• Continuing to increase forest growth through the customary manuring of the
forest from the dung of our livestock;
• Eliminating of Lantana species which is encroaching our animal grazing lands
including grazing by wild elephants.
• Grazing the fallen leaves on the forest floor thereby keeping symbiotic
relationship while adding manure to soil
• Combating illegal logging and poaching in the forest;
• Continuing our traditional rotational or seasonal grazing that facilitates forest
growth;
• Promoting and sustaining the breed diversity of our livestock; and
• Preserving and practicing our traditional breeding and ethno-veterinary
knowledge and innovations, and sustainable management of forest resources
relevant to the protection of the co-evolved forest ecosystem of the region.
Our rights under international law
We Lingayats in our bio-cultural community protocol identify the following principles
and rights based on international law and treaties:
A.
Principles
• We are creators of breeds and custodians of their animal genetic resources for
food and agriculture;
• The Lingayats spiritual life and the sustainable use of traditional breeds are
highly dependent on the conservation of our ecosystem; and
• Our traditional breeds represent collective property, products of indigenous
knowledge and our cultural expression.
B.
Rights
We have the right to:
• Make breeding decisions and breed the breeds we maintain.
• Participate in policy formulation and implementation processes on animal genetic
resources for food and agriculture.
• Receive appropriate training and capacity building and equal access to relevant
services enabling and supporting us to raise livestock and to better process and
market our products.
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