Background The fragile landscapes of the Himalayan region are highly susceptible to natural hazards, and there is ongoing concern about current and potential climate change impacts. This study provides background information on India’s Western Himalayas and reviews evidence of warming as well as variability in precipitation and extreme events. Methods Understanding and anticipating the impacts of climate change on Himalayan forest ecosystems and the services they provide to people are critical. Efforts to develop and implement effective policies and management strategies for climate change mitigation and adaptation requires particular new research initiatives. The various studies initiated and conducted in the region are compiled here. Results Several new initiatives taken by the Himalayan Forest Research Institute in Shimla are described. This includes new permanent observational field studies, some with mapped trees, in high altitude transitional zones for continuous monitoring of vegetation response. We have also presented new strategies for mitigating potential climate change effects in Himalayan forest ecosystems. Conclusions Assessment of the ecological and genetic diversity of the Himalayan conifers is required to evaluate potential responses to changing climatic conditions. Conservation strategies for the important temperate medicinal plants need to be developed. The impact of climate change on insects and pathogens in the Himalayas also need to be assessed. Coordinated efforts are necessary to develop effective strategies for adaptation and mitigation.

SuMMARY In a developing country such as India the contingent valuation method (CVM) cannot always provide a correct valuation of recreational use benefits of an environmental resource given the huge size of the parallel economy involving different categories of middle to upper income group families which have the capacity to move as tourists. The 'participant observation method' and 'unstructured interview schedule' are necessary tools to be used in such cases, in addition to a 'structured interview schedule' which is used for primary data collection in the travel cost method (TCM) and the CVM under normal circumstances. A general model depicting the relation of the ratio of consumer surplus estimated in TCM and CVM with 'corruption perception index' has been developed in the case of tourists from various countries with different world rankings in so far as their parallel economy and level of corruption are concerned.

Land degradation has recently been exacerbated in rangelands of arid Rajasthan by heavy grazing pressures. The total livestock population in the arid region of Rajasthan has reached 29.25 million in the year 2001 from 10.34 million in the year 1951. In terms of adult cattle units (ACU) the livestock pressure was 9.58 million in 1983, which increased to 11.27 million in 2001. Local grazing pressures are surpassing the recommended stocking rates of the rangelands at an enormous pace. The pressure was 0.87 ACU ha⁻¹ in 1981 which increased to 1.02 ACU ha⁻¹ ha in 2001 against the optimum desirable density of 0.2 ACU ha⁻¹. Excellent, good, fair, poor and very poor condition rangelands (having approximate productivity of 2.0, 1.5, 1.0, 0.75, and 0.5 Mg ha⁻¹, respectively) can safely provide year long grazing to 0.25–0.30, 0.20, 0.17, 0.13, and 0.01–0.06 ACU ha⁻¹ blocks, respectively, during normal years. The carrying capacities of the rangelands were estimated several decades ago, however, qualitative evidence is available regarding changes in soil and vegetation patterns. There is need to evolve practices for improving the long-term productivity and sustainability of rangeland ecosystems. An increase of 639% in forage yield was observed over control by adopting moisture conservation technique. Increase in forage yield was recorded in the range of 30 to 122% in “poor” and 29 to 107% in “fair” class rangelands after 3–5 years of reseeding. Premonsoon sowing of grass seeds give 36% higher forage yield over monsoon sowing. Application of 22.5 kg N ha⁻¹ during normal year resulted in additional increase in forage yield by 20 to 70%. If sustainable productivity increases are to be achieved, mechanisms must be developed to involve fully range users (herders) in all aspects of project planning and implementation. A flexible stocking rate, dependent on seasonal and annual variation in feed availability, is suggested as a key element in any improved range and livestock management strategy.

Tectona grandis (teak) is one of the most important tropical timber speciesoccurring naturally in India. Appropriate growth models, based on advanced modeling techniques,are not available but are necessary for the successful management of teak stands in the country.Long-term forest planning requires mathematical models, and the principles of Dynamical SystemTheory provide a solid foundation for these.

Trees are natural capital assets, especially for cities, as they provide immense environmental benefits and improve urban biodiversity and ecology. However, urbanization has largely destroyed the original native ecosystems and has caused a homogenization where frequently native species are replaced by non-native species. When attempting to understand the role of trees in urban settings, it is important to generate science-based data on the spatial distribution of trees, their species composition and tree species diversity as a function of the degree of urbanization. Such information may specifically inform the planning of effective long-term management of trees across urban and rural gradients. A total of 23 of 1 ha each were surveyed along a Northern research transect laid out along the urban–rural gradient of the metropolitan area of Bengaluru, India. Plots were randomly selected from the stratum “settlement areas”, where WorldView-3 imagery supported both stratification and plot selection. The plots were fully mapped for trees, where a total of eleven variables had been observed for each tree. In addition, the basal area and wood volume was calculated to understand the biomass potential of the trees in the plots. The diversity indices such as the Shannon index, Simpson index, Pielou’s evenness and Margalef’s richness were considered for comparing the species diversity, composition and distribution along the gradient of Bengaluru. A total of 1128 individuals of 93 tree species were recorded. Among 92 species identified along the northern gradient, 53 are exotic, and 39 are native species. The Shannon–Wiener index varied from 1.33 to 2.72; Simpson’s index varied from 0.65 to 0.90; Pielou’s index varied from 0.66 to 0.90, and Margalef’s index ranged from 1.41 to 5.20 along the gradient. The basal area increased from 96.39 m² to 102.76 m² from 2017 to 2019 along the transect, with a net gain of 6.37 m². Similarly, the wood volume increased from 1819.57 m³ to 1926.23 m³ with a net gain of 106.66 m³. The present study reports on tree distribution, species composition and tree species diversity along a gradient from the city center to the rural surroundings of northern parts of Bengaluru city. The information generated may support the city planners/administrators by providing a holistic understanding of the species composition and abundance for a further selection of adaptive species and appropriate tree and vegetation management practices to conserve the existing green spaces and contribute towards sustainable urban planning. The sample plots laid out may also serve as permanent observation plots for monitoring the dynamics of tree cover in the city.