Contents: Foreword. Preface. Acknowledgements. 1. Conservation and management of bioresources in Uttarakhand, India/Rajendra Dobhal, Arun Kumar and Seema Rawat. 2. Van Panchayats: community conserved areas in Uttarakhand/D.S. Chauhan, A.K. Negi, B.P. Chamola and N.P. Todaria. 3. Van Panchayats in Uttarakhand: A perspective from practitioners/Hem Gairola and A.S. Negi. 4. Biodiversity assessment of community-managed institutions through participatory approach in he Lamgara Area, Almora, Uttarakhand/Neha Bisht and Upasana Joshi. 5. Sacred groves: a traditional way of conserving biodiversity in Garhwal Himalayas, Uttarakhand/T.S. Bisht and A.B. Bhatt. 6. Medicinal plants in Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve: traditional heritage for livelihood and health security of ethnic communities/Chandra Prakash Kala and Chandra Shekhar Silori. 7. Participation of community in conserving biodiversity and managing natural resources: a case study of the Kedarnath Wildlife Sanctuary/Shalini Dhyani, R.K. Maikhuri and Deepak Dhyani. 8. Setting standards for sustainable harvest of wild medicinal plants in Uttarakhand: a case study of lichens/Sudipto Chatterjee, Jarnali Singh, Amitangshu Acharya, Amresh Bihari Jha and Ram Prasad. 9. Exploring compatibility of national guidelines with biodiversity heritage sites in the context of Uttarakhand/Yogesh Gokhale and Nazir A. Pala. 10. How to support community conserved areas in India/Neema Pathak Broome. Index. About the editors.

Conservation of biodiversity by local communities has been part of the social system in the Himalayas. A variety of ecosystems are conserved traditionally by local communities. These communities are fully aware of the relationship between protecting the nature and getting ecosystem goods and services. The van Panchayat system in Uttarakhand and sacred natural sites all over the Himalayas suggest a mix of the institutions in the region, widely supported and recognized by the government and the local society. Globally, Community Conserved Areas (CCAs) are gaining importance.

Biodiversity Heritage Sites, Community Reserves, and Conservation Reserves are the new institutional legal provisions that recognize the efforts of local communities in biodiversity conservation in India. These provisions need to be sensitive towards the traditional systems followed by these communities.

The present volume highlights the importance of the existing systems in terms of their role in biodiversity conservation with community participation and suggests ways to enhance community-based biodiversity conservation. It would serve as an important reference for a wide range of stakeholders, from policy-makers to environmentalists, biodiversity experts, development practitioners, academicians and researchers.