10-April-2024

Mayurbhanj Jungle Monch (MJM) Joins the Initiative on the Forest Economy (in-progress)

What started as a small movement in the forest areas of Mayurbhanj district, Odisha, over four decades ago, has now catapulted into an organisation of like-minded community members who have dedicated their lives to saving forest reserves. Meet the 40-year-old Mayurbhanj Jungle Monch (MJM), a public trust organisation, working in the Mayurbhanj district, Odisha, and a large chunk of Simlipal National Park. Mayurbhanj Jungle Monch is the latest community-led organisation to join our initiative.

IoFE’s small yet dedicated team based in Baripada, Mayurbhanj, is facilitating the implementation of a district-specific program in collaboration with the Department of Mission Shakti, Government of Odisha. The collaboration between IoFE and MJM is to further explore the opportunities to have a better understanding of CFRR claims through "title" holding and marketing opportunities for the Seasonal Forest Products (SFPs).

The team in Baripada led an interactive session, ‘Bichar Charcha,’ with MJM for a community-level intervention aimed at enhancing tenure security rights in Mayurbhanj. They also sought community-level volunteer support for IoFE’s technology platform, ‘nCount,’ and other district-specific initiatives under IoFE.