Shashi Mehta

Assistant Professor, Amity School of Architecture and Planning, Amity University Haryana. shashimehta.25@gmail.com

Abstract

Ecosystem services play a significant role in running the livelihood of rural communities. It provides a wide range of services to the rich and poor equally. The paper explicit that rich and poor both are dependent on resources but their purpose of usage is different. Rich people are economically strong and still consume more eco-services for making profits. In contrary to this, the poor are directly dependent on the ecosystem for meeting the requirement of large size of family and livelihood. The present paper has made an attempt to comprehend the socio-economic conditions of the households and assessed their dependency on ecosystem services available in the surrounding. The case study approach has been taken into account for in-depth analysis. Both primary and secondary data were collected for analyzing the status of ecosystem services and its impact on people’s livelihood. The collected data were analyzed through qualitative and quantitative methods for a better illustration of the case study. The research has tried to develop an integrated framework for sustainable living of rural communities with an emphasis on management of ecosystem services. The paper has asserted that a greater involvement of institutions is vital for eradicating poverty through better management of ecosystem services at the local level.

Keywords: Ecosystem Services, Poverty, Livelihood, Rural Communities, Institutions