Land, Life, and Livelihood in North East India: An Approach towards Sustainable Development

Title: Land, Life, and Livelihood in North East India: An Approach towards Sustainable Development

Editors: Dr. Jonali Saikia Borkakoty and Dr. Navamallika Sharma

Publisher: Cogniverse Press (On behalf of Geographical Forum, Department of Geography, Nanda Nath Saikia College, Titabar, Assam, India)

Edition: First Edition

Publication Date: August, 2026

ISBN: 978-81-68073-53-1

e-ISBN: 978-81-68073-54-8

North-East India, with its remarkable ecological diversity, complex cultural and mineral-rich landscapes, rich indigenous traditions, and distinctive geographical setting, represents one of the most significant regions of India from the perspective of sustainable development. Characterised by the Eastern Himalayas, extension of the Deccan Plateau, extensive river systems, wetlands, forests, fertile agricultural landscapes, and diverse ethnic communities, the region embodies a close and often intricate relationship between land, life, and livelihood. At the same time, rapid environmental change, changing patterns of land use, climate variability, livelihood transitions, developmental pressures, and emerging geopolitical realities are reshaping this relationship in profound ways.

The edited volume Land, Life, and Livelihood in North-East India: An Approach towards Sustainable Development aims to bring together diverse scholarly perspectives to examine these interconnected dimensions. The volume seeks to understand North-East India not merely as a geographical entity endowed with abundant natural resources, but as a dynamic socio-ecological landscape in which environmental processes, human communities, cultural practices, economic activities, and political forces continuously interact.

The chapters included in this volume reflect the multidisciplinary character of these interactions. The ecological significance of the region is explored through discussions of biodiversity, wetlands, conservation, and sustainable management. Alongside ecological concerns, the volume examines changing land-use patterns and their environmental implications, socio-economic and livelihood transformations, cultural diversity, climate vulnerabilities, disaster risk, and geopolitical dynamics affecting the region.