Chapter 1: Beginnings -- Chapter 2: Among Fish and Fisherfolk -- Chapter 3: Computers and Evolutionary Ecology -- Chapter 4: Humans as Constituents of Ecosystems -- Chapter 5: Sacred Groves and Social Animals -- Chapter 6: Wildlife and Its Conservation -- Chapter 7: Managing Bamboos -- Chapter 8: Herders and Farmers -- Chapter 9: Hunters, Poachers, Foresters -- Chapter 10: Pests, Pesticides and Pollution -- Chapter 11: Environmental Impact Assessment -- Chapter 12: Sustainable Development -- Chapter 13: Caste: An Enigma -- Chapter 14: Land of Spice Gardens -- Chapter 15: Monitoring Biodiversity -- Chapter 16: People's Biodiversity Registers -- Chapter 17: The People of India -- Chapter 18: Western Ghats Ecology Expert Panel -- Chapter 19: Digging up the Earth -- Chapter 20: Governing the Commons -- Chapter 21: Globetrotter -- Chapter 22: Knowledge Age -- Chapter 23: Human-Wildlife Conflict -- Chapter 24: Hot and Angry Earth -- Chapter 25: A Way Ahead.

Madhav Gadgil was born in Pune in 1942, just as Salim Ali’s superbly illustrated Book of Indian Birds was published. Influenced by his birdwatcher father, he learnt to recognize birds from their pictures even before he could read. He is an unusual combination of a person fascinated by the diversity of the natural world, of the landscapes and the life they support, as well as the diversity of cultures and lifestyles of the people firmly rooted to India’s soil. He has dedicated himself to intellectual pursuits ranging over mathematics, natural and social sciences, history and public policy. This book is an account of his life walking up and down the country’s hills and dales, watching peacocks dance and elephants prance, living among fisherfolk on the west coast, horticulturists on Western Ghats, and the tribals of Manipur and Maharashtra, all the while being a part of a vibrant scientific community.