22 case studies were commissioned to highlight innovative approaches of forest management that could provide lessons to facilitate evidence based forest policy making. 

1. Eco-sensitive areas: Matheran; Author: Ankur Patwardhan, RANWA, Maharashtra
   This study explores the category of “Ecologically Sensitive Areas (ESA)” and the pressures which they face beyond their resilience power and the impact it has on livelihoods of communities residing around Matheran, a hill station near Mumbai.
   
   
2. NTFP marketing through co-operative efforts- A case study from Orissa; Author:  Avinash Upadhyay
   This paper provides a detailed discussion on the forest policies and its impact on communities control and use of Non-timber forest products (NTFPs), the dependence of tribal people on NTFPs and the trade and management practices followed by these communities.
   
   
3. The Identity Crisis of Bamboo in Indian Forest Act, 1927 and its Implication in the Participatory Forest Management in Orissa; Author: Bikash Rath, Orissa
   This study examines the implications of bamboo and cane being considered to be classified as timber under the Indian Forest Act, 1927 rather than NTFP and the livelihood problems which arise due to the Supreme Court order on ban on timber felling in Orissa.
   
   
4. Women in Executive Committees: Influence on Joint Forest Management Committees (JFMCs) in West Bengal; Author:  Damayanti Mukhopadhyaya, West Bengal
   This study explores the level of involvement of women and the nature of their role within the executive committees of JFMCs in Paschim Medinipur district of West Bengal where, JFMCs have been functioning for more than a decade.
   
   
5. Traditional ecological ethos and norms as an element of social capital and its role in forest management; Author: Deepshikha Mehra-SHODH, Maharashtra
   This study explores the role of “social capital” in ensuring the success of Joint Forest Management (JFM) initiatives in a traditional Gond community in the Gadchiroli district in Maharashtra and the lack of policy space it receives.
   
   
6. Community participation in forest management: A case study from Doon Valley, Dehradun district, Uttaranchal; Author: Dinesh Pratap, Dehradun
   Uttaranchal is a state that has a unique tradition of forest management by local communities in the form of Van Panchyats. This study looks at the opportunity of appropriate community-centered modifications in JFM in the Doon Valley.
   
   
7. Biophysical and economic impact of participatory forest management: A case study of Ramnagar and Akhnoor sub watersheds in Shivaliks; Author: Falendra Sudan, Jammu & Kashmir
   This study explores the Biophysical and Economic Impact of Participatory Forest Management in the Ramnagar and Akhnoor Sub-watersheds in Shivaliks
   
   
8. Building bridges for greener future: Analyzing the Maharashtra State Participatory Forest Management Network; Author: Girija Godbole, Maharashtra
   This study examines the structure and functioning of the Maharashtra state PFM network and analyses the strength and limitation of the network.
   
   
9. Is dependence on the Commons always common? Impact of agricultural “development” in dry regions of Karnataka; Author: Kiran Kumar A.K, Bangalore
   This study looks at the impact of canal irrigation-led agricultural transformation on the relationship between rural households and common lands both spatially and temporally. It compares two villages in the eastern plains region of Karnataka.
   
   
10. Study of difficulties in CFM/JFM affecting forest dependent communities in Orissa; Author: Nabaghan Ojha, Orissa
    This study attempts to identify the issues in forest management that affects forest dependent communities in four JFM committees selected one each from Mayurbhanj, Koraput, Dhenkanal and Bolangir districts of Orissa.
    
    
11. Promoting forest conservation in a village in Karnataka; Author:  Ozmond Roshan D’Souza, Andhra Pradesh
    This study attempts to record the initiative taken up by the villagers in the Hubbanahalli village in Shimoga district in Karnataka to promote forest conservation despite opposition from some of the villagers.
    
    
12. Case studies on tribal women in East Godavari, Khammam and Adilabad Districts of Andhra Pradesh; Author: P Madhavi, Andhra Pradesh
    This study looks at tribal women in East Godavari and Adilabad, two forest regions of Andhra Pradesh which are inhabited by different primitive tribes. The study shows the adverse impacts of state policy on the lives of tribal’s and also the impact of transition to mainstream society
    
    
13. Case study on NTFP management; Author: Pradeep Kumar Mishra, Gujarat
    This is a case study of the villages in the foothills of Aravalli mountain ranges in the Sirohi district of Rajasthan where the NTFP management systems has undergone a lot of change over the years whereby people have been excluded from the benefits of NTFP sale.
    
    
14. Ethnographic account of cultivation practices among Gonds of Andhra Pradesh; Author: C. Raghav Reddy, Andhra Pradesh
    This study looks at the traditional cultivation practices of Gonds in the context of globalization and the withdrawal of state from agriculture.
    
    
15. Indigenous means of managing biodiversity: A case of Khadir Bet in Kachchh; Author: Chandan Chawla-YUVA, Mumbai
    This study focuses on Khadir Bet (situated in
    Rann of Kachchh) which is a biodiversity “hot spot” for understanding the socio-economic situation and the explicit linkages between indigenous population and biodiversity.
    
    
16. Case study of village “Dablamata” in Icchawar range of Sehore Forest Division in MP; Author:   Rishu Garg, Madhya Pradesh
    This case study presents an overview of community’s perspective on benefits from participation in afforestation program and implementation of the National Afforestation Programme (NAP) of Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF), Government of India (GoI) in Dablamata village of Sehore district of Madhya Pradesh.
    
    
17. Social Dimensions of forest use: a village study in Western Ghats; Author:   Dr E.N Ashok Kumar, Maharashtra
    This study aims at a sociological analysis of the relationship shared by different castes and strata with forest management in Hosanadu, a multi-caste village in Shimoga district in the Western Ghats of Karnataka.
    
    
18. Diagnostic survey of Agroforestry systems in Hamirpur District in Himachal Pradesh; Author: Sanjeev Kumar -Himachal Pradesh
    This study looks at the existing agroforestry systems in Hamirpur district and identifies technological gaps in the systems and provides suggestions on removing them.
    
    
19. Changing legal categories-providing solutions or compounding problems: A case study of Dibru-Saikhova forest division in Assam; Author:  Shephali Mehra, Uttar Pradesh
    Dibru Saikhova, one of the old growth forests in Assam, has a unique conservation history as its legal status has been constantly changing since 1891. This study looks at the present conflict between people and protected area in the Dibru Saikhova national park.
    
    
20. Eco-development and Forest Conservation-case study Sunderban Biosphere Reserve, West Bengal; Author: Souvanik Roy, West Bengal
    This study analyzes the linkage between eco-development and conservation and examines the efficacy of institutional aspects and their implications for conservation and suggests policies to ensure ecological, socio-economic and institutional sustainability of the programme in Sunderban Biosphere Reserve, West Bengal.
    
    
21. Raab: the traditional agricultural practice of Dangs and its impacts on forests: A case study; Author: Sudipto Chatterjee, Delhi
    Raab is a traditional slash and burn agricultural practice and is the core economic activity of the local communities comprising Bhils, Konkanas, Varlies and Gamits of Dangs district of Gujarat.This paper provides an account of the status of raab cultivation in the district and the present conservation measures and WWF-India’s initiatives in the region.
    
    
22. Participatory forestry to fight unemployment syndrome; Author:  Ranjan Panda, Orissa
    This study explores the potential of CFM to deal with livelihood and poverty in the Mayurbhanj district of Orissa.