Community leadership reduces deforestation, poverty: Nepal study

Deforestation was down 37 per cent, poverty fell 4.3 per cent between 2000 and 2012

Balancing rights and responsibilities: community-based forest governance in Maharashtra

A small village in eastern Maharashtra sets an example of managing community forest resource in a sustainable way

Planting problems

Forest development corporations fell rich forests to raise plantations, undermining people's rights and biodiversity. It's time India introduced …

Meet Sasi Mausi: A sentinel of Odisha forest

This sexagenarian fought timber mafia half her life to reclaim forest hills

Odisha issues guidelines for FRA convergence plan implementation

The guidelines aim to increase benefits through community involvement

Wildlife recall: Manas National Park's experiment with former poachers

Once in the grip of armed insurgency, a national park has lessons in wildlife management

Weak governance escalating deforestation in Tanzania: FAO report

Of the total land area (88.3 mn hectares) in the African country, 55% is under forest cover. According to 2017 estimates, deforestation occurred …

Ten years of FRA: only 3 per cent of forest dwellers’ rights recognised

Collective rights to undo historic injustice meted out to indigenous people remain completely ignored by the states, says Citizens’ report

Forest Rights Act: From rights on paper to rights in practice

Local civil society organisations play a vital role in helping forest-dwelling communities assert and exercise their collective rights

Green fund rules notified: Some hits, major misses

The rules of the Compensatory (Afforestation) Fund Act 2016 are better than the draft but not impactful

Long overdue change made in new draft of Forest Policy

The new draft National Forest Policy takes into account the paradigm shift in present realities due to climate change

Afforestation: money on the trees

The Compensatory Afforestation Fund Act could redefine forest governance. But will it protect the rights of forest dwellers?

Forest rights in Jharkhand: Too early to rejoice

Forest rights recognised in Jharkhand for the first time in 2 years, but do not give management rights

Building institutional foundations for community forest management

Forest commons can play a critical role in facilitating the resilience of India’s response to climate change

‘Forests can’t survive without communities’

Nepal’s Forest Act of 1993, which allows communities to manage their forests, is admired and emulated by governments and movements across …

24 Chhattisgarh villages pledge to develop wildlife sanctuary on their own

Community leaders say they will increase forest cover and wildlife numbers by 150 per cent in five years in the proposed Udanti and Sita Nadi …

Forests for people

Newly democratic Bhutan pushes community forestry to tackle rural poverty  

Kerala’s Kadars continue fight for assertion of their community forest rights

Their Gram Sabhas have passed resolutions under the Forest Rights Act as work has progressed on the Anakkayam Small Hydro Power Project

Chhattisgarh revokes: Forest dept no longer nodal agency for community rights

Chhattisgarh government reinstates the role of the forest department to coordinate claims that are to be filed by communities, …

India among top 10 countries gaining forest area in the world: FAO

Half of people employed in forestry in the world are in India  

Forest department’s cheat act

Omits crucial community rights from claim papers of Gadchiroli villages  

A tale of two interpretations

Aparna Pallavi recounts struggles of residents of a tiny village in the Gadchiroli district of Maharashtra to get ownership of forest resources

A journey called change

Their struggle for survival and progress has shaped the understanding of environmentalism both at the national and global levels and influenced …

Battle over oil, coal & forests

Half-way to autonomy

Decisions by Maharashtra’s top forest official can empower gram sabhas prepare plans to revive their forests, but a policy is awaited