The program is focused to promote agriculture & horticulture based livelihood of the local community, training, capacity building, and vocational training to youths on different livelihood options. In addition to this the program is also focused to establish the community based micro finance groups or women SHGs engaged in micro enterprises for their livelihood enhancement. Many trainings and capacity building programs were organized in vegetable farming, bee keeping, dairy development, spices cultivation, mushroom farming, fruit processing, nursery development, poultry, marketing of the products and non farm activities such as re-cycling of waste material and development of products in rural and urban areas. IDS has been engaged in planning, implementation, monitoring and supervision of community based tourism activities in 12 districts of Uttarakhand for livelihood enhancement. The key activities being performed under the projects are identification of suitable villages for tourism development, IEC, formation and management of village tourism development committee, eco development committee, identification of their training need, designining and implementation of training in hospitability management, cooking, bird watching, interpretation, nature guiding, low cost dwelling units, business plan preparation, linkages with parytan swarojgar yojna and established linkages with marketing agencies.

IDS has facilitated planning and implementation of many rural water and environmental sanitation schemes in the villages of Uttarakhand supported under Sector Wide Approach and total sanitation campaign. IDS empowered community based organization particularly village water and sanitation committees to execute safe water supply and sanitation program for sustainable health and hygiene. An innovative, solar lifting water scheme was also constructed to fulfill the need and demand of the villagers. Apart from this, IDS is facilitating construction of household sanitary toilets, school sanitation, environmental sanitation and menstrual hygiene management. IDS has implemented Rapid Action Learning and Menstrual Hygiene management program under Swachh Bharat Mission supported by WSSCC, a UN organization. Recently, IDS has successfully completed Provision of capacity building management and support for the implementation of Jal Jeevan Mission (Rural Water Supply Program) supported by UNOPS.

IDS is regularly involved into improvement in formal and informal education program with communities. Organization operating 109 Education Center for the girl child who could not attended formal schooling or drop out from the school in Dehradun, Himachal and Mori Block of Uttarakashi. Apart from this IDS also promoted eco clubs in the 150 school for imparting better environmental education to children. Child right is another key area where organization has organized many advocacy programs. IDS implemented reproductive child health program that include preparation of birth plans, educating & mobilizing mothers for early registration, complete vaccination, IFA distribution, institution delivery and other health & hygiene issues. In addition to this the program is also focused to educate adolescents on reproductive & sexual health, conduction of health camps in remote area, regular school level camps, regular counseling, eradication of female foeticide and treatment of mal-nourished children etc.

The economy of Uttarakhand is more dependent on natural resources. The condition of the natural resources is deteriorating day by day. Considering the facts, IDS have been regularly engaged in conservation and protection of natural resource through community institution such as van panchayats, PRI, SHGs and Mahila Mangal Dals. The key program organized under the components are formation and strengthening of van panchayats, imparted different capacity building trainings to committee members and villagers, supported to committee members for nursery development, plantation, trenching, construction of ponds and rain water harvesting tanks.