Astha Chaudhary

People in the Awadh region of Uttar Pradesh say the Sarus cranes never die. Astha grew up surrounded by these birds. What began as a childhood love of their beauty grew, through her training in ecology and conservation, into an understanding of the role they play in nature. The Sarus crane is India's only resident crane and the world's tallest flying bird. Almost all of its current distribution range lies outside protected areas, in villages, wetlands and farmlands, so its future depends on the empathy, tolerance and everyday choices of the people who share these landscapes.

Through her Champions project, Astha will work across 12 villages in Barabanki and Sitapur districts to gather village-level evidence on habitat change and community practices. She will draw on historical records from the Forest and Revenue Departments, and communities will map their own wetlands, Sarus sites, water sources, grazing areas and farmland. Dialogues with around 100 community members will reinforce good practices and agree on local and more benign alternatives to existing threats. These will feed into Gram Sabha meetings and support the work of the Biodiversity Management Committees, so that Sarus conservation takes root at the panchayat level. Nature education for at least 60 children in two schools,  working with elected representatives and officials, will help build landscapes where people and the Sarus continue to thrive together.