Naga conservationist Nuklu Phom shortlisted for Whitley Awards

Nuklu Phom

Nuklu Phom

Morung Express News
Kohima | February 20 

Naga conservationist, Nuklu Phom is among the top 15 shortlisted for the prestigious Whitley Awards 2021 for “Establishing a biodiversity peace corridor”. “I am just a shortlist among the 15 out of 106 applicants, but this would mean a lot for our country, for the North East, and especially for the people of Nagaland. This would mean involving many more communities to join in the mission”, Phom said in an exclusive interview with The Morung Express.

He further stated happiness that his humble work in this part of the country is being recognized by Whitley and expressed, “I also thank God for the passion and the conviction conferred on me to invest my life in a very humble manner for protection of the wonderful creation of God.”

“We have been engaged in this process for the last 15 years although our story wasn’t getting beyond our borders, and in fact, that wasn’t our intention too”, he highlighted. However, he asserted that “we believe in hard work and have worked with a conviction that what you do for the protection of the eco system was an investment.”

Publicity and recognitions weren’t our goal, he reiterated while putting across that they have worked hard with the motto: “Give today to Receive.” So, we gave our best creating a conducive eco-system, he added. Phom has worked hard on research work, putting into writing the works they have been doing for the last 15 years.

He also spoke about “establishing a biodiversity peace corridor” for which he is being shortlisted. “It is all about bringing communities together in this mission of creating a conducive environment where the wild species do not feel threatened, human being coexist with the entire eco systems and thereby interweave a sustainable coexistence with the environment as well as with fellow human beings”, he highlighted.

The Whitley Fund for Nature had stated in its website that this year, they received 106 applications of an exceptionally high standard, representing diverse approaches across a broad range of countries, habitats and species in the global south.  

Following a comprehensive assessment, it said the top 15 candidates have been identified, all doing incredible work with communities to safeguard wildlife, habitats and the future of society. “We are currently going back to the candidates with questions, taking up references, carrying out financial screening and conducting rigorous due diligence. Our expert judging panel, made up of individuals from some of the UK’s leading conservation organisations, will then select finalists to be invited for interview”, it said.

Nuklu Phom along with Bibhuti Lahkar from Assam who is being shortlisted for “Building bridges between people and Asian elephants” from Assam, both from the North East are the only Indians to be featured in the list.

The winners of this year’s Whitley Awards will be announced on May 12, 2021, it further informed on its official website.