Beekeeping boosts income for Indigenous women in southern India.

A new beekeeping initiative is helping women in India's Western Ghats enhance their livelihoods through more consistent honey production. Fifty women are involved in the Women for Bees project, which began in April 2025, a collaboration between UNESCO and the Keystone Foundation. This program offers training and equipment to women from the Irula, Kurumba, and Kattunayaka Indigenous communities in Tamil Nadu and Kerala, as reported by Mongabay-India’s Arathi Menon. Historically, these communities have been adept at wild honey hunting, a practice that has become riskier and more limited due to forest protection laws. Managed beekeeping with hive boxes presents a safer, more reliable option.