Sharachchandra Lélé

Senior Fellow, ATREE

Education

Sharachchandra Lele (aka Sharad Lele) has a broad interest in resource and environmental issues, which began while he was doing his B.Tech. in Electrical Engineering in IIT Bombay. He moved to the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, where he completed an M.S. in Systems Science in 1987, working on the optimal sizing of hydropower projects incorporating the energy and economic costs of land submergence. He went on to the University of California, Berkeley, where he completed a Ph.D. in Energy & Resources in 1993 on the definition, measurement and causal analysis of sustainability in forest use in a part of the Western Ghats forests. He then spent a year at the Pacific Institute for Studies in Development, Environment, and Security, Oakland, as a Senior Research Associate and a year at Harvard University as a Bullard Fellow for Forest Research, before returning to Bangalore to work in collaboration with the Institute for Social & Economic Change, and eventually to being involved in the founding of CISED in 2001. He was Coordinator of CISED for 8 years, and following CISED’s merger with ATREE, he is now with ATREE.

Research Interests

Sharad's research interests include conceptual issues in sustainable development and sustainability, and analyses of institutional, economic, ecological, and technological issues in forest, energy, and water resource management. He attempts to incorporate strong interdisciplinarity in his own research and teaching, which straddles ecology, economics, and political science.

Recently Completed Studies

  • Long-term Impacts of Watershed Development: A study in 3 Indian states, with Shrinivas Badiger, in collaboration with researchers from SOPPECOM and GIDR [1]
  • Climate Change and India, a review of India's role and predicament in the context of global climate change. In collaboration with Ashok Gadgil., Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.
  • NTFP Policy in India: Rhetoric and Reality. In collaboration with Manoj Pattanaik, Regional Centre for Development Cooperation, and Nitin Rai, Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment
  • Land-cover change, Watershed Services, and Socio-economic Impact in the Western Ghats, in collaboration with UNESCO, National Institute of Hydrology, Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology & the Environment, and the Karnataka Forest Department [pdf]
  • Influence of Forest Cover Change on Watershed Functions in the Western Ghats: A Coarse-Scale Analysis, with Jaysree Vaidyanthan and Santosh Hegde [pdf]
  • Understanding Community-Based Natural Resource Management (CBNRM) in South Asia, with Ajit Menon, Praveen Singh, Esha Shah, Suhas Paranjape and K.J.Joy LINK TO BOOK

Older Studies

  • Induction, development and impact of GIS/RS facility and applications in Karnataka Forest Department, with P.J. Dilip Kumar, S. Nagaraj and K.S. Shashidhar. [pdf]
  • Joint Forest Planning and Management in the Eastern Plains of Karnataka: A Rapid Assessment, with Kiran Kumar and Pravin Shivashankar. [Full text : Pdf file, 536 KB]
  • Ecology, Economics and Institutions of Forest Use in the Western Ghats: This project was completed under Dr. Lélé's leadership as a collaboration between Pacific Institute for Studies in Environment, Development, and Security and the Institute for Social and Economic Change.

