A deep forested valley in the Sikkim Himalaya in early morning, cloud resting on the far ridges, a tall bare tree trunk and bamboo in the foreground

Lectures & keynotes

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A Himalayan ecologist and working farmer from Sikkim, available worldwide for guest lectures, seminars and keynotes — online and in person.

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Thirty-two years of research in the Eastern Himalaya, 93 publications, and some 92 papers presented, 57 of them at international conferences across 19 or more countries — with invited keynote and plenary roles in Rome, Kathmandu, Paro and elsewhere, and the Overall Best Presentation Medal at the 8th International Conference on Climate Change in Colombo.

Dr. Ghanashyam Sharma holds the Sikkim Sewa Samman, the highest civilian award of the Government of Sikkim. He is also a practising traditional farmer of forty-eight years, from an indigenous farming family whose practice in these hills goes back two hundred years. Students consistently find that second qualification the more memorable one: the springs, the seed banks and the biodiversity registers he lectures on are systems he has both published on and worked in.

His frame of reference is not only Himalayan. A JSPS–UNU postdoctoral fellowship at United Nations University, Tokyo — one of five awarded globally — held alongside an Associate Fellowship at Kyoto University’s Centre for Southeast Asian Studies, produced comparative fieldwork on traditional farming systems from the Eastern Himalaya through northern Thailand, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Malaysia, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Yunnan to the tanada and satoyama of northern Japan. Audiences outside South Asia tend to find that the most useful part of the lecture: the Himalayan case set beside their own.

Lectures are delivered in English, pitched to undergraduate, postgraduate or general university audiences, and built around evidence from his own peer-reviewed publications and field programmes.

Dr. Ghanashyam Sharma in a Nepali topi and cream waistcoat, speaking at a wooden lectern, with a banner reading Integrated Mountain Initiative, Sustainable Mountain Development Summit, SMDS XII — Speaking at the 12th Sustainable Mountain Development Summit (SMDS XII) of the Integrated Mountain Initiative, Doon University, Dehradun, September 2025.

Dr. Ghanashyam Sharma speaking with a microphone in front of a workshop banner, his presentation slide on spring rejuvenation projected on the screen beside him — Presenting the Chibo–Pashyor spring revival work at the Government of India workshop on *Rejuvenation of Springs for Water Security through Springshed Development in Hilly Areas of the Country*, 14 March 2019.

Dr. Ghanashyam Sharma at a lectern marked Metta Resort beneath Bhutanese hangings, with a slide on the screen beside him headed Present status of organic farming in India — Keynote on organic farming, drawing on the example of Sikkim — regional symposium at Paro, Bhutan, December 2019.

Dr. Ghanashyam Sharma in a white knitted cap and grey jacket at a lectern with a laptop, beside a slide of research questions on incentives for local people and the groups behind illegal trade, beneath the banner of a consultative workshop on transboundary illegal trade of wildlife and NTFPs, 9 February 2010 — Consultative workshop on existing governance mechanisms for transboundary illegal trade of wildlife and NTFPs, with special reference to CITES, organised by The Mountain Institute India with the support of ICIMOD — State Institute of Capacity Building, Karfectar, Jorethang, 9 February 2010: presenting the research questions.

Dr. Ghanashyam Sharma in a checked shirt and delegate lanyard presenting at the head of a long conference table, beside a slide headed Population count of yak and sheep in the Greater and trans-Himalayan Sikkim — 5th International Conference on Yak, organised by the Lanzhou Institute of Husbandry and Pharmaceutical Sciences of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences with ICIMOD and the Yak and Camel Foundation, Germany — Lanzhou, China, 27–30 August 2014. On 29 August: presenting *Status, Challenges and Prospects of Yak Herding in the Sikkim Himalaya, India*, with a slide on yak and sheep numbers in Sikkim from 1977 to 2009; standing among the delegates; and closing the talk.

