The Green Politics of Hope: Youth Activism and the Struggle for Deepor Beel

DOI

10.2991/978-2-38476-561-4_28How to use a DOI?

Keywords

“Deepor Beel; Green Politics; Youth Movement; Wetland Conservation; Environmental Activism”

Abstract

The article explores the convergence of green politics and youth activism in the campaign to protect Deepor Beel, Assam’s only Ramsar-designated wetland. The movement emerged after the Assam Cabinet’s controversial move to denotify the Deepor Beel Wildlife Sanctuary, which threatened to open ecologically sensitive zones to fishing and urban expansion. By following a qualitative case study approach, including desk research, policy review, and media content analysis, the study investigates how youth-led activism has become a driver of ecological justice and sustainable governance.

Findings reveal that youth activism in Assam draws heavily on the principles of ecological sustainability, participatory democracy, and social justice. (Sharma, P (2020), Green politics and youth participation in Northeast India, International Journal of Sustainable Development, 12(4), 112.) Activists employ social media campaigns, community alliances, and grassroots mobilization to pressure policymakers and defend community rights. (Baruah, A (2022, October), Petitions and protests: The youth-led campaign to save Deepor Beel. Down To Earth.https://www.downtoearth.org.in/news/wildlife-biodiversity/deepor-beel-youth-campaign; The Wire Staff, (2023, February 12), Assam cabinet decision on Deepor Beel draws protests, The Wire). However, they face challenges such as state resistance, limited financial resources, and socio-economic vulnerabilities among local residents (Sharma, S, & Sarma, K (2023), Socio-economic vulnerabilities of communities at Deepor Beel, Indian Journal of Community Development, 17(1), 35). The Gauhati High Court’s intervention halting denotification underscores the fluid political dynamics of environmental governance.

Ultimately, the Deepor Beel campaign demonstrates how youth-led green politics can influence conservation policy, linking wetland protection to justice-oriented sustainable urban growth. The article emphasizes the need for inclusive conservation, balancing ecology with livelihoods, ensuring legal safeguards, and amplifying youth engagement for a sustainable future in Assam.

Copyright

© 2026 The Author(s)

Open Access

Open Access This chapter is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made.

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TY  - CONF
AU  - Shahnaj Sultana
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/04/23
TI  - The Green Politics of Hope: Youth Activism and the Struggle for Deepor Beel
BT  - Proceedings of the Indo-Bhutan Social Science Conference 2025 (IBSSC 2025)
PB  - Atlantis Press
SP  - 302
EP  - 311
SN  - 2352-5398
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/978-2-38476-561-4_28
DO  - 10.2991/978-2-38476-561-4_28
ID  - Sultana2026
ER  -