At the core of the development sector lie stories of extraordinary courage, stories that rarely make headlines but quietly shape the future of communities. The Junoon Awards, named after the Hindi word for “passion,” were created to honour this spirit. Junoon recognises organisations that push boundaries, take risks for the larger good, and persist with resilience in the face of adversity. Over the years, the awards have highlighted different dimensions of commitment.
The first edition, Junoon ’23, celebrated exceptional COVID-19 resilience, spotlighting those who worked in uncertainty and fear to support communities through a global crisis. The second edition, Junoon ’24, shifted focus to innovation, honouring organisations that reimagined systems and introduced fresh, transformative approaches to long-standing social challenges.
In its third edition, Junoon ’25 turns to one of the most urgent priorities of our time: Redefining Resilience—Climate Action for Lasting Change. As climate disruptions increasingly reshape lives and landscapes across India, the awards celebrate organisations that respond with courage rooted in community wisdom and long-term thinking. This year, Realm of Nature Based Actions (RNBA) stands out in the category of Circularity, recognised for its nature-based actions that weave regeneration, community participation, and environmental stewardship into a strong model of people-led change.
Since its founding in 1985, Realm of Nature Based Actions (RNBA) has grown into a grassroots nonprofit working across Manipur, Nagaland, and Assam to strengthen the socio-economic and ecological resilience of tribal and marginalised communities. RNBA has developed transformative community-led models, notably SALT(sloping agricultural Land Technology) and FORLIS(Forest Restoration of Locally Important Species), that have reached more than 368 villages across the region.
Climate change, livelihoods, skilling, education,peacebuildings and institution strengthening, all anchored in participatory governance and local leadership, are areas worked on by the organisation. RNBA has worked directly in more than 148 villages, while collaborations with partner organisations and support from institutions such as MSME, NEC, KVK, ICAR, CAU, and Tribal University have extended its reach to around 368 villages across 16 districts of Manipur, Cachar in Assam and Peren in Nagaland.
The core of RNBA philosophy is the principle of circularity, an approach that seeks not merely to conserve resources but to regenerate ecosystems and renew community resilience. The organisation focuses on reviving degraded lands, restoring native biodiversity, and embedding sustainable farming and forestry practices within customary governance systems.
By drawing from indigenous knowledge systems and embedding restoration within customary governance, RNBA models focus on ecological regeneration alongside community stewardship. SALT helps stabilize sloping farmlands through terracing and agroforestry, while FORLIS enables the reintroduction of locally significant tree species to degraded forests. These approaches are not imposed as rigid templates but evolve through community dialogue, allowing flexibility across different terrains and cultural contexts.
What sets Realm of Nature Based Actions (RNBA) apart is its ability to regenerate shifting cultivation landscapes by blending traditional wisdom with ecological science. Instead of replacing time-tested systems, RNBA works within customary land governance frameworks, enabling communities to adapt, refine and sustain practices over generations.
They build systems where ecological restoration and livelihoods reinforce one another, ensuring that both land and community well-being are renewed over time. Through initiatives such as System of Rice Intensification (SRI), Homestead Systems, SALT, FORLIS, Crop Intensification, and the ‘Do No Harm’ peacebuilding approach, RNBA promotes regenerative livelihoods and resilient community structures.
What Realm of Nature Based Actions (RNBA) has cultivated is more than a set of models—it is a resilient culture of restoration. By enabling communities to work with nature rather than against it, RNBA lights the way toward a future where regeneration becomes a shared way of life across the Northeast and beyond. RNBA also expanded in Organisation Development (OD) of Grassroot Organisations in the region.
The Logical Indian’s Perspective
At The Logical Indian, we believe true climate action is not about imposing quick fixes but about listening deeply to communities, respecting indigenous wisdom, and choosing coexistence over extraction. RNBA’s work reminds us that resilience grows strongest when people, nature, and local governance move together in harmony.
In a time when climate conversations are often dominated by top-down solutions, RNBA offers a quieter but far more powerful alternative rooted in dialogue, empathy, and collective care for both land and livelihoods. Their people-led, nature-positive approach shows that regeneration is not just environmental work, it is peacebuilding in action, fostering dignity, stability, and hope in regions that have long been marginalised.
As India searches for sustainable paths forward, stories like RNBA’s urge us to ask a larger question: can development truly succeed unless it is grounded in kindness toward nature and fairness toward communities, and are we ready to support models that heal rather than exploit?
