Springer Livelihood Strategies in Southern India: Conservation and Poverty Reduction in Forest Fringes

This volume features essays that focus on livelihood issues faced by forest communities of the southern Western Ghats region of India. It illustrates the application of a variety of assessment tools, from qualitative narratives to quantitative evaluations. From the Back Cover This volume is a compilation of essays that focus on livelihood issues faced by forest communities of the southern Western Ghats region of India. Communities living along the fringes of forests are, more often than not, overlooked in academic and policy discussions. However, they face considerable pressures, being sandwiched between conservation endeavours and the forces of urbanization and commercialization. The chapters in this book provide an insight into the kinds of livelihood issues these communities face and the potential means that can be adopted to sustain these livelihoods. This volume provides a unique alternative perspective by locating livelihood issues within socio-ecological-economic narratives of communities living at the intersection of the three southern Indian states of Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu, and suggests directions for policies to address these challenges. About the Author Seema Purushothaman is Professor, Azim Premji University, Bengaluru, India. She was previously a Fellow of the Land, Water and Livelihoods Programme at the Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE), Bengaluru. Rosa Abraham is pursuing her PhD at the Institute for Social and Economic Change, Bengaluru, India. She was earlier with ATREE as a senior research associate.