Dr. Ghanashyam Sharma standing at a conference table among seated delegates wearing lanyards, red wall panels painted with blossom behind them — 5th International Conference on Yak, organised by the Lanzhou Institute of Husbandry and Pharmaceutical Sciences of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences with ICIMOD and the Yak and Camel Foundation, Germany — Lanzhou, China, 27–30 August 2014. On 29 August: presenting *Status, Challenges and Prospects of Yak Herding in the Sikkim Himalaya, India*, with a slide on yak and sheep numbers in Sikkim from 1977 to 2009; standing among the delegates; and closing the talk.

Delegates moving among poster boards in a congress poster hall, one in a white knitted cap and grey jacket standing with folded arms before a poster — 4th World Congress on Agroforestry, Le Corum, Montpellier, France, 20–22 May 2019: in the poster hall; with Bhoj Kumar Acharya of Sikkim University beside the congress banner; and presenting their poster *Conservation need of Globally Significant Himalayan Indigenous Farming Systems with reference to bird diversity*.

Dr. Ghanashyam Sharma in a white knitted cap and tweed jacket and Bhoj Kumar Acharya in a Himachali cap, both wearing delegate badges, either side of the banner of the 4th World Congress on Agroforestry, 20 to 22 May 2019, Montpellier, France — 4th World Congress on Agroforestry, Le Corum, Montpellier, France, 20–22 May 2019: in the poster hall; with Bhoj Kumar Acharya of Sikkim University beside the congress banner; and presenting their poster *Conservation need of Globally Significant Himalayan Indigenous Farming Systems with reference to bird diversity*.

A speaker at the lectern beside a slide headed Elevational pattern of trees in the Sikkim Himalaya, delegates seated at round tables in the foreground — 29th International Congress for Conservation Biology, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 21–25 July 2019: at the lectern, a session in progress, and at the exhibition hall.

A speaker in a knitted cap and tweed jacket talking into a microphone beneath a Hindi seminar banner, beside a projected slide headed Sikkim biodiversity hotspots — Seminar on best practices in the National Swachh Bharat Abhiyan and the Sikkim Model, organised by the Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, Ministry of Culture, Government of India, with the Human Resource Development Department, Government of Sikkim — Gangtok, 15–17 February 2020.

The same speaker at the front of a hall with orange curtains, addressing rows of seated participants with notebooks on their laps — Seminar on best practices in the National Swachh Bharat Abhiyan and the Sikkim Model, organised by the Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, Ministry of Culture, Government of India, with the Human Resource Development Department, Government of Sikkim — Gangtok, 15–17 February 2020.

Four panellists at a table with name cards reading Ghanashyam Sharma, Nilanchal Patel, Sonam Lama and Neesha Tamang, beneath a banner for the National Seminar on Eastern Himalayas and Its Ecological Trends — On the panel at the National Seminar on Eastern Himalayas and Its Ecological Trends, Sinclairs Hotel, Darjeeling, 19 February 2020; and a session with community members, November 2020.

A speaker in a maroon jersey and knitted cap gesturing towards wall charts, with participants seated on plastic chairs and terraced hills visible through the window behind them — On the panel at the National Seminar on Eastern Himalayas and Its Ecological Trends, Sinclairs Hotel, Darjeeling, 19 February 2020; and a session with community members, November 2020.

A man in a knitted cap, glasses and dark waistcoat taking a selfie in front of a field of flowering yellow mustard, with trees behind — Flowering mustard, December 2020; at SAMETI Sikkim, on the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of agriculture systems, December 2020; and at the Sharada Library’s programme of literature, art and music, Lower Bering, East Sikkim, 16 February 2021.

A speaker in a tan jacket at a lectern marked SAMETI Sikkim, one arm raised, beside a slide on the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of agriculture systems — Flowering mustard, December 2020; at SAMETI Sikkim, on the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of agriculture systems, December 2020; and at the Sharada Library’s programme of literature, art and music, Lower Bering, East Sikkim, 16 February 2021.

