It’s unusual that science, soil, and stories come together in a single space but something quietly transformative happened during W-CReS’s recent CDVI workshop in Odisha
A Better Tomorrow
Stories, Practices, and Solutions
Water stewardship is a step beyond good water governance that not only ensures quality management and distribution of water, but also builds climate resilient communities.
Water budgeting is ‘an estimate of harvest of water resources and its utilization for a set period of time.’
With every shared pot of water, with every community meeting, with every onion harvested, Chaaya weaves a future for Mendhwan where water is a source of life, not a struggle for it.
The community shares firsthand experiences of resilience, innovation, and growth with WOTR
The Watershed Organisation Trust finds significant alignment between the recommendations by the Global Commission on the Economics of Water’s report and our own Water Stewardship Initiative
Pandarinath Shinde, a jal sevak with WOTR, helps farmers adapt to climate change by teaching efficient water management and farming practices. He has implemented techniques like micro-irrigation and soil testing on his farm, increasing his income and assisting other farmers in improving their crop yields.
In rural Maharashtra, communities have become water stewards with support from WOTR. Villages like Borgaon Math and Bori Khurd have adopted rainwater harvesting, micro-irrigation, and organic farming, boosting water availability and crop yields.
Through a watershed development project by Wells Fargo and WOTR, Lingi village, including farmer Bapurao Rajendra Patil’s land, transformed dramatically. Water structures like Water Absorption Trenches increased well water levels by 3 feet, enabling cultivation across all 15 acres year-round.
In a landmark move poised to transform water stewardship across Maharashtra’s vulnerable regions, the Water Supply & Sanitation Department (WSSD), under the Government of Maharashtra, has inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Watershed Organisation Trust (WOTR), Pune.
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When unsafe drinking water became a daily health risk, a clean borewell in an Odisha village brought relief, dignity, and a return to healthier lives.
Community-led solar irrigation in Padardi Village boosting crop yields, enhancing household incomes, empowering women, and driving climate-resilient, sustainable rural development in Rajasthan.
A reflection on WOTR’s 32-year journey translating grassroot watershed and climate resilience practice & research into state and national policies.
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.