Conservation of natural resources through sustainable ecosystem management and development is the key to our secured future. The degradation of our environment is linked to continuing problems of land cover changes, deforestation, habitat fragmentation, pollution, indiscriminate disposal of liquid and solid wastes, and issues related to economic productivity and ecological security. The rapid unplanned urbanisation in many cities across the State and the construction boom in the private sector have fuelled the trend towards indiscriminate exploitation of waterbodies, unmindful of the consequences for future generations. These structural changes in the ecosystem due to land cover changes, will influence the functional aspects namely hydrology, bio-geo chemical cycles and nutrient cycling, which are evident in many regions in the form of conversion of perennial streams to seasonal and disappearance of water bodies leading to a serious water crisis. The impacts include riverbank slumping and caving, lowering of river channels, drastic reductions in catchment yield, soil compaction, reduced infiltration, flash floods, changes in riverbed configuration, undermining of engineering structures such as ridges, rise in turbidity, salt water ingression and lowering of the groundwater table. The biological impacts include dwindling of the biodiversity, habitat damage and loss of spawning grounds of aquatic organisms, reduction in inland fisheries resources and loss of vegetation. Currently, it is even more critical than ever before, for the humankind as a whole to have a clear understanding of environmental concerns and to follow sustainable development practices. This entails a locally initiated action plans to restore, maintain, or enhance water resources based on the principles of integrated watershed approaches considering all components of aquatic ecosystems. Formulation and implementation of action plans that best conserve aquatic resources requires an understanding of issues, concerns, and threats to water resources are identified, and cause and effect relationships. Approaches towards this direction include:

Fostering participation of all stakeholders to ensure that individuals and organizations are provided an opportunity to participate in the development of aquatic resources conservation activities;

Encouraging intergovernmental initiatives through partnerships between communities and non-profit organizations;

Identifying significant natural, recreational, economic, cultural, scenic resources and aquatic ecosystem values

Identifying potential threats to aquatic resources and values

Recommending policies and actions that can be undertaken to restore, maintain or enhance aquatic resources.

In this backdrop, Lake 2008 focussing on Conservation and Management of River and Lake Ecosystems would bring in awareness among school students, teachers and public. The main objective of the symposium is to bring out the current trends in ecosystem conservation, restoration and management including the hydrological and the biophysical aspects, the peoples participation and the role of non-governmental, educational and the governmental organistations and future research needs for restoration, conservation and sustainable management. This also provides a forum for researchers, technologists, economists, sociologists and others to meet and discuss water related issues. This symposium will:

• Introduce the major types of ecosystems - characteristics, diversity and importance;
• Describe the main physical and biological processes important in several major types of ecosystems, and their consequences for community structure and function;
• Determine how the process and institutional innovations are embedded in the bio-physical context and characteristics of water, and how the technologies also get shaped by and operate in as part of social and institutional processes and contexts;
• Outline some problems of management and conservation in terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.