Kerala Turns to Tribal Wisdom to Ease Human-Wildlife Conflict

gothraberi
Web Desk

Published on Jul 04, 2025, 06:24 PM | 3 min read

Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala is turning to its tribal communities to strengthen forest and wildlife management by collecting their traditional knowledge and ecological insights. In a first-of-its-kind effort in India, the Forest Department has launched Gothrabheri, a programme aimed at integrating indigenous practices into official strategies for managing human-animal interactions.
Kerala is home to 37 tribal communities, many of whom have lived in and around forests for generations. Their way of life once allowed them to coexist peacefully with wild animals, guided by customs that respected the natural ecosystem. Officials now believe that the wisdom carried by these communities could help bring solutions to the present-day challenges.
Over the past several months, the Forest Department conducted 18 regional gatherings where tribal representatives shared their experiences and ideas. These inputs will now be compiled into a practical guide for forest and wildlife management — combining scientific understanding with traditional ecological knowledge.
Forest Minister A.K. Saseendran, while inaugurating the final state-level convention of Gothrabheri two days ago, said the idea took shape after a disturbing pattern emerged: 13 of the 19 people killed in wild elephant attacks this year were from tribal communities, and most of these incidents occurred inside forest areas.
“We wanted to understand why such attacks are happening now, when they were rare in the past. That’s when we realised we needed to listen to tribal communities and learn from their indigenous knowledge,” the Minister said.
The final convention was held to bring together experts to codify the insights collected from the regional gatherings and to include them in the department’s wildlife management plan for the coming year.
“The knowledge possessed by tribal communities is deeply connected to nature and ecosystem balance. Our goal is to collect this knowledge directly from them and use it in our day-to-day forest and wildlife management,” said P. Pugazhenthi, head of the Kerala Forest Force.
He confirmed that all 37 tribal communities in the state participated in the initiative and offered ideas on nature conservation, sustainable development, and co-existence with wildlife. “These suggestions will be compiled into a management tool,” he said.
The department is also considering inviting start-ups to develop products based on some of the traditional practices and concepts shared during the conventions.
“Tribal people have always contributed physically to forest protection efforts. With Gothrabheri, they are now contributing intellectually as well,” Pugazhenthi said. He noted that while there have been isolated efforts in the past, this is the first time any Indian state has made such a structured attempt to collect and apply indigenous knowledge for wildlife management.
Raman Rajamannan, Kerala’s only living tribal king from Kovilmalai in Idukki, said the initiative has been warmly welcomed by tribal communities across the state.
He said that the tribal communities fully support Gothrabheri, as it has already succeeded in documenting their knowledge, and because, for the first time, officials are genuinely listening.



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