Waghoba Habitat Foundation

About Us

Waghoba is the ancient spirit deity of the big cats, revered for centuries by Indigenous tribes of India as the protector of the forest, manifesting in the wild as the Tiger or Leopard. We are registered as a (Section 8) non-profit with the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, India.

We have been focusing on promoting conservation by connecting the dots between forests, indigenous people, conservation culture, urban stakeholders and the mainstream. Our end goal is a world where humans and nature thrive together.

Our Work

We facilitate rewilding projects, eco cultural awareness workshops, tree plantations, tribal livelihoods, support ecological farmers, fight wildfires, transplant big trees to save them from the axe and bring urban and tribal communities together to work for protecting habitats.

Vision

Our goals are forest conservation, habitat protection and restoration, empowering indigenous communities and promoting human-nature coexistence, by protecting and promoting the valuable Traditional Ecological Knowledge of our indigenous communities and complementing it with contemporary advances, through cross-cultural friendships.

The Waghoba Experience

In The Media

Rewilding Aarey | पेड़ लगाओ पेड़ बचाओ | ताता ची वानराई

Rewilding Aarey/Ped Lagao Ped Bachao In The Media:

Rewilding Aarey covered by yahoo.com Singapore 
Meet the photojournalist behind Mumbai’s Rewilding Aarey initiative?

Mongabay covers our mahua tree revival work 
Monga Bay – Citizens Attempt to revive Mahua trees in Mumbai

The Indian Express on our Palmyra tree revival work 
Mumbai: 1,400 seeds of Palmyra Palm planted in Aarey


The Times of India covers our Palmyra tree revival work 
Environment lovers plant 1,000 palmyra tree seeds in Aarey | Events Movie News – Times of India


The Indian Express on our Ped Lagao ped bachao public tree plantations
Over 500 Mumbaikars participate in #pedlagao campaign at Aarey | Mumbai News – Times of India


The Times of India covers our tree plantations in Aarey Forest 
Mumbaikars take part in a huge tree plantation drive at Aarey | Events Movie News – Times of India 
Times Of India- Tree Planting Coverage in Aarey Forest

The Times of India covers our tree KPFA Radio USA covers Rewilding Aarey
Tales of grassroot activism by KPFA
University Profile UC Davis – Forests and Floods Anuj Vaidya

Mumbai First covers our work in Aarey Forest
Mumbai First on our work in Aarey Forest

WHF Founder Sanjiv Valsan On how Rewilding Aarey began 
Environmental Activist Sanjiv Valsan Rewilding Aarey Forest

Our work in Fighting Wildfires, WHF founder Sanjiv Valsan featured in Revolve magazine
Environmental Changemakers of Mumbai: Tales of Local Heroes | REVOLVE

Our mega Clean-up drives covered in Free Press journal
Mumbai: Leopard-human conflict motivates mega clean up drive in Aarey Colony

Tribal welfare work
​​Finally, relief from water woes for Mumbai’s Aarey tribals – Daijiworld.co

Taata Chi Vanrai Forest Conservation Project:

Stopping deforestation at Taata Chi Vanrai, Maharashtra
Preserving India’s sacred groves can help country achieve its conservation & climate goals: Experts
https://www.freepressjournal.in/mumbai/chinchwadis-tribal-victory-tata-chi-vanrai-rises-as-symbol-of-forest-conservation
Chinchwadi Tribals की जीत: ‘टाटा ची वनराई’ वन संरक्षण के प्रतीक के रूप में उभरा » Jungle Tak

Our work featured in Down to Earth’s report on conserving tribal forests
Preserving India’s sacred groves can help country achieve its conservation & climate goals: Experts

The Free Press Journal covers our indigenous team’s win against deforestation 
Free Press Journal | Chinchwadis tribal victory Tata chi Vanrai rises as symbol of forest conservation

Taata Chi Vanrai’s tribal win against deforestation covered in jungletak.in
Chinchwadi Tribals की जीत: ‘टाटा ची वनराई’ वन संरक्षण के प्रतीक के रूप में उभरा » Jungle Tak

Wild foods and Traditional Ecological Knowledge conservation

Traditional Ecocultural Knowledge workshops in Aarey Forest Mumbai 
Unfold the Secret lives of the people of Aaarey Forest in Mumbai.#talkytails #aareyforest #aarey

 
The Hindu reviews our Traditional Ecological Knowledge conservation 
How to forage for lunch in Mumbai’s Aarey forest


The Hindu (video report)
Discovering medicinal plants at Mumbai’s Aarey forest | The Hindu

The Times of India (Bangalore) covers our Foraging walks 
Go for a walk and fill your veggie basket – Times of India

The Times of India (Mumbai) covers our Foraging walks
Mumbaikars go foraging for wild foods at Aarey | Mumbai News – Times of India
Mumbaikars have fun foraging at Aarey, learn about forest life | Events Movie News – Times of India

Vogue magazine covers our work on wild foods in Aarey Forest 
India’s urban foragers are demonstrating the benefits of sourcing your own food

Coverage of Tribal culture connect events in The Asian Age  
Celebrating diversity 

Our successful pilot Crowd funder for Tribal mud house building
Help Vanita Tai To Build Her Mud House #aareyforest | Milaap

The Hindu reports on our work
How to forage for lunch in Mumbai’s Aarey forest
Discovering medicinal plants at Mumbai’s Aarey forest | The Hindu

Down To Earth covers our habitat conservation work with the Thakar Adivasi Tribe
Preserving India’s sacred groves can help country achieve its conservation & climate goals: Experts
https://www.freepressjournal.in/mumbai/chinchwadis-tribal-victory-tata-chi-vanrai-rises-as-symbol-of-forest-conservation 

Watch our Traditional Ecocultural Knowledge workshops:
Unfold the Secret lives of the people of Aaarey Forest in Mumbai.#talkytails #aareyforest #aarey

Big Tree Transplantations:

Mint Lounge
How citizen initiatives are saving Mumbai’s fallen trees | Mint Lounge

One Earth 
One Earth | Mumbai locals astoundingly saved fallen trees from the dead

In depth article by Lokmat (Marathi)
उन्मळलेल्या झाडांचे पुनर्रोपण शक्य!

Commentary on Citizen Matters  
Keeping Mumbai green: Citizens replant fallen trees, but that’s not enough

Reports by partner NGOs:

Smokeless Cook Stove Foundation 
Mumbai-Aarey Forest – Smokeless Cookstove Foundation


Gully Classes Foundation 
Planting Trees Growing Futures a Collaborative Drive at Aarey Forest