Fellowships and Awards

Professional Activities

Complete Publications

Journal Publication

  • Lele, S. and A. Kurien, 2011, "Interdisciplinary analysis of the environment: Insights from tropical forest research ", Environmental Conservation, 38(2): 211-233. [pdf]
  • Lele, S., A. Kothari, Roma, A. Saikia, R. Rebbapragada, V. Kiro and J. Ete, 2011, "Misreading the Issues and the Landscape", Economic and Political Weekly, 46(22): 107-108.[pdf]
  • Lele, S., 2011, "Re-reading the interdisciplinary mindscape: a response to Redford", Oryx, 45(3): 331-332. [pdf]
  • Ariza-Montobbio, P., S. Lele, G. Kallis and J. Martinez-Alier. 2010. 'The political ecology of Jatropha plantations for biodiesel in Tamil Nadu, India', Journal of Peasant Studies, 37: 4, 875 — 897.
  • Ariza-Montobbio, P., Lele, S., 2010. Jatropha plantations for biodiesel in Tamil Nadu, India: Viability, livelihood trade-offs, and latent conflict, Ecological Economics (2010), doi:10.1016/j.ecolecon.2010.05.011. In press.
  • Lele, S., P. R. Wilshusen, D. Brockington, R. Seidler and K. S. Bawa, 2010, 'Beyond exclusion: alternative approaches to biodiversity conservation in the developing tropics', Current Opinions in Environmental Sustainability, 2(1-2): 94-100.
  • Lele.,Sharachchandra, Navroz K Dubash, Shantanu Dixit. 2010. A Structure for Environment Governance: A Perspective EPW february 6, 2010 vol xlv no 6.
  • Lele, S., Watershed services of tropical forests: from hydrology to economic valuation to integrated analysis. Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability. Volume 1, Issue 2, December 2009, Pages 148-155. doi:10.1016/j.cosust.2009.10.007. [pdf]
  • Rosencranz, Armin, and S. Lélé, 2008, "Supreme Court and India's Forests", Economic and Political Weekly, XLIII (5): 11-14, February 2. [pdf]
  • Kumar, Kiran, A. K., S. Lélé, and P. Shivashankar, (2007). "Impact of irrigation-led agricultural development on use of common lands in dry regions of Karnataka, India," WII-Ford Forestry Case Studies, Winrock International India, June. [Full paper: Pdf file, 502 KB]
  • Lélé, S., (2007). "A "Defining" Moment in Forests? Economic and Political Weekly, XLII (25), June. [Full Paper: Pdf file, 35.6 KB]
  • Lélé, S., (2006). "Thinking about Ecological Sustainability", Seminar, 564: 48-52, August. [Full Paper:Pdf file, 33.7 KB]
  • Joy, K.J., A. Shah, S. Paranjape, S.Badiger, and S. Lélé (2006), "Issues in Restructuring", Economic and Political Weekly, XLI (27 and 28): 2994-2996, July. [Full Paper, 20.3 KB]
  • Lélé, S., (2006). "Linking Ecology, Economics, and Institutions of Village-level Forest Use in the Karnataka Western Ghats", Sahyadri E-News: Western Ghats Biodiversity Information System, (21), July. [Full paper]
  • Lélé, S., and A. Menon, (2005). "DRAFT NEP 2004: A Flawed Vision", Seminar, 547, March. [Full Paper]
  • Lélé, S., and R. Norgaard, (2005). "Practicing Interdisciplinarity", BioScience, 55 (11): 967-975.[Full Paper:Pdf file 125 KB]
  • Saberwal, V., and S. Lélé, (2004). "Locating Local Elites In Negotiating Access to Forests: Havik Brahmins and the Colonial State, 1860-1920", Studies in History, 20(2): 273-303. [pdf]
  • Bawa, K.S., John, W. Kress, N.M. Nadkarni, and S. Lélé, (2004). "Beyond Paradise-Meeting the Challenges in Tropical Biology in the 21st Century", Biotropica, 36(4): 437-446. [pdf]
  • Lélé, S., (2003). "Challenges in Doing Socially Relevant and Interdisciplinary NRM Research for Integrated Development", in P.S.Ramakrishnan, K.G. Saxena, Suprava Patnaik, and Surendra Singh, (Eds)., Methodological Issues in Mountain Research: A Socio Ecological Systems Approach, Oxford & IBH, New Delhi, pp.57-78.
  • Lélé, S., V. Srinivasan, and K.S. Bawa, (2001), "Returns to Investment in Conservation: Disaggregated Benefit-Cost Analysis of the Creation of a Wildlife Sanctuary," K.N. Ganeshaiah, R.U. Shaanker, and K.S. Bawa, (Eds). Proceedings of International Conference on Tropical Ecosystems: Structure, Diversity and Human Welfare, Oxford IBH Publishing, New Delhi, pp.31-33. [Abstract]
  • Badrinarayanan, S., J. Krishnaswamy, S. Lélé, and K. Chandrashekara, K. (2001), "Consequences of Forest Conversion to Coffee Plantation on Litter Beetle and Ant Communities", in K.N. Ganeshaiah, R.U. Shaanker, and K.S. Bawa, (Eds.), Proceedings of International Conference on Tropical Ecosystems: Structure, Diversity and Human Welfare, Oxford-IBH Publishing, New Delhi, pp.162-163. [Summary]
  • Lélé, S. (2000), "Degradation, sustainability or transformation?", Seminar, vol. 486, pp.31-37. [link]
  • Lélé, S. and V. Saberwal, (2000), "The Problem (introducing the special issue on Environmental Degradation: Myth and Reality)", Seminar, vol. 486, pp.12-14. [link]
  • Lélé, S., G. Rajashekhar, V. R. Hegde, G. P. Kumar and P. Saravanakumar, (1998), "Meso-scale analysis of forest condition and its determinants: A case study from the Western Ghats region, India", Current Science, vol. 75 , no.3, pp.256-263. [pdf]
  • Lélé, S. (1998), "Resilience, Sustainability, and Environmental Soundness", Environment & Development Economics, vol. 3, no.2, pp.251-255. [pdf]
  • Lélé, S. and G.T. Hegde, (1997), "Potential herb layer production and grazing effects in anthropogenic savannahs in the moist tropical forests of the Western Ghats of India", Tropical Grasslands, vol. 31 , no.6, pp.574-587. [pdf]
  • Lélé, S. (1996), "Environmental governance", Seminar, no. 438, pp.17-23. [pdf]
  • Lélé, S. and R. B. Norgaard (1996), "Sustainability and the Scientists' Burden", Conservation Biology, vol. 10 , no.2, pp.354-365. [pdf]
  • Lélé, S. (1994), "Sustainable use of biomass resources: A note on definitions, criteria, and practical applications", Energy for Sustainable Development, vol.1, pp.42-46.[pdf]
  • Lélé, S. (1993), "Private property rights and forest preservation in Karnataka Western Ghats, India: Comment", American Journal of Agricultural Economics, vol.75, pp.492-495. [pdf]
  • Lélé, S. (1991), "Sustainable Development: a critical review", World Development, vol. 19, no.6, pp.607-621. [pdf]
  • Lélé, S., R. B. Norgaard, and D. K. Subramanian (1988), "Hydropower project design incorporating submergence costs", Journal of Environmental Management, vol.27, pp.307-323. [pdf]
  • Lélé, S. and D. K. Subramanian (1988), "A hydro-wood net-energy approach to hydro project planning", Energy, vol.13, no.4, pp.367-381. [pdf]
  • Lélé, S. (1987), "Improved algorithms for reservoir capacity calculation incorporating storage-dependent losses and dependability norm", Water Resources Research, vol. 23, no.10, pp.1819-23. [pdf]

