Every year, fires burn the hills of Anantapur District, causing great ecological damage to the flora and fauna of the what remains of the forests. Most of the fires are caused by humans. Sometimes the shepherds start fires, so that with the first rains the grasses come back soon. This does happen but ecologically these fires are devastating. If the fires are not brought under control it is very difficult to regenerate forests. At other times some people start fires to cover the traces of their tree felling activity. And the last but most important reason is the carelessness of smokers who do not stub out their cigarettes or put out the matches. In the beginning the members of the Timbaktu community used to run up the hills in the middle of the nights or during high noon to put out any fire that was seen. This was a very difficult undertaking as fires are sometimes 15 to 20 ft high and the winds blowing at 20 to 30 kilometers an hour. The only way was to make fire lines - burn 15 to 20 ft wide lines across the hills like a grid - so that even if fire started at any one point it would not spread all over. This couple with awareness building among the villagers helped reduce the menace of fires.

Timbaktu was a barren piece of land when the founders bought it in 1990. There was barely any tree or ground cover and the soil was almost dead. Every year the rains would wash away tons of unprotected soil. As all the water would also runoff there was barely any recharge of ground water and so the soil was always parched.

In order to break this vicious cycle and begin ecorestoration and healing activity, this runoff of soil and rainwater had to be stopped. The members of the community began by constructing small earthen bunds in and small rock filled check dams all over Timbaktu. The idea was to plug as many gullys as possible, to reduce the run off and finally to get the water to stay on the land. The best place to store water is under ground. Later bigger check-dams and rock-filled dams were build in the larger streams, to save as much rain and soil as possible.

In the last 12 years, some 30,000 Trees have been planted. While the initial survival rate was only about 5 - 10%, it has now reached a respectable 85%. This increase was mainly caused by the experience acquired in the first years. Today larger pits are dug, more manure is applied and better soil is added to the pits, so that the roots of the small plants can establish themselves easier. Neem seeds from the trees now growing in Timbaktu are used as a natural pesticide. Each plant is nursed for about 8 months in the nursery in Timbaktu before it is planted. Today more money is invested (about Rs. 12 - 13 per plant) which is rewarded by a much higher survival rate.

Experience has shown which trees are more likely to survive and cope with the difficult situation. Only 5 out of 40 species, that had been tried, proved to be strong enough to survive the specific conditions in Timbaktu. Especially Hardwickia binata, Neem. Pongamia and Soapnut trees have yielded good results.

A Seed collection centre was established in Timbaktu during 1994/95. On an average about 120 species of important trees, bushes, herbs and grasses are stocked here. The purpose of this is to store seeds for distribution during the rainy season when seed dibbling is carried out in all the Natural regeneration areas that the Collective is working in and to test out the viability/suitability of various species to Timbaktu and Anantapur in general.

Seed collection is an ongoing process at the Collective and is usually a community effort involving the workers and the children of the school. Most seeds collected are from the trees on hills or nearby forests. Most of these seeds though do not have immediate economic use, contribute significantly to provide green cover for other species to grow.

At Timbaktu there is no discrimination between grasses, shrubs, plants, trees for fuel, trees or timber, exotic trees etc. The Collective believes in the principle of succession in nature. It has been observed and appreciated over the years. Unless due emphasis is given to local and indigenous plant, shrub and grass varieties, the soil will not be able to support growth of fruit trees or exotic varieties in the near future.

Kitchen gardening and bio-intensive gardening is a regular activity in Timbaktu especially by the children of the residential school. A variety of different vegetables are grown and this is a valuable contribution to the nutrition of the children.

Intensive research into composting techniques that will suit the area has also been started in Timbaktu. Various techniques have been experimented with including use of the Earth worm. After initial setbacks the earthworm population in the vermi compost pits have increased substantially. The compost thus produced has served as excellent fertiliser for the fruit trees and vegetable plots in Timbaktu.

The initial attempts at farming the land at Timbaktu proved ineffective. There was a gross underestimation the time required for