Climate Justice, democratic forest governance and the rights of Adivasis in India

The PhD research will investigate the possibility of embedding Adivasi epistemologies in climate justice. Adivasis are the indigenous communities of India that live in close proximity to forests. They are classified as Scheduled Tribes in the Constitution of India. Political economy and indigenous resurgence theories will be used to develop an interdisciplinary analytical framework on climate justice. Climate justice can be attained in the Adivasi context only when it is understood along with democratic forest governance. So, the research will develop an analytical framework that understands climate justice as "democratic forest governance." During the research, it will be examined whether the existing structures of exploitation and dispossession of Adivasis from their land and forests are reproduced by climate laws and policies in India. The research has the potential to support the granting of Adivasis constitutional rights to decentralised forest governance and to promote sustainability in India, which is home to 7-8 percent of the world's biodiversity.