TRIBAL ECOLOGICAL COMMUNITARIANISM

NEWS: Tribal Ecological Communitarianism (TEC)à serve as a sustainable alternative to mainstream economic models driven by capital accumulation and profit maximisation.

Features of Tribal Ecological Communitarianism

• Land and natural resourcesàheld as collective property by the community rather than by private individuals.
• Humans act as temporary guardians of the earth, with a moral duty to preserve ecosystems for future generations.
• Tasks like farming+ building are performed through traditional communal cooperation rather than paid employment.
• Cultural taboosàenforce the protection of ‘sacred’ natural elements from exploitation.
• Wealth+ food are distributed equitably among members= ensure the entire community’s social and physical security.

Significance

• Collective control over the Commonsà ensures local communities dictate the sustainable use of their forests and water.
• Traditional land managementà Natural Climate Solution by sequestering carbon through the protection of forests and peatlands.
• Community-preserved ethno-ecological dataàvital for discovering new medicines+ drought-resistant crop varieties.
• Traditional building+ irrigation techniques àmimic natural water flows+ forest structures that prevent habitat fragmentation.

Challenges

• Small-scale communal models struggle to maintain high-trust bonds within large, anonymous urban populations.
• Collective ownership prevents individuals from using ancestral land as collateral to secure formal bank loans.
• Educated youth increasingly abandon traditional cooperative work systems in favour of individualistic urban careers.
• Commodity price fluctuations pressure communities to replace diverse, resilient food crops with high-yield industrial monocultures.

Government Initiatives

• Forest Rights Act (FRA)à Grants Gram Sabhas the legal authority to manage, protect, and regenerate communal forest resources.
• PESA Actà Empowers tribal village councils to make all primary decisions regarding the use of land, water, and local minerals.
• Van Dhan Yojanaà Creates community-owned clusters that process minor forest produce, ensuring profits remain within the tribal collective.
• The MSP for the MFP scheme establishes a guaranteed minimum price for forest goods to protect tribal gatherers from predatory middlemen.