Other Publications

  • Lele S: Right direction, but long way to go. Current Conservation 2009, 2:6-7. [pdf]
  • Lélé, S., (2004), "Decentralising Governance of Natural Resources in India: A review", review paper submitted to UNDP Dryland Development Centre, Nairobi [Full Paper, Pdf file, 285 KB]
  • Menon, A., and S. Lélé, (2003), "Critiqueing the Commons: Missing the Woods for the Trees?" The Common Property Resource Digest. [Article]
  • Lélé, S. (2001), "The concept of Participatory Forest Management, its Rationale and Implications for Karnataka", Position Paper of Jana Aranya Vedike, Bangalore. [Weblink)
  • Lélé, S. (2001), " 'Pixelising the Commons' and 'Commonising the Pixel': Boon or Bane?", The Common Property Resource Digest, No. 58, September. [Article]
  • Lélé, S. (1999), "Institutional issues in (J)FM (& R)", keynote paper presented at the National Workshop on JFM, VIKSAT-Ahmedabad, February 24-26.
  • Parikh, A., S. Lélé, A. S. Shrinidhi and R. J. Rao, (1999), "Influence of Forest Rights Regimes on Sustainability and Returns from NTFP Harvest: The case of Garcinia gummi-gutta in the Western Ghats of India", paper presented at the National Workshop on JFM, VIKSAT-Ahmedabad, February 24-26, 1999.
  • Lélé, S., M. Ramanathan, and G. Previshkumar, (1999), "High-Resolution Vegetation Mapping for Forest Management in the Western Ghats of Karnataka", Proceedings of the Ninth User Interaction Workshop, National Remote Sensing Agency, Hyderabad, pp. 137-144.
  • Lélé, S., K. S. Murali and K. S. Bawa, (1998), "Community enterprise for conservation in India: Biligiri Rangaswamy Temple Sanctuary", in A. Kothari, Neema Pathak, R. V. Anuradha and Bansuri Taneja (Eds), Communities and Conservation: Natural Resource Management in South & Central Asia, Sage Publications, New Delhi, pp.449-466.
  • Lélé, S.(1998), "Godsend, Sleight of Hand, or Just Muddling Through: Joint Management in India, Paper presented "Crossing Boundaries: The Seventh Common Property Conference", held at the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada on June 10-14th, 1998 (subsequently revised and published as "Godsend, Sleight of Hand, or Just Muddling Through: Joint Water and Forest Management in India", ODI Natural Resource Perspectives, No.53, Overseas Development Institute, London). [pdf]
  • Lélé, S. (1993) "Sustainability: A plural, multi-dimensional approach", Working paper, Pacific Institute of Studies in Development, Environment & Security , November 1993.
  • Lélé, S., (1988), "The Concept of Sustainability", In A. T. Charles and G. N. White III (Eds.), "Natural Resources Modelling and Analysis: proceedings of a Conference held at St. Mary's University and the Bedford Institute of Oceanography, Halifax, Canada, between Sep 29-Oct 2, 1988", pp.46-48. [pdf]

