

For working towards self reliance
To add value and income
To reduce exploitation of an informal market

Product range includes: Various types of Honey, Bees-wax Candles, Bees Wax Soaps, Balms & Greeting-cards, Spices.