Books & Authors podcast with Aparajita Datta, co editor, At the Feet of Living Things

"About the 'fortress approach' to conservation, many conservationists might feel that the end justifies the means because wildlife is so threatened and anyway most of the land is for people. But many species actually thrive outside protected areas and might also move outside and coexist with people. We have to share our space with nature and if you want wildlife to be saved, you need the support of local communities. The kind of tolerance that exists in India is very different from that seen in many Western countries when wild animals attack or steal livestock. So, while protected areas are needed, there is also a need to look at other models of governance of forest areas," says Aparajita Datta, co-editor, 'At the Feet of Living Things'. This collection of essays by scientists and conservationists that looks at some of the projects undertaken in the wild in India over the last 25 years by the Nature Conservation Foundation includes great pieces on nesting hornbills, regenerating rainforests, birding, preventing conflict between wild elephants and humans, and dugongs, among other wild and wonderful subjects