Books/Edited Books

  • Menon, A., P.Singh, E.Shah, S. Lélé, S. Paranjape, and K.J. Joy, (2007). Community-Based Natural Resource Management: Issues and Cases from South Asia, Sage India. [LINK TO BOOK] [Doodha Toli case study]
  • Krishnaswamy, J., S. Lélé, and R. Jayakumar (Eds.) (2006), Hydrology and Watershed Services in the Western Ghats of India: Effects of land use and land cover change, Tata McGraw Hill, New Delhi. link.
  • Lélé, S., G. Kadekodi and B. Agrawal (Eds.) (2002), Interdisciplinarity in Environmental Research: Concepts, Barriers and Possibilities", Indian Society for Ecological Economics, New Delhi. For ordering, please mail to: INSEE.

Book Chapters

  • Lele, S. 2011. Rethinking forest governance: Towards a perspective beyond JFM, the Godavarman case and FRA. In The Hindu Survey of the Environment 2011. (eds. Anonymous). Pp. 95– 103. Chennai: The Hindu. [pdf]
  • Lele S., Manoj Pattanaik and Nitin Rai. 2010. 'NTFPs in India: Rhetoric and reality.' In: Wild Product Governance: Finding Policies that Work for Non-Timber Forest Products. (eds) Sarah A. Laird, Robert McLain and Rachel P. Wynberg. Earthscan, London, 2010, pp.85-112. [pdf]
  • Lele, S., I. Patil, S. Badiger, A. Menon and R. Kumar. 2011. Forests, Hydrological Services, and Agricultural Income: A Case Study from Mysore district of the Western Ghats of India. In: Environmental Valuation in South Asia (eds. Haque, A. K. E., M. N. Murty and P. Shyamsundar). Pp. 141-169. Cambridge, U.K.: Cambridge University Press. [pdf]
  • Joy, K. J., A. Shah, S. Paranjape, S. Badiger and S. Lele, 2009, 'Re-visioning the Watershed Development Programme in India', in G. K. Kadekodi and B. Viswanathan (Eds.), Agricultural Development, Rural Institutions, and Economic Policy: Essays for A.Vaidyanathan, Oxford University Press, New Delhi, pp.152-175.
  • Gadgil, A. and S. Lele, 2009. India: Special Role and Responses. In: Climate Change Science and Policy. S. H. Schneider, A. Rosencranz, M. D. Mastrandrea and K. Kuntz-Duriseti (Eds). Island Press, Washington, D.C. 2010, pp.323-331. [pdf]
  • Lele, S. Reflections on Interdisciplinarity in Environmental Economics in India. 2009. In: Handbook of Environmental Economics in India. Kanchan Chopra and Vikram Dayal (Eds), Oxford University Press, pp.305-325 [pdf]
  • Joy, K.J., A. Shah, S. Paranjape, S.Badiger, and S. Lélé, "Reorienting the Watershed Development Programme in India; Approaches, Outcomes & Impact Assessment", in Sudha Menon and Pheba Anandan Pillai (Eds.), Watershed Management-Concepts and Experiences in (2008), ICFAI University Press, Hyderabad, pp. 27-55.
  • Lélé, S., (2007), "Interdisciplinarity as a Three-way Conversation: Barriers and Possibilities", in Pranab Bardhan and Isha Ray (Eds.), The Contested Commons: Conversations between Economists and Anthropologists, pp.187-207, Blackwell, Oxford, U.K.
  • Lélé, S., (2007), "Sustainability", in Roland Robertson and Jan Aart Scholte (eds.), Encyclopedia of Globalization, Volume 3, N to T, Routledge, London, pp.1102-1107.
  • Lélé, S., and L. Venkatachalam, (2006). "Assessing the Socio-economic Impact of Changes in Forest Cover on Watershed Services", in J. Krishnaswamy, S. Lélé, and R. Jayakumar, (Eds.), 2006, Hydrology and Watershed Services in the Western Ghats of India: Effects of land use and land cover change, Tata McGraw Hill, New Delhi.
  • Lélé, S., (2004). "Beyond state-community and bogus "joint"ness: Crafting institutional solutions for resource management," in Max Spoor (Ed.) Globalisation, Poverty and Conflict: A Critical "Development" Reader, Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht and Boston, pp.283-303. [pdf]
  • Sills, Erin O, S. Lélé, Thomas P.Holmes and Subhrendu K.Pattanayak (2003)."Non-timber Forest Products in the Rural Household Economy", Sills and Abt (Eds.), Forests in a Market Economy, pp.259-281.[Full paper:Pdf file 216 KB]
  • Lélé S., R. J. Rao, Nanjundaiah and V. Muthaiah, (1996), "Re-lighting LAMPS: A draft Action Plan for Revitalizing the Tribal Cooperatives in Karnataka", in R. Rajagopalan (Ed.), Rediscovering Cooperation , Institute of Rural Management, Anand, Gujarat, pp. 92-105.
  • Lélé, S. and R. J. Rao, (1996), "Whose Cooperatives and Whose Produce? The Case of LAMPS in Karnataka", in R. Rajagopalan (Ed.), Rediscovering Cooperation, Institute of Rural Management Anand, Gujarat, pp. 53-91.

