Conservation Development Foundation

About

Name of organisation

Conservation Development Foundation (CODEFUND)

Funding support

Government project call, Nepal; Environmental institution

Number of staff

6

Number of visitors per year

N/A

Overall aims of the centre

Overall aims of our centre are:

• Establish conservation development forum and seek conservation financing mechanism through national and international networking, partnership, professional services and propositions based on collective inputs and actions
• Demonstrate conservation of biodiversity and natural resources to improve ecosystem health by empowering community, and share incentives that respect social and environmental justice, governance and equity
• Influence at policy level, legal and socio-economic space for safeguarding ecosystem health and services
• Generate impacts through conservation researches, knowledge development, innovative actions and practices, and their dissemination with an initiation of conservation academy and green communication and  recognition.

Description of the centre

Currently CODEFUND has been conservation awareness and capacity
enhancement under 'Wetland Academy', an informal institution for knowledge generation and dissemination device discussed many times among government and environmental institution in Nepal. Currently, we're focusing in the Lake Cluster Pokhara Valley (LCPV) in Pokhara (Ramsar #NP2257) listed in the 3rd ranked 'Spring Season' must visit trip destination once in life time in the world according to
the National Geographic Channel. One of the beauty of this lake is unique geographical valley landscape with panoramic view of the Annapurna and Manaslu Himalaya ranges in north
blended with dense forests, meadows and culturally significant rivers and streams, and biological endemism and cultural diversities.
Lake cluster is the composite of nine lakes; the Phewa lake, Begnas lake, Rupa lake, Dipang lake, Maidi lake, Khaste lake, Neureni lake, Gunde lake and Kamal Pokhari. The Phewa is the 3rd largest lake of Nepal.
CODEFUND in its establishment period helped government in the process of designation of LCPV in the Ramsar list, and later for the establishment of Lake Conservation and Development Authority in Gandaki State where Pokhara belongs. It undertakes capcity
building programs for government personnel, lake managers and communities including exploration and update of biodiversity, socio-economic and water quality information.
Currently, CODEFUND has successfully accomplished the 1st phase demonstration of Climate Resilient Lake Basin Governance for Lake Environment, Biodiversity and Green Enterprise in Dipang Lake, one of small lake of LCPV, which reported two species of insects new to Nepal, Ceriagrion ceriorubellum (Brauer 1865) and Aciagrion approximans (Selys, 1876).

CODEFUND has technical support for the government of Nepal particularly the
Department of Forests and Soil Conservation (DoFSC), and National Lake Conservation
Development Committee for the nationwide scientific inventory of lakes below 3,000 m in
the past. It has jointly organized international conference with Ministry of Industry,
Tourism, Forests and Environment, Province-1 and Botanical Society of Nepal in 2020.
Currently, it has been working as loose international partner of International Lake
Environment Committee Foundation, Japan for the cause of Integrated Lake Basin
Management. CODEFUND is the member NGO of IUCN Nepal (# NG/25699)