To deepen our collective understanding of the issues, the opportunities, and the inspiring models that are shaping resilient rural communities, we have curated a set of must-read case story booklets by WOTR.
A Better Tomorrow
Stories, Practices, and Solutions
Two projects spearheaded by the Watershed Organisation Trust (WOTR) have been honoured with the CSR Times Awards 2024 in the Water Conservation and Management category.
Lambadi women in Telangana have revitalised the traditional craft of Maggam embroidery, enabling them to earn a stable income from home. This change, initiated by a training program from WOTR, has allowed them to avoid migration for labor work and support their families better. Women now earn Rs 5,000-10,000 through their embroidery, which also preserves their cultural heritage.
Kavili Bal Reddy, a farmer from Appireddipally in Narayanpet mandal owns 7.5 acres of land on which he has been growing paddy in both Kharif and Rabi season for decades. That’s when Reddy decided to do something different. As part of the Farmer Field School (FFS) organised by WOTR under the Axis Bank Foundation’s Sustainable Livelihoods Programme, Reddy learnt about the concept of cultivating Green Manure Crops (GMCs).
Axis Bank Foundation and WOTR have successfully launched The Sustainable Livelihood Programme in 25 villages of the Maddur & Damargidda Mandals of Narayanpet district in Telangana
Rural communities in Jharkhand and Telangana, struggling to sustain their livelihoods, find hope through the Sustainable Livelihoods Programme, supported by Axis Bank Foundation. With diversified income streams, these communities now thrive, rewriting their stories of resilience and progress.
Raising daily wage work is the second-highest source of income, followed by agriculture. However, as agriculture becomes less remunerative due to an increase in the cost of cultivation and fewer crop returns from climate change, alternate livelihoods f
By Categories
By Tags
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.