Integrated Farming Systems treat the farm not as isolated parts, but as a living ecosystem. Water harvesting, crops, trees, livestock, and fisheries are designed to support each other.
A Better Tomorrow
Stories, Practices, and Solutions
Three years ago, Maheshwaram Panduranga and his wife Manga faced a severe water crisis on their 3-acre farm in Loyapally, Telangana. With help from WOTR and HSBC, they constructed a farm pond, significantly improving water levels. They then ventured into fish farming, earning substantial profits and transforming their financial situation. The couple now enjoys a better lifestyle and serves as an inspiration for others in their village.
Paulina Mundu, a 40-year-old farmer in Khunti, Jharkhand, fulfilled her childhood dream of farming upon returning home. However, water scarcity posed a challenge, leading her to construct a farm pond under MGNREGA in 2017. Despite initial limitations, assistance from Axis Bank Foundation and WOTR in 2019 enabled Paulina to expand and improve the pond, enhancing irrigation capacity.
In the context of action research, the Research into Use (RiU) approach plays an important role in engaging and involving the communities in the research process and communicating research findings for enabling their decision making or
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Monocropping’s long-term impacts on soil, pests, and farmer incomes are explored through insights from Nitin Kumbhar, highlighting sustainable alternatives, diversification strategies, and pathways to climate-resilient agriculture in India.
A family in Odisha rebuilds their lives after a tragic accident, using community support to start a small shop that restores their livelihood, dignity, and hope.
A glimpse into the cultural practices and land-based traditions of tribal communities in WOTR’s project regions.
Drawing from work with smallholder farmers—from Kumbharwadi in Maharashtra to Madaul in Odisha—WOTR has contributed key experiences, insights, and evidence to the Stories of Resilience 2025, a publication launched by the Global Centre on Adaptation (GCA) at the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Belém, Brazil.
How can smallholders farm fish while safeguarding their local ecosystems? One promising answer lies in farm ponds.
Read how a school, and ultimately an entire village in Maharashtra, was transformed with clean toilets
Phool’s journey from uncertain, monocropping to stable, climate-resilient agriculture shows how access to irrigation, diversification, and community support can transform livelihoods.
Grasslands are often mistaken for empty lands needing trees, but they are rich, climate-resilient ecosystems. Understanding their unique biodiversity, carbon storage, and cultural value is essential to ensuring conservation efforts don’t unintentionally cause harm.