Vanashakti

Vanashakti is a non-profit environmental NGO based in Mumbai, Maharashtra. It was formed in 2006, by Meenakshi Menon, Namita Roy Ghose, and Peter Armand Menon. Vanashakti aims to conserve the forests, wetlands, wildlife corridors, habitats, through education and litigation to achieve its objectives of creating awareness about environmental topics, protecting and reviving rivers and preventing opencast mining in areas that are well-endowed with biodiversity. It also directs its efforts in involving local forest-dwelling communities to protect the biodiversity of the region and provides sustainable livelihood options for forest dependent and coastal communities. 
Vanashakti's thrust areas are forest, mangrove and wetland protection, environmental education for both urban and rural schools, livelihoods for forest based communities and scientific investigation into local environmental degradation.
Projects.
Mangrove and Wetland Conservation.
One of the major initiatives of Vanashakti is conservation of Wetlands, specifically mangroves in Mumbai metropolitan areas. Vanashakti conducts research on Mangroves through "photo documentation, regular visits, and archive databases". Over the years, Vanashakti has fought many court cases against activities that have harmful impact on the health of the wetlands in Maharashtra. Following are the examples of Vanashakti’s legal efforts to save the Mangroves:-
Restoration of Degraded Wetlands.
Vanashakti was a part of a restoration programme launched by state of Maharashtra which involved plantation of mangroves over 60 hectares across the city of Mumbai. Vanashakti collected 300 kg of garbage from 200 acres of mangrove forests in Bhandup.
Save Aarey.
Vanashakti had filed petition with the National Green Tribunal (NGT) demanding that Aarey Milk Colony be declared a No Development Zone.
The NGT prohibited any construction work in the Aarey Milk Colony until it decided on the dispute over the Metro III car shed.
Sanjay Gandhi National Park.
Stalin had written a letter to Sanjay Gandhi National Park alleging hills in Dindoshi which were in the vicinity of SGNP were being flattened based on satellite images of the area and requested the authorities to take necessary steps to prevent further deforestation.
In 2015, in a petition filed by Vanashakti, it sought to demarcate “Critical Wildlife Areas” in order protect the various species from extinction inside forests and sanctuaries.
In January 2016, the Ministry of Environment and Forests in an affidavit in the National Green Tribunal that they were in the final stages of setting up an eco-sensitive zone around Sanjay Gandhi National Park. NGO Vanashakti had filed a petition seeking the declaration of Aarey Milk Colony as an Eco-Sensitive Zone.
Anti-Opencast Mining.
Vanashakti was the first NGO to take up the issue of mining near Sindhudurg region in Maharashtra in 2010 following which the Union Minister of environment and forest Jairam Ramesh wrote a letter to then Chief Minister of Maharashtra Ashok Chavan asking him to review all 49 mining leases in that region.
Tribal Community Based Conservation.
Vanashakti works with tribal communities living in the Mangroves to prevent deforestation and illegal usage of forest resources. Alternative methods of livelihood like apiculture are encouraged to provide financial independence to these communities. Paper bags production from Woman Self Help groups in Wada Taluka, initiated by Vanashakti gives an opportunity to women to provide for their families and reduces the incoming waste in Sanjay Gandhi National Park.
Awareness Programmes.
Vanashakti regularly holds activities like beach and mangrove cleanup, rallies, cleanliness drive, workshops, tree plantation, bird watching tours and educational programs and competition in schools to generate awareness about environment amongst students and general public alike. Vanashakti hosts tours of mangrove forests in Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) to educate public on the importance of mangroves and are among the forerunners in raising awareness about conservation of coastal ecology. Vanashakti works to address all aspects of conservation like education, awareness, sustainable livelihoods, engage with government authorities and judicial battles as a last resort.