“Irulas are very knowledgeable about medicinal plants”: Interview with Zai Whitaker, Director of the Irula Tribal Women’s Welfare Society – Tamil Nadu

The ITWWS is a women’s community-based development organization established in 1986. It was founded with the aim of protecting natural resources, empowering Irula women and using the Irula tribal knowledge …

Tip | Search articles on tribal history, politics and literature on Ramachandra Guha’s website

We met adivasis who had been persecuted by the Naxalites, and other adivasis who had been tormented by the Salwa Judum vigilantes [i.e. “a strange, not to say bizarre, example …

ePaper | The Kaani (Kani) community’s ethno-botanical knowledge of 300 medicinal herbs: Paper presented a the National Jackfruit Festival 2015 – Kerala

“Jackfruit and its value-added products have started stealing the show at various food festivals, thanks to the collective initiatives of peasants. However, the governments continue their habitual indifference to promoting …

Chipko movement: “A people’s revolt against mindless deforestation” inspired by Gandhi – India’s 10 most powerful movements

Saving the forests of Garhwal by sticking to trees. Fighting a big dam by living in submerged waters. These movements redefined the greening of India. STICKING TO A CAUSE Chipko …

eBook | What is the Biodiversity Act? And how will it protect intellectual property rights over traditional knowledge?

An Act to provide for conservation of biological diversity, sustainable use of its components and fair and equitable sharing This publication contains the Biological Diversity Act, 2002 and the Biological …

Environmental history and what makes for a civilization – Romila Thapar

“Many voices of history … are what well known historian Romila Thapar brings out in her works. In this exclusive interview, she talks about changing trends in research, corruption in …

Serving endangered languages, denotified and nomadic Communities: Ganesh Devy on the need for a “sustainable economic and social base in the homeland”

A collection of essays on Adivasis. Tribal groups (adivasis) in India have often been excluded, marginalized and oppressed by ‘mainstream’ society. In many ways this exclusion, marginalization and oppression is …