Working Papers / Technical Reports

  • Lele, S. and T. Jayaraman, 2011, "Equity in the context of sustainable development", Note for UN-GSP, Ministry of Environment & Forests, Government of India, New Delhi. [pdf]
  • Lélé, S., I. Patil, S. Badiger, A. Menon and R. Kumar, 2008, "The Economic Impact of Forest Hydrological Services on Local Communities: A Case Study from the Western Ghats of India", SANDEE Working Paper no. 36-08, South Asian Network for Development and Environmental Economics, Kathmandu.[pdf]
  • Joy, K.J., A. Shah, S. Paranjape, S.Badiger, and S. Lélé, (2005), "Reorienting the Watershed Development Programme in India; Approaches, Outcomes & Impact Assessment", Occasional Paper, Society for Promoting Participative Ecosystem Management, Pune, Gujarat Institute of Development Research, Ahmedabad and Centre for Interdisciplinary Studies in Environment and Development, Bangalore. [Full Report: Pdf file, 218 KB]
  • Lélé, S., A.K.Kiran Kumar, and P. Shivashankar (2005). "Joint Forest Planning and Management (JFPM) in the Eastern Plains Region of Karnataka: A Rapid Assessment", Technical Report, Centre for Interdisciplinary Studies in Environment and Development, Bangalore, September. [Full Report: Pdf file, 536 KB],[Executive Summary]
  • Srinidhi, A. S. and S. Lélé, (2001). "Forest tenure regimes in the Karnataka Western Ghats: A compendium". Working Paper no. 90, Institute for Social and Economic Change, Bangalore.
  • Sathaye, J. A., A. N. Ketoff, L. J. Schipper and S. Lélé, (1988). "An End use Approach to Development of Long term Energy Demand Scenarios for Developing Countries", Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory Tech. Rep. No. 25611.

Articles in newspapers/magazines/e-magazines/newsletters

  • Lele S. (2009), "Red-tape must go, but industry cannot decide what constitutes a high-quality environmental governance process", Business Standard, June 17. [pdf] URL:
  • Lélé, S., and A. Menon, (2005). "Neo-liberal verbiage," DownTo Earth, p.53, January 15. [pdf]
  • Lélé, S. (2003), "Karnatakadha Aranya Samasyegalu", Hosatu (Kannada Magazine), July issue.
  • Lélé, S. (2003), "Participatory Forest Management in Karnataka: At the Crossroads,", Community Forestry , Vol.2, Issue No. 4. [Article]
  • "Darkness under LAMPS", Deccan Herald, May 18, 1996.
  • "Sustainability, Environmentalism, and Science," Pacific Institute Report, 3(1): 1-2,5, 1994.

Press

Contact

Email: slele(at)atree(dot)org