IBCA Summit 2026: Big Cat Conservation in India

New Delhi, May 19 (PTI) The International Big Cat Alliance (IBCA) will serve as a global platform for the dissemination of best practices emerging from India's 'Project Tiger' and other successful conservation initiatives, Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav told PTI, ahead of the IBCA Summit 2026.

He said these practices include advocacy for policy implementation, periodic assessment of big cat populations and habitats, habitat management strategies, and technology-enabled monitoring protocols, among others.

"India's success in wildlife conservation demonstrates that science-based conservation, community participation, and sustained monitoring can deliver measurable results," Yadav said.

The IBCA Summit 2026, scheduled on June 1-2, will bring together heads of state, experts, and partners from across the world to deliberate on the conservation of the world's seven primary big cats – tiger, lion, snow leopard, leopard, jaguar, puma, and cheetah.

A key outcome of the event would be the adoption of the first-ever global declaration on big cat conservation, titled the Delhi Declaration.

"The historic declaration will include commitments on habitat protection and restoration, strengthening ecological connectivity through a landscape conservation approach, advancing transboundary cooperation, and integrating big cat conservation into sustainable development planning," said Yadav.

He highlighted that the declaration would also recognise the central role of indigenous people and local communities through commitments on equitable benefit-sharing, green livelihood generation, and coexistence-based conservation approaches.

The declaration will also call for strengthening wildlife health surveillance under the 'One Health' framework, mobilising sustainable finance, and building institutional capacity.

There will be two technical sessions following the summit, which will provide a platform for governments, conservation practitioners, scientific institutions, corporates and international experts to exchange knowledge and identify collaborative solutions for big cat conservation.


On June 1, there will be two thematic sessions. The first session will focus on management principles and emerging challenges in big cat conservation.

The second thematic session will witness deliberations on sustainable financing mechanisms for conservation.

On June 2, species-specific technical sessions on tiger, lion, leopard, snow leopard, cheetah, jaguar, and puma conservation will take place.

The summit will also seek to boost the countries' capacity to effectively manage big cats by bringing together conservation practitioners from across the world to exchange experiences, identify capacity gaps, develop collaborative training frameworks, etc.

Yadav said, "Capacity building is one of the foundational pillars of the IBCA, and it has already initiated several concrete measures to strengthen the institutional and technical capacities of big cat range countries."

Another goal of the event is to promote South-South cooperation for big cat conservation.

The cooperation will focus on enabling developing countries in Asia, Africa, and Latin America to collaborate through knowledge exchange, technology transfer, capacity building, institutional partnerships, and coordinated conservation action.

"Through technical sessions, bilateral engagements, MoUs, collaborative initiatives and global knowledge-sharing platforms, the summit will help build long-term partnerships and coordinated strategies for conservation, sustainable livelihoods, and ecological resilience across the Global South," the environment minister said.

When asked about the current geopolitical tensions and their possible impact on the summit, Yadav said India believes that conservation diplomacy can serve as a constructive bridge even in complex geopolitical environments.

"The IBCA is anchored in shared ecological interests and mutual learning rather than political considerations. India remains committed to ensuring that the spirit of 'Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam' (the world as one family) guides global cooperation for protecting big cats and their ecosystems," the minister added.