A speaker in a striped shirt and dark jacket standing with one arm raised before a seated panel and audience, under a banner for field-based training of watershed committees and water-user groups — Field-based training of watershed committees and water-user groups on geo-hydrology and *Dhara Vikas* in the Bagey Khola and Khani Khola watershed, organised by The Mountain Institute India — Sakhu, West Pendam, East Sikkim, 20–21 February 2021.

A speaker in a red striped shirt and dark jacket addressing participants on red chairs, seen from the back of an orange-walled room beneath the training banner dated 20 to 21 February 2021 — Field-based training of watershed committees and water-user groups on geo-hydrology and *Dhara Vikas* in the Bagey Khola and Khani Khola watershed, organised by The Mountain Institute India — Sakhu, West Pendam, East Sikkim, 20–21 February 2021.

A speaker in a maroon jacket talking with raised hands while a colleague writes on a whiteboard, with participants seated along the right-hand wall — A session at the whiteboard, February 2021; and explaining the science of springs, March 2021.

A speaker in a red striped shirt pointing at a projected slide headed The science of springs, with participants seated around tables — A session at the whiteboard, February 2021; and explaining the science of springs, March 2021.

A speaker in a white cap and dark jacket beside a projected slide of objectives for work on springs, addressing men seated in rows — Setting out the objectives of spring research and community institution-building, March 2021; and an outdoor address, October 2021.

A speaker in a pale striped kurta at a lectern with a microphone, surrounded by garden foliage and red flowers — Setting out the objectives of spring research and community institution-building, March 2021; and an outdoor address, October 2021.

A speaker before a projection screen of mountain photographs in a pink-walled hall, with participants around a long oval table and a consultation banner on the left — Consultation on the proposed Gadi Biodiversity Heritage Site, Central Pendam, East Sikkim, with The Mountain Institute India and the Sikkim Biodiversity Board, December 2021; and at the 5th World Congress on Agroforestry, Quebec, Canada, July 2022, presenting two posters — *Conserving springs as climate change adaptation action in the eastern Himalaya* and *Livelihoods, gender and agroforestry in the eastern Himalaya* — and beside the congress banner.

Dr. Ghanashyam Sharma in a Nepali topi and grey jacket explaining his poster on conserving springs to two conference delegates — Consultation on the proposed Gadi Biodiversity Heritage Site, Central Pendam, East Sikkim, with The Mountain Institute India and the Sikkim Biodiversity Board, December 2021; and at the 5th World Congress on Agroforestry, Quebec, Canada, July 2022, presenting two posters — *Conserving springs as climate change adaptation action in the eastern Himalaya* and *Livelihoods, gender and agroforestry in the eastern Himalaya* — and beside the congress banner.

A speaker in a striped jersey and Nepali topi with a microphone, gesturing towards officials and community members seated in a row, before a banner for a community consultation workshop on river protection and biodiversity conservation — Community consultation workshop on river protection and biodiversity conservation, with the Sikkim Biodiversity Board, the Bering-Tareythang Biodiversity Management Committee and The Mountain Institute India, December 2022; and a meeting at the Upper Thambong Gram Panchayat Unit, Daramdin block, June 2023.

A speaker in a checked shirt addressing a meeting in a pink-walled panchayat office, officials on a sofa and participants on red and brown chairs, beneath a yellow wall board listing MGNREGA works for the Upper Thambong Gram Panchayat — Community consultation workshop on river protection and biodiversity conservation, with the Sikkim Biodiversity Board, the Bering-Tareythang Biodiversity Management Committee and The Mountain Institute India, December 2022; and a meeting at the Upper Thambong Gram Panchayat Unit, Daramdin block, June 2023.

A delegate in a Nepali topi and pink shirt with three members of a conservation project at their exhibition stand, a coloured glass facade behind them — International Congress for Conservation Biology, Kigali, Rwanda, 23–27 July 2023: at the exhibition stands, and beside the poster *A new challenge for conservation biologists: how drying mountain water sources can be revived for biodiversity elements in the Himalayas*.

Dr. Ghanashyam Sharma in a cap and dark jacket beside his poster on reviving drying mountain water sources in the Himalayas — International Congress for Conservation Biology, Kigali, Rwanda, 23–27 July 2023: at the exhibition stands, and beside the poster *A new challenge for conservation biologists: how drying mountain water sources can be revived for biodiversity elements in the Himalayas*.

Three delegates standing together in front of the same poster in a crowded poster hall — With delegates at the poster, and at the congress entrance.

Two delegates standing either side of the banner of the International Congress for Conservation Biology, 23 to 27 July 2023, Kigali, Rwanda — With delegates at the poster, and at the congress entrance.

Six delegates standing together in a session room beside a lectern and the congress banner, one in a Nepali topi — With fellow delegates in a session room, and outside the convention centre in the evening.

A delegate in a Nepali topi outside the convention centre at night, its domed roof lit in blue, gold and green — With fellow delegates in a session room, and outside the convention centre in the evening.

A speaker in a white cap and striped waistcoat explaining a point to trainees taking notes beside a projector — Training in bird watching at Ribdi, West Sikkim, August 2025: a classroom session, and showing field guides to trainees.

Two trainers in caps holding up bird books, one titled Birds of the Indian Subcontinent, in front of seated trainees and a poster of Himalayan birds — Training in bird watching at Ribdi, West Sikkim, August 2025: a classroom session, and showing field guides to trainees.

A trainee in a yellow top reading from a sheet at the front of the classroom, an instructor in a pink shirt and cap standing beside her, others seated on plastic chairs — Training on bird watching under the RAMP scheme of the Ministry of MSME, Government of India, organised by the Commerce & Industries Department, Government of Sikkim, with Rhododendron Village Homestay, Ribdi, Soreng, West Sikkim — 31 July to 14 August 2025.

A speaker in a black fleece and cap standing before a whiteboard, addressing trainees on plastic chairs, seen from behind — Training on bird watching under the RAMP scheme of the Ministry of MSME, Government of India, organised by the Commerce & Industries Department, Government of Sikkim, with Rhododendron Village Homestay, Ribdi, Soreng, West Sikkim — 31 July to 14 August 2025.

Formats and what they cost

Five ways departments usually book him. Any of them can be adapted — tell us the course and the audience and we will propose a shape.

Format	Length	Delivery	Fee
Online guest lecture A single session inside an existing course	60 minutes, including Q&A	Zoom, Teams, Google Meet or Webex	On request
Online seminar series A themed sequence, each session building on the last	3–5 sessions of 60–90 minutes	Online	On request
Conference keynote Plenary or named lecture	45–60 minutes	In person, international travel	On request
Campus visit Lectures, a workshop and student research clinics	2–3 days	In person	On request
Curriculum-embedded module A recurring slot in a course that runs every year	Per semester, by arrangement	Online or blended	On request

Travel, visa and accommodation costs are additional for in-person engagements and are quoted at cost. Where a department has a fixed visiting-speaker honorarium, say so in your enquiry — we would rather work to your budget than not come at all.

Practicalities for online lectures

Time zones

Based in Gangtok, Sikkim, India — Indian Standard Time, UTC+5:30. In practice IST 18:30–21:30 covers European afternoons and North American mornings, which is where most teaching slots fall. Early-morning IST suits Australia, East Asia and the Pacific. Tell us your local slot and we will work back from it.

Connection

Fibre broadband at the institute, with a 4G connection held in reserve and tested before every session. If a session is critical, we will do a technical check with your AV team beforehand.

Platforms

Zoom, Microsoft Teams, Google Meet and Webex — whichever your institution already licenses. No preference and no software to install at your end.

What you receive

Slides and a short reading list supplied a week ahead, so students can prepare
A live Q&A, a graded student session or a discussion seminar, if that suits the course better than a lecture
Recording permitted by arrangement, for your own students on your own VLE

Signature lectures, mapped to courses

Five lectures that already exist and have been delivered, plus custom topics. Each notes the courses it has fitted best.

Reviving a Drying Himalaya

Aquifer-centric solutions and the recovery of 150 springs. Why spring-centric thinking fails, and what a decade of geo-lithologically informed nature-based solutions in Sikkim and Kalimpong actually shows.

Fits: Water Resources · Environmental Science · Geography & Development Studies · Ecology

My Cardamom, My Wealth

Bringing back a collapsed USD 45-million agroforestry economy. A collapse that left more than 60% of plantations barely productive, the biogeochemistry and farmers’ practice behind the recovery strategy, and the state programme now carrying it out.

Fits: Agroecology & Sustainable Agriculture · Ecology · Geography & Development Studies

Farming as Heritage

What the world’s first fully organic state actually teaches us. Sikkim’s organic transition and its FAO GIAHS candidature, told honestly — what worked, what was harder than advertised, what transfers.

Fits: Agroecology & Sustainable Agriculture · South Asian Studies · Environmental Science · Geography & Development Studies

Whose Knowledge?

Biodiversity registers, benefit sharing and biopiracy in the Eastern Himalaya. How 196 community institutions and 196 People’s Biodiversity Registers were built, and what they protect against.

Fits: Anthropology & Indigenous Studies · Conservation Biology · South Asian Studies · Environmental Science

The Scientist and the Farmer

Traditional ecological knowledge as method, not folklore. Forty-eight years farming, thirty-two years publishing, and what happens when the two are treated as a single practice.

Fits: Anthropology & Indigenous Studies · Agroecology & Sustainable Agriculture · Ecology

Custom topics

Lectures can be shaped to a course, a department seminar series or a conference theme across mountain ecology, agroecology, water security, climate adaptation and biodiversity governance.

Fits: By arrangement — send us the syllabus

Recent platforms

Year	Event	Place
2025	European Conference of Tropical Ecology, University of Amsterdam — two papers	Amsterdam, Netherlands
2024	4th Global Conference on Agriculture and Horticulture — invited keynote	Rome, Italy
2024	8th International Conference on Climate Change — Best Presentation Medal	Colombo, Sri Lanka
2024	International workshop on Climate Resilient Agriculture and Innovation, ICIMOD — invited speaker	Kathmandu, Nepal
2023	International Congress for Conservation Biology — two papers	Kigali, Rwanda
2022	5th World Congress on Agroforestry — five papers	Quebec, Canada
2022	International Symposium on Climate Resilient Agri-Environment Systems	Ireland
2019	Regional symposium on organic agriculture, ICIMOD and RGoB — invited keynote	Paro, Bhutan

For department chairs and programme directors

Administration

Honoraria are paid to Dr. Sharma directly, as an individual visiting speaker, by bank transfer or PayPal. No institutional invoice is involved.
We will sign your standard visiting-speaker paperwork — engagement letter, honorarium form, vendor registration, and the W-8BEN that US institutions ask of a foreign individual.
A risk and insurance note is available on request for in-person visits.
Lead time: four weeks is comfortable for an online lecture; three months or more for an in-person visit, because of visa processing.

What we can send you

A full CV
A lecture abstract written to your course description
A high-resolution headshot
Short biographies at 50, 150 and 300 words, for your programme and publicity

Download bio, headshot and CV

The biography file is ready now.

Invite a lecture

Tell us the course, the audience and roughly when. We reply within three working days with availability and a proposed shape.

Trouble with the form? Write to banstolag@gmail.com and we will reply within three working days.

Before you write

It helps enormously if you can say which course the lecture sits inside and what week of term it falls in. Almost everything else — length, platform, whether it is a lecture or a seminar — we can shape around that.

What happens next

You send this form. No commitment either way.
We reply within three working days with availability and a proposed format.
We agree a date and a fee, and sign your paperwork.
Slides and a reading list reach you a week before.
A technical check with your AV team, if you want one.

Also available for consultancy and technical advisory work, and for hosting student cohorts at the Field School.