Institute for Indigenous Affairs and Development

07/10/2026

Marginal Communities; Emergent Leadership-2026
Indigenous without Borders (IwB) invites applications for the 45-day ‘Marginal Communities; Emergent Leadership-2026’, designed to support young leaders from marginalized communities in bringing issues concerning their communities into public discourse through research, writing, and creative expression.
👉️ Fellowship Objectives
The fellowship will encourage young leaders from marginalized communities to explore, conduct research and write on the issues, concerns, rights, and entitlements of their communities. Fellows will have opportunities to document and present stories from their communities through writing, video, and other creative forms of expression.
The fellowship will also support fellows in expanding public participation and representation in local leadership, strengthening community-centered discourse, and enhancing their effective and meaningful engagement in policy-making and decision-making processes concerning marginalized communities.
👉️ What the Fellowship Offers
A grant of NPR 10,000 per fellow will be provided to cover necessary communication and transportation expenses during the course of study, research, writing, and story development.
Editorial and research guidance coordinated by IwB throughout the fellowship, along with mentorship from thematic experts.
Regular thematic discussions, interactions, and dialogues to strengthen and enhance the fellows’ ongoing work.
Opportunities to bring the shared issues and concerns of their communities into the public sphere through research, writing, and creative expression.
👉️ Who Can Apply
Young people from marginalized and minority communities who are permanent or temporary residents of Kathmandu, Bhaktapur, and Lalitpur districts of Kathmandu valley are invited to apply.
Preference will be given to young applicants from communities including, but not limited to, Dalit, Muslim, Madhesi, indigenous peoples, women, persons with disabilities, and LGBTIQ++.
👉️ Timeline:
Call for application: 6 October 2026
Application deadline: 12 October 2026
Announcement of selected fellows:
14 October 2026
Fellowship begin: 16 October 2026]
Fellowship end: 30 November 2026
👉️ Required Application Materials
- CV/Resume
- Brief personal introduction
- A short statement explaining why you should be selected for this fellowship
Please send your application by 12 October 2026 to [email protected].
For contact, +977-9849724596
A total of 12 fellows will be selected from among the applicants based on an intersectional inclusion approach.
👉️ For more detail information about Fellowship and IwB:
https://iwb.org.np/
https://x.com/IndigenousIwB
https://www.facebook.com/IndigenousIwB
https://www.instagram.com/iwb.nepal/


==========

05/10/2026

On the night of 30 September 2026, miscreants allegedly cut down more than 8,000 betel-leaf plants belonging to nine Khasi Indigenous families at Nursery Khasi Punji in Karmadha Union, Kulaura, Moulvibazar district in Bangladesh. The damage cost approximately Tk 5 million. Betel-leaf cultivation is the primary source of income for these families, and the plants require around four to five years of care before becoming productive. The incident therefore represents not only a major economic loss but also a serious threat to the families’ livelihoods and security.

The affected community has called for a proper investigation, legal action against those responsible, and protection of their livelihoods. Local police reportedly visited the site and said action would be taken following an investigation. The incident has also raised broader concerns because similar attacks on Khasi betel-leaf plantations have reportedly occurred in the area before, contributing to continuing insecurity over the community’s traditional livelihoods and land.

See more at-

05/10/2026

https://3f24981b-c8f8-4fbe-af3c-265866c85eaf.filesusr.com/ugd/1631ef_3f45339a28c44adead8b1301396160ca.pdf
OPEN LETTER TO THE CONGRESS OF THE REPUBLIC OF PERU FOR THE DEBATE AND APPROVAL OF BILL No. 2062/2021-CR ON INDIGENOUS AMAZONIAN SECURITY – MECHANISMS FOR THE PROTECTION OF INDIGENOUS PEOPLES.

05/10/2026

OPEN LETTER ON THE CRIMINALISATION OF INDIGENOUS HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDERS IN ASSAM, INDIA
https://3f24981b-c8f8-4fbe-af3c-265866c85eaf.filesusr.com/ugd/1631ef_69332b67c3c74b0992c23bd5988c0374.pdf

03/10/2026

01/10/2026

Climate Justice and Indigenous Peoples | Kathmandu Climate Week 2026

Climate disasters are not only about damaged roads, houses and infrastructure. For Indigenous Peoples, floods, landslides, glacial hazards and changing climate patterns can also mean the loss of ancestral settlements, sacred landscapes, cultural heritage, livelihoods, Indigenous knowledge, customary institutions and collective identity.
But whose knowledge and whose definition of loss shape climate action and reconstruction?
This session will bring Indigenous leaders, policymakers, researchers and development partners together to explore:
🔹 What does climate justice mean for Indigenous Peoples?
🔹 How can Indigenous knowledge and worldviews shape disaster risk reduction and reconstruction?
🔹 How can recovery protect land, culture, identity and customary relationships with nature?
🔹 What does Indigenous-led climate action look like in practice?
Climate justice must go beyond rebuilding infrastructure. It must also mean protecting peoples, territories, knowledge, cultures and futures.
📍 King’s College
🌱 Theme: Climate Justice and Indigenous Peoples

Register here: https://forms.gle/gCSEdctckE92Qs3N6

Panelists
• Honorable Ram Bahadur Thapa Magar, Chairperson, Indigenous Nationalities Commission (INC)
• Honorable Manoj Duwady, Commissioner, National Human Rights Commission (NHRC)
• Dr. Indra Mani Rai/ Associate Professor, Kathmandu University School of Education (KUSOED)
• Ms. Rebecca Gurung, Climate Adaptation Professional

Moderated by: Biswash Chepang, Chairperson, Institute for Indigenous Affairs and development (IIAD)

29/09/2026

The Community Engagement and Indigenous Peoples Studies Center presents —a digital go-to space for exploring the deep, living wisdom of our country’s diverse ethnolinguistic groups!

20/09/2026

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YfBMpdRCDhU

चेपाङ भाषाको पहिलो टेलिभिजन कार्यक्रम "क्रुस्काइसा पाइक्काइसा" II
Institute for Indigenous Affairs and Development is part of it.

18/09/2026

Meet our intern Sanskriti Chepang, who is Pursuing Bachelor's Degree in Social Work.

Sanskriti represented Institute for Indigenous Affairs and Development (IIAD) in Nepal’s COP31 National Position Paper Preparation Meeting.

Today, Sanskriti participated in the stakeholder meeting to contribute Indigenous Peoples’ perspectives, priorities, and rights to Nepal’s key climate messages and positions for COP31.

Our participation underscores the importance of ensuring that Indigenous knowledge, community priorities, climate justice, and the rights of Indigenous Peoples are meaningfully reflected in Nepal’s climate agenda.

Indigenous voices must be part of shaping climate solutions and decisions that affect our lands, livelihoods, and futures.

Gobinda Ram Chepang Stories of Chepang Community-चेपाङ जातिका कथाहरु