Nitin D. Rai

Research interests

I am interested in using interdisciplinary approaches to enable decentralized conservation. My research incorporates ecological science, history of landscape transformation, cultural ecology and local knowledge. How is knowledge produced and why are certain forms of knowledge privileged over others? How might history of forest transformation and cultural ecology of local communities be included in forest governance? How do issues of power get implicated in conservation efforts? How might the study of scale help us in identifying macro-economic and policy drivers of local and regional change? Such integrated studies might challenge current narratives that view nature as static and human presence in forests as being inimical to biodiversity. These questions are being explored in association with the indigeneous Soliga community in the Biligiri Rangaswamy Temple Wildlife Sanctuary, India.

Education

2003: Ph. D., Department of Biology, Pennsylvania State University. 'Human use, reproductive ecology, and life history of Garcinia gummi-gatta, a non timber forest product, in the Western Ghats, India'.

1991: M.Sc., Wildlife Biology, Wildlife Institute of India. 'A study of heterospecific flocking and non-breeding bird community structure of Rajaji National Park, India'.

1987: B.Sc., Environmental Science, Chemistry, and Zoology, Bangalore University.

Selected Publications:

Lele, S. Pattnaik, M. and Rai, N. D. 2009. NTFPs in India: Policies and Experiences In Wild Product GovernanceFinding Policies that Work for Non-Timber Forest Products. Eds. Sarah A. Laird, Rebecca McLain, and Rachel P. Wynberg. Earthscan.

Menon, A., Hinnewinkel, C., Garcia, C., Guillerme, S., Rai, N. and Krishnan, S. 'Competing Visions: Domestic Forests, Politics and Forest Policy in the Central Western Ghats of South India', Small-Scale Forestry, DOI: 10.1007/s11842-009-9096-0.

Rai, N. D. 2007 The ecology of Income: can we have both fruit and forest? In Making Conservation Work. Rangarajan, M. and Shahabuddin, G. Editors. Permanent Black, New Delhi.

Ruiz-Pérez, M., B. Belcher, R. Achdiawan, M. Alexiades, C. Aubertin, J. Caballero, B. Campbell, C. Clement, T. Cunningham, A. Fantini, H. de Foresta, C. García Fernández, K. H. Gautam, P. Hersch Martínez, W. de Jong, K. Kusters, M. G. Kutty, C. López, M. Fu, M. A. Martínez Alfaro, T. R. Nair, O. Ndoye, R. Ocampo, N. Rai, et al 2004. Markets drive the specialization strategies of forest peoples. Ecology and Society 9(2): 4. [online]

Rai, N.D. and Uhl, C.F. 2004. Forest product use, conservation, and livelihoods: the case Of Uppage (Garcinia gummi-gutta) fruit harvest in the Western Ghats, India. Conservation and Society 2(2):289-313.

Rai, N.D. 2004. Uppage: A fruit for forest animals, savoury dishes and weight loss programmes. In Lopez, Citlalli and Shanley, Patricia. (eds) Riches of the forest: Fruits, spices, crafts and resins of Asia. Center for International Forestry Research, Bogor.

Rai, N. D. 2004. The socio-economic and ecological impact of Garcinia gummi-gutta fruit harvest in the Western Ghats, India. In Kusters, Koen and Belcher, Brian. (eds) A global comparison of Non Timber Forest Products, Volume 1: Asia. Center for International Forestry Research, Bogor.