FES-Infochange Media Fellowships on Common Property Resources 2010
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COMMENTS 
Following the excellent response to this call for proposals and the quality of the applications received, we are awarding 6 – instead of 5 – fellowships on common property resources (CPR). The fellows selected are (in alphabetical order):
1. Aarthi Sridhar: For her proposal on the impact of public policy on common property use and rights in coastal and marine spaces. Aarthi’s series of articles will examine how the legislative framework for marine conservation works on the ground in Marine Protected Areas and other coastal regions, and document the impact of coastal industrialisation on the commons in Ganjam, Puri, Jagatsinghpur, Baleshwar and Kendrapara districts of Orissa and in Tamil Nadu. Aarthi is a trained social worker and environmental researcher-activist. She heads the Dakshin Foundation.
2.Indu Shekhar Pancholi: CPR has a special place in the economic and cultural ethos of Rajasthan. Development projects, industry and the pressures of agriculture are encroaching on Rajasthan’s grazing and pasture lands. Pancholi’s study will examine public policy on grazing lands, and look at recent efforts by NGOs to catalyse change. Pancholi is a journalist based in Ajmer. He was until recently Executive Editor of the Jaipur, Kota and Ajmer/Bhilwara editions of Dainik Bhaskar.
3.Jyothi Krishnan: Her proposal is about the shrinking of the water commons, with a detailed study of the impact of increasing privatisation of the kulams (ponds) in Palakkad district, Kerala. Jyothi is a researcher on natural resource management and is presently a consultant with the Kerala state poverty eradication mission.
4.R Uma Maheshwari: This series of articles will explore the Godavari as a CPR, and the impact of the Polavaram Dam on the fisher community that has built its life around this river. The fisher community in Khamman district is among the 300,000 displaced by the project but they are not eligible for compensation. Uma is a freelance journalist based in Secunderabad, and is working on a book titled When Godavari Comes: People’s History of a River.
5.Thingnam Anjulika Samom: For her proposed series on Loktak Lake, the largest common property aquatic resource of Manipur. Anjulika will explore the impact of modernisation, development and state policy on the traditional use, control and management of Loktak Lake. She will take a detailed look at how the livelihoods and food security of the communities living around the lake have been impacted. Anjulika is a freelance journalist based in Manipur.
6.Tripta Chandola: This study will explore how changes in control and usage of CPRs affect women most and how women have led the struggle to protect these CPRs in the Tehri Garhwal region where the Chipko movement and Beej Bachao Andolan are active. Tripta is a research consultant with the Himalaya Trust, Dehradun.
Congratulations to the winners! We look forward to working with you over the coming months. We will be getting in touch with you individually.