Jagdeesh Rao is the Chief Executive of the Foundation for Ecological Security, India (FES). FES is working towards the ecological restoration and conservation of land and water resources in ecologically fragile, degraded and marginalised regions of India, primarily through the concentrated and collective efforts of village communities.

FES works with almost 9,000 village communities across eight Indian states, helping protect more than 4 million acres of common lands. FES helps villagers secure community rights to publicly-owned land and support regulations tomanage it in a more sustainable and productive way.

In this interview, Jagdeesh discusses:

• How FES works to reduce rural inequalities
• The vital importance of decentralized governance of natural resources
• How FES balances short and longer term ecosystem regeneration
• How ecosystem regeneration, even in the short term, generates economic benefits
• The surprisingly long term perspective taken by village communities