Coexistence Studies
Research, education and public engagement towards learning to live well with nature and all other beings around us.
Our Vision
To rethink ways of coexisting with and conserving all forms of life, not just in isolated and/or protected ecosystems but also those living with and around us.
To understand human-nonhuman interactions and relationships as a spectrum, rather than as binaries of conflict and coexistence, and working towards more just and inclusive approaches to coexistence, sustainable use and conservation.
Our Current Research Projects.
Fellowship Programme
Our flagship programme is the Coexistence Fellowship Programme which has been set up with a vision to enable and empower grassroots-level conservation practitioners and researchers to steer projects on coexistence.
The Fellowship Programme, initiated once every two years, enables researchers and conservationists to study, understand, implement, and facilitate the coexistence paradigm in conservation. The philosophy of building local partnerships and capacity building is embedded in the structure of the programme, wherein a fellowship is awarded to a team of two Fellows for two years. At least one of the two Fellows needs to be from a community at the proposed project site, and candidates must apply as a team. The Fellowship includes a training component, where the Fellows are exposed to different debates in coexistence and conservation, and provided with the skills necessary for trans-disciplinary action research. Following the training period, the Fellows are assigned mentors, who guide them throughout their Fellowship.
Current Fellowship Projects
Mediating human-elephant coexistence in the Dooars, West Bengal.
In the shadow of the national capital: How is wildlife thriving in the Haryana Aravallis?
Exploring traditional knowledge and fisherfolk perspectives of coastal and marine biodiversity In Thrissur and Kollam, Kerala.
Echoes of the Ippimala Children: Exploring the bonds between the Paniya and nature in Gudalur, Tamil Nadu.
The role of the Soliga community’s traditional fire knowledge in ecological nurturance for wildlife and humans, Biligiri Rangan Hills, Karnataka.
Harmony in habitats: Understanding and mitigating human–crocodile interactions and relationships in their shared spaces in the Charotar region, central Gujarat.
Community forest rights, traditional knowledge, forest conservation and management in Melghat, Maharashtra.
Coexistence through cultural revival and responsible tourism in Monigong, Arunachal Pradesh.
Our Expertise and Resources.
Alternative pedagogies
Animal Cognition and Culture
Community Conserved Areas
Community-owned invasive species management
Conservation of biocultural diversity
Devising policy and influencing the practice of coexistence
Food security and livelihoods in protected area landscapes in central India
Human-nonhuman primate interactions and relationships in southern and northeastern India
Human-elephant interactions and relationships
Human-crocodile interactions and relationships in India
Indigenous knowledge and restoration
Large cats and human interactions
Public engagement and science communication
Urban ecologies
Vocal communication in birds and bioacoustics
Wildlife connectivity and linear infrastructure in central India
