Journal of Tribal Intellectual Collective India ISSN: 2321-5437 JTICI Vol.7, Special Issue (1), 2023 1 An Introduction to Tribal Ecologies in Modern India Stephen Christopher, Matthew Shutzer and Raile Rocky Ziipao This special issue bring together scholars and activists working at the intersections of tribal studies and ecology, drawing primarily from the fields of sustainability studies, political ecology and anthropology. Our contribution stems from a 2022 workshop, hosted at the University of Copenhagen’s Centre for Applied Ecological Thinking (CApE), which brought together academics and NGOs with varied backgrounds. Over three days, we discussed what we will here begin to call ‘tribal ecologies’ on contemporary India. In this introduction, we bring theoretical specificity to tribal ecologies and consider its applicability at different scales of analysis—from the local ethnographic encounters of tribal communities with the Indian state to the transnational mobilization of indigenous rights through international institutions. The goal is to carve out an emergent field of study that is equally applicable to academics and NGO practitioners working among tribal communities. In India, there are 705 ethnic groups recognized as Scheduled Tribes (ST), a federal criteria for determining tribal status inherited from the census practices of the colonial state. As we detail below, we use the term “tribal” to invoke this complex relationship between group identity and state recognition. While “tribal” can have many negative connotations, frequently relating back to colonial stereotypes of primitiveness, in contemporary India it is also a state-designated site of social aspiration and a moniker used by members of Scheduled Tribes to refer to themselves. The term Adivasi, meaning original inhabitant, is in some contexts a more empowering term used in substitution of “tribal”. In other contexts, however, Adivasi identities are rooted in provincial histories, primarily used to JTICI Vol.7. Special Issue (1) pp.1 to 18, 2023