• Resilient Futures - balancing the aspirations of communities, particularly in the Global South, with climate action and biodiversity conservation is the aim of our team. A major portion of our work has focused on addressing inequities faced by these communities through precision interventions backed by data.
  • WCT’s Riverine Ecosystems and Livelihoods (REAL) programme seeks to examine the ways in which the objectives of fisheries and wildlife management in India’s Gangetic plains and Central India can be interwoven, specifically in areas where fishing activity and endangered freshwater species overlap. This programme also studies the conflicts over fishing rights in and around terrestrial and riverine or wetland protected areas.
  • Think Like an Ecologist – A comic series by WCT
  • WCT is building a conservation roadmap for gharial conservation under its Programme Makara with an emphasis on Chambal River, and Son, Ghaghra, and Gandak Rivers.

Our 360° Approach

Six hundred rivers originate from, or are fed by, the tiger-bearing forests of India, making these habitats crucial to our water security. With several million people living in and around forests, we cannot separate communities from conservation. Recognising this, WCT has adopted a 360° approach to conservation by focusing equally on wildlife protection and community development.

Wildlife Conservation

Our flagship science-based conservation programmes focus on highly endangered species such as the tiger, leopard, pangolin, otter, Gangetic river dolphin, gharial, and freshwater turtles, to highlight the ecological importance and strengthen the protection mechanism of large land- and river-scapes.

Ecosystems & Communities

We are working on harnessing public finance to safeguard all types of natural ecosystems including grasslands, deserts, marshlands, mangroves and forests, along with the development needs of communities that live in and around them.

Impact

We currently work in and around 170 Protected Areas across 23 states and four Union Territories of India, covering 82 per cent of the country’s tiger reserves, 25 percent of the national parks and sanctuaries, and impacting a population base of approximately 3.5 million people.

Climate & Conflict Mitigation

Our long-term ecological research in Central India, followed by economic and psychosocial studies, has led to the development and large-scale adoption of our biomass-fuelled, energy-efficient water heater, which is reducing firewood consumption, forest degradation, and human-carnivore conflict.

Ecosystem Restoration

We have embarked upon a rewilding programme that will look to restore natural vegetation and biodiversity across degraded scrublands, grasslands and forestlands with the help of local communities and landholders.

India is home to a dazzling diversity of wildlife, and 1.3 billion people. Our growing needs put immense pressure on our forests, river systems and biodiversity, and intensify the effects of climate change. At the Wildlife Conservation Trust, we are tirelessly working to protect India’s rich biodiversity and life-giving ecosystems through a robust and tested 360 degree approach, which takes into consideration the needs of both wildlife and people.
Ecofiles’, a podcast by Wildlife Conservation Trust, aspires to bring forth stories from the natural world, the art and science of conservation, deep dives into natural history, voices of the grassroots workers and field experts, and much more. Tune in to listen to diverse conversations centered around our natural world.

Latest from the Blog

17 Mar 2026

An Unseen Battle at the Forest’s Edge

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Muscular. Powerful. Strong. These are some of the adjectives that immediately come to mind when one thinks of the gaur. But these are not the adjectives that Dr. Himanshu Joshi, an experienced wildlife... Read More

The Sarus Crane Grus antigone, the world’s tallest flying bird, faces a steady population decline in Gondia. Known for its graceful courtship dances and lifelong pair bonds, this bird relies heavily on wetland habitats to feed and breed.
9 Jan 2026

From Soil to the Skies

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Threats Loom Large Over the Sarus Crane “We found only three nests this breeding season. Out of the five chicks, only two have survived. One of the breeding Sarus Crane pairs, which lost... Read More

The Wild Buffaloes Of Central India
27 Nov 2025

The Wild Buffaloes Of Central India

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What animals come to your mind when you think of charismatic mammals of the Central Indian forests? The usual answer would be tiger, leopard, dhole, hard-ground barasingha, and gaur. With the recent return... Read More

Not All Green Is Good: Prosopis juliflora is transforming open natural ecosystems such as scrubs, savannas, and grasslands into woodlands, dominating them at the expense of native biodiversity.
13 Nov 2025

‘Not All Green Is Good’

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Great adaptability. Highly drought and disease tolerant. Deep-rooted. Fast growing. Hardy. Aggressive. ‘Mad’. Ideal traits in a plant evolved to live in hot and arid regions. But not so ideal for the ecosystems... Read More