• Comprehensively discuss issues and methodologies for easy implementation of the project.
• Seek inputs from the concerned forest officials involved in forest conservation in the Western Ghats region.
• Encourage the active support of all participants to accomplish the goals of the project.

Ms. Bansuri Taneja has joined ATREE as a Programme Officer in the Conservation and Livelihoods Program. She brings a wealth of experience gained at institutions such as the International Institute of Environment and Development, National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan, Kalpavriksh and the Indian Institute of Public Administration. She obtained her Masters in Geography from Rutgers University, and a certificate in Biological Sciences from Birkbeck College, London.

Priyadarsanan Dharma Rajan attended the annual meeting of the Association for Angiosperm Taxonomy and Seminar on Recent trends in Plant Taxonomy' (28-31, Dec.2004) and presented a paper on the ‘Red list for habitats and Green lists for species: a top down strategy for conserving the lesser known.’

Priyadarsanan Dharma Rajan attended the Animal Taxonomy workshop (13-14 Jan 2005) at Sacred Heart College, Ernakulam.and presented two papers:
* Taxonomy for the twenty-first century: The challenges and obstacles for Indian taxonomists
* Pipilika: An identification and information system for the ant fauna of South India by Merry Zacharias and Priyadarsanan Dharma Rajan.

Priyadarsanan Dharma Rajan attended the National Symposium on ‘Biodiversity and insect pest management' (3-4 February) at Entomology Research Institute, Loyola College, Chennai, and delivered a speech on the importance of farm- biodiversity in pest control.

Sinu, P.A presented a paper at the 29th Conference of Ethological Society of India, held at Bangalore University on 23-24 February, 2005 on ‘Forging strategies for Cicindela whithilli and Cicindela flavomaculata in rice paddy agro-ecosystems’ by Sinu, P.A., Nasser, M., and Priyadarsanan Dharma Rajan (2005).
Sinu, P.A, also rapporteured for the Scientific session: Learning and Communication, at the same conference

Sinu P.A., presented a paper at the National Symposium on Biodiversity and Insect Pest Management held on 3-4 February at Entomology Research Institute, Loyola College, Chennai, on ‘Feeding ecology of two tiger beetle species in rice paddy agro-ecosystems in central Western Ghats’ with a pilot study on their bio-control potentials by Sinu, P.A., Nasser, M., and Priyadarsanan Dharma Rajan (2005).

Sinu, P.A., presented a paper at the Animal Taxonomy Workshop held on 13-14 Jan 2005 at Sacred Heart College, Ernakulam on ‘SINSORTER, a novel method to sort all arthropod samples from pitfall traps.

Shanker, K. was invited to give a talk on: Olive Ridley Turtles (Lepidochelys Olivacea) in Orissa, India: A review of status and conservation at the 25th annual symposium on sea turtle biology and conservation, Savannah, Georgia, USA, January 19-21, 2005.

Sridhar, A., Tripathy , B. & Shanker, K. presented a paper at the same conference on ‘Turtle conservation and livelihoods: Experiences with conflict resolution on the Orissa coast.

Uma Shaanker R, Ganeshaiah K N, Nageswara Rao M and Aravind N A (2004). ‘Ecological consequences of forest use-from genes to ecosystem: A case study at the Biligiri Ranganswamy Temple Wildlife Sanctuary, south India’, Conservation and Society, 2: 347-364.

Uma Shaanker R, Ganeshaiah K N, Smitha Krishnan, Ramya R, Meera C, Aravind N A, Arvind Kumar, Dinesh Rao, Vanaraj G, Ramachandra J, Remi Gauthier, Jaboury Ghazoul, Nigel Poole and Chinnappa Reddy B V (2004). ‘Livelihood gains and ecological costs of non timber forest product dependence: Assessing the roles of dependence, ecological knowledge and market structure in three contrasting human and ecological settings in south India’, Environmental Conservation, 31: 242–253.

Aravind N A, Manjunath J, Dinesh Rao, Ganeshaiah K N, Uma Shaanker R and Vanaraj G (2005). ‘Are Red Listed species threatened? - A comparative analysis of Red Listed and Non-Red Listed plant species in the Western Ghats, India’. Current Science, 88: 258-265.

Barve N, Kiran M C, Vanaraj G, Aravind N A, Dinesh Rao, Uma Shaanker R, Ganeshaiah K N and Poulsen J G (2005). ‘Measuring and mapping threats to a wildlife sanctuary in south India’. Conservation Biology, 19: 122-130.

Tambat B, Rajanikanth G, Ravikanth G, Uma Shaanker R, Ganeshaiah K N and Kushalappa C G (2005). ‘Seedling mortality in two vulnerable tree species in the sacred groves of Western Ghats, south India’. Current Science, 88: 350-352.

Hiremath A J (ed.) 2004. Special Section on ‘Non-timber forest products’. Conservation and Society. http://www.conservationandsociety.org/vol-2-2-04.html

Elachertus sinui Nar. is a new species of parasitic wasp named after Sinu, P.A by Prof. Dr. T.C. Narendran, University of Calicut.

Gladwin Joseph, D. Joseph Bagayaraj, and Ms. Ramamani Y. S. ‘Restoring forest-fringe areas along the Western Ghats using appropriate models of diversity-rich agroforestry’ A grant from Department of Biotechnology, Govt. of India.

Bhaskar Sinha, Manoj Dabas and Kamaljit S Bawa. ‘Sustaining critical natural resources through enhancement of agricultural productivity’. A grant from Department of Science and Technology, Govt. of India.

Soubadra Devy. ‘Impact of forest degradation on pollination and dispersal of tree species in the wet evergreen forests of Western Ghats’ A grant from Department of Science and Technology's Young Scientists' Progam.

Ankila Hiremath. ‘Invasive species in Indian Dry tropical forests: Experiments in restoring native biodiversity’. A grant from Department of Science and Technology's Young Scientists' Progamme.

Ravikanth G. ‘Measuring the extent of and studying the genetic basis of, outbreeding depression in critically endangered tree species: Implications for conservation’. A grant from Department of Science and Technology, Govt. of India.

Chaithra G. N. ‘How good are sacred grove forests in maintaining the population genetic diversity of critically endangered and economically important tree species in the Western Ghats, India?.’ A grant from International Foundation for Science (IFS).