The engineer of the green revolution in India M S Swaminathan has called for focus on the traditional knowledge and practices of indigenous people of the country to tread on a path of sustainable development.
At an event organized by the MS Swaminathan Research Foundation at the Conference of Parties - 11, Swaminathan said, “The need to protect natural heritage and cultural heritage are interlinked. As a member of the drafting committee of the Biological Diversity Act of India in 2002, I proposed the empowerment of local government or panchayat system for conservation efforts.” He added that the need for conservation has led to various mechanisms including ex-situ conservation through germplasm.