Stakeholder workshop: illegal trade and sustainable use of medicinal orchids in Nepal

Nepal’s wild orchid conservation facing many challenges: there are legal ambiguities in Nepal’s shifting legislation; there is scientific uncertainty about the sustainability of different harvest regimes; species identification is challenging, and illegal trade is hard to regulate. In response, Greenhood Nepal and its partners are exploring the trade and conservation of wild orchids. Orchids are among the most traded wildlife in the world and represent >70% of CITES-listed species. Many species are also used medicinally, including in Ayurvedic and Chinese pharmacopeia–important to health, culture, livelihoods, and commerce. This includes many rural communities in Nepal.