Agasthya 4.2

Agasthya

A newsletter on the Natural History, Ecology

and Conservation of the Agasthyamalai region, Western Ghats, India.

The field-based course in Conservation Science, an iniative of the Academy for Conservation Science and Sustainability Studies which is supported by Jamsetji Tata Trust is but the first step in equipping students with perspectives, concepts and tools to understand and work on regional conservation issues. 'Conservation Science', not words that the fourteen participants were familiar with. Drawn from disciplines as disparate as Interior design, communicative English, physics and engineering to more conventional source pools of Environmental sciences and Biology, they were an eclectic group.

The course began in Bangalore with a series of lectures which introduced various topics and all its complexities. Concurrently, there were group discussions on "Human-wildlife conflict" and 'People and conservation". As the scene shifted to the newly constructed Agasthyamalai CCC, there was an air of anticipation within the group. Some excited, some apprehensive as this was their first exposure to real- world field settings. After a brief introduction to the site and ATREE's work, they were split up into groups and had to come up with small projects. Given the time constraints, they came up with some interesting studies. You will read about these exciting projects and their experiences in this issue. Many of the participants have since approached us with enquires for internships and volunteer opportunities and we hope that our combined efforts will help conserve India's rich natural heritage.