About INHERE

Who we are

The Institute of Himalayan Environmental Research and Education (INHERE) is dedicated to sustainable development in the Himalayan mountain region – its People, Environment and Economy. INHERE focuses on conservation and sustainable use of natural resources,  diverse safe and nutritious food, sustainable rural livelihoods, water and sanitation and above all community empowerment. Working with small mountain communities, INHERE reaches out in solidarity to international and global communities, movements and activities sharing common concerns in endeavour to create a better world.

With its main office at Chinoni, Almora, in the picturesque Ramganga valley of Kumaun region of Uttarakhand in India, INHERE is working for holistic development of the region with active involvement of local communities since 1982.

At INHERE, we have continuously striven to be an open and a learning organization, inculcating an organizational culture to achieve effectiveness and excellence.

Vision

INHERE works for people centered sustainable process of development based on security, equity and harmony in society with equal opportunity and participation of women and men.

Mission

Exploring, supporting and providing opportunities of development for a better quality of life to socially and economically marginalized mountain people, especially women.

Leading and creating sustainable development models.

INHERE is committed to sharing its learning, experiences and development ideas with the wider community of socially and economically marginalized backgrounds across the world. It also works with fellow development organizations to contribute to an economically, socially and environmentally just and equitable global society.

Legal status:

Registered under Society Registration Act. 1860, GOI

Registered under Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) 1976, GOI

Registered under 12A of Income Tax Act

Registered under 80 G of Income Tax Act

Our Team

Board Members

Bharat Bisht

Consultant and Advisor.

Sonali Bisht

Consultant and Advisor.

Dr. J. C. Bhatt

Retired Director, V.P.K.A.S.

Threesh Kapoor

Retired Deputy General Manager, SBI, Uttarakhand.

Dr. Anjali Kapila

Retired Associate Professor, Lady Irwin College, University of Delhi.

Lalit Deshwal

A local community member and has been associated with developmental work.

Consultant/ Advisor

Girish Pant

A local community member, Post Graduate from Kumaun University, he is an expert of community based development and research studies and associated with the organization for past 34 years.

Soumya Balasubramaniam

Post Graduate from Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), she is an expert of community based development and research studies and associated with the organization for past 3 years.

Suresh Papnai

A local community member, graduate from Kumaun University, he is an expert of Fruit Processing and associated with the organization for past 15 years.

Mukesh Singh

A local community member, Post Graduate from Kumaun University, he is an expert of Fruit & Food Processing and associated with the organization for past 9 years.

Staff Members

Manoj Maheshwari

Associated with the organization for past 25 years, he is currently the Executive Director and is in charge of administrative activities at the organization. An alumni of Kumaon University, a Gold Medalist, he has a degree in Geology. Mr. Maheshwari has a long experience working in the field on Watershed Development and Sanitation with the organization and has been simultaneously associated with numerous other projects.

Narayan Dutt Sharma

Intermediate,associated in various activities, he has been an expert of Market Promotion and associated with the organization for past 12 years.

Shankar Devtalla

With expertise in Community Mobilization, Public Speaking, Capacity Building of farmers and has been associated with the organization for past 18 years.

Manju Bhandari

M.A. from Kumaun University, MOMSP from Govt. Polytechnic with expertise in computer, documentation and account-keeping. She is associated with the organization for Past 15 years.

Mohan Sharma

A local community member, he is an expert of Medicinal and Aromatic plant cultivation, Incharge of pharmacy unit and associated with the organization for past 23 years.

Chinmaya Shah

Post Graduate from Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), he is an expert of community based development work, enterprise development, documentation and research studies and associated with the organization for past 2 years.

Pawan Singh Kaira

A master’s degree in Agriculture, he is in charge of networking and coordination for activities related to Agriculture.

Anoop Khumeriyal

With a graduate degree in Agriculture, he is associated with the organization for past 1 year and is responsible for field level activities that are undertaken in Agriculture. 

Divya Agarwal

Passionate about food, flavours and everything that surrounds it, she specializes in product recipe development. Divya possess a graduate degree in Food Technology and has been associated with the organization for past 1 year.

Jagdish Sharma

Graduate in Arts, associated in various projects, he has his expertise on community mobilization and has been associated with the organization for past 14 years. A local community member, he carries a grass-root understanding on changing Agricultural realities of Kumaun Himalayas. 

Deep Prakash Gaur

Post Graduate in Sociology & Hindi, Strong on mobilization and networking with local community members, he is associated with the organization for past 1.5 years. A local community member, he derives his knowledge on community engagement through field realities of Garhwal Himalayas.

Kamla Faniyal

With a post graduate degree in Sociology, she is associated with the organization as a community mobilizer and has been working for past 1.5 years.

Geeta Bisht

Post Graduate in Hindi, Strong on mobilization, seed production and networking with local community members, she is associated with the organization for past 4 years.

Geeta Devi

A graduate, she is associated with the organization as a community mobilizer and has been working for past 6 months.

Bhuwan Sharma

A local community member, he is an expert in agro based income earning activities, set up of plant and machinery and associated with the organization for past 23 years.

Puran Nath

A local community member, he is an expert in agro based income earning activities, seed production and associated with the organization for past 8 years.

Sonamati Yadav

She is associated with the organization as a campus caretaker and has been working for past 1.5 years.

INHERE has a multi disciplinary team comprising Subject Matter Specialists, Researchers and Trainers, Agriculturists, Geologists, Foresters and Environmentalists, Civil Engineers, Food Technicians, Social Scientists, a Health and Medicial Team, a Hygiene and Drinking Water Team, Watershed Development Planning and Implementation Team, Organic Agriculture Promotion Team, Social Workers and Village Mobilizers Team, Women Empowerment and Gender Team, Research and Development Team. The staff members are well experienced and motivated towards the organisation’s vision and mission and committed for the development of the marginalized. There is a continuous organizational effort to update the skills and knowledge of team members through training and workshops.

INHERE is rooted in the area where it works. The INHERE team including the management staff has a good understanding of local development issues and problems and are committed to working for solutions.

The day to day work is overseen primarily by the President and the Directors at the organizational level and project teams led by Team Leaders and Coordinators and assisted by specialists in various fields.

In recruitment, priority is given to candidates from the local area and affected communities who have a good understanding of the problems and needs.

Organisation Structure

The organization structure of INHERE is simple and flat, to instill greater accountability and sincerity of staff at work. At the apex is the General Body, which is the main policy making and approval body. The General Body elects the President of the organization and the members of the Executive Committee, which is empowered to make decisions on behalf of the General Body and appoint the Director. The Director also acts as the Secretary to both General Body and Executive Committee. The General Body meets once a year and the Executive Committee meets twice a year or as requires.

The day to day operation is supervised by the Director/Secretary with the assistance of a core team comprising coordinators and Team Leaders of the programmes, projects and specialists in various fields. There is a monthly meeting of the entire staff to share experiences, get feedback, analyze problems, monitor progress and plans for the future. In these meetings the staff are engaged for personal growth, organizational growth and bringing in work effectiveness and also for developing and keeping transparence in work.

Facilities and Infrastructure:

Library

The organization has created a knowledge centre at its Chinoni office containing a wide array of literature ranging from books, reports, academic journals, dist. Gazetteers and statistical handbooks along with audio-visual content on topics ranging from Environment, Ecology, Mountains and Himalayas, Rural development, Agriculture,  Planning and Economics, Social Aspects, Women and Children  etc. to name a few. 

Meeting Hall

The meeting hall in the main building at the Chinoni office has been created in order to provide a space for engagement of various stakeholders for government and project level activities and discussions. The hall is equipped with audio- visual equipments, thus, also functioning as a resource centre in the local region as well.

Dining Hall

The organization also has a dining hall with an attached mess facility which serves good quality food on demand.

Guest Rooms

There are 4 double bed rooms with attached washroom along with one dormitory in order to provide a comfortable stay to volunteers, interns and visitors alike who visit our Chinoni office at Chaukhutia.