On a quiet spring afternoon, 13-year-old Alimah Hamid is surrounded by more than a dozen members of the Salim Ali Birdwatchers Network (SABN) along the banks of Hokersar wetland on the outskirts of Srinagar.

Armed with notebooks and binoculars, the group — made up entirely of women and girls — reviews the progress over the last month’s targets, which included cleaning wetlands, making pamphlets and conducting school tours.

At the centre of the circle, Seerat-ul-Nisar, one of the founding members of the birding club, carefully notes down each point and suggestion raised by the members.

Amid the discussion, the spotlight turns to Alimah’s book, which she is compiling for school students with information on wetlands and migratory birds.

“This is one of our main focuses. You should get it completed as soon as possible so that the book reaches schools,” Seerat tells Alimah, prompting nods of encouragement from the group.

Notably, Alimah’s book, titled Birds of Paradise, enlists more than 50 migratory bird species, along with detailed descriptions of their habitats and significance.

Like Alimah, every member of the group has an individual task apart from the collective weekly cleanliness drives in wetlands across south and central Kashmir.

This is the 15-member Salim Ali Birdwatchers Network (SABN), Jammu and Kashmir’s first women-led birding network, which was launched in January 2025 after a group of women and girls who had worked individually for years decided to come together under one platform to conserve Kashmir’s fragile environment.

How SABN came together

On the eve of National Bird Day on 4 January 2025, the Wildlife Conservation Fund (WCF), in collaboration with the Kashmir Birdwatchers’ Club (KBC) and The Nature Academy – YPJK, launched SABN at Chatlam Wetland Reserve in Pampore.

The initiative was conceived to create greater opportunities for women and girls to participate in ornithology, ethical birdwatching and biodiversity conservation, while strengthening community-led conservation efforts across Jammu and Kashmir.

The network began with 13 women and girls, including school-going students and college students, who jointly pledged to work towards conserving Kashmir’s wetlands. Until then, many of them had been participating in environmental programmes and conservation activities individually.

Several of the young members had been associated with The Nature School, founded in 2017 by environmental lawyer and conservationist Nadeem Qadri. The initiative was created as a child-centred learning space that brings together traditional knowledge and modern education.

Seerat, one of the founding members, says the idea of creating a dedicated platform for women environmentalists had been taking shape for some time.

“The idea of floating a network of women environmentalists started last year. The need was felt as women needed representation as pro-environment activists. Kashmiri women have always been at the forefront to conserve the environment. Still, because of the lack of any organisational support, their efforts have not been known to the government and public,” she says.

The women had already been connected through environmental programmes, birdwatching activities and awareness initiatives. With support from WCF, KBC and The Nature Academy, they came together to form a structured network.

WCF played an important role in bringing the group together and helping them define their mission and approach.

“We actually wanted women to come forward and join the initiative to conserve our wetlands. Since all these women have been working voluntarily, they need to work under one banner to strengthen their mission. We just guided them and the rest they are good at their work,” says Qadri, Executive Director of WCF.

Seerat says the group is now open to more women and girls who want to........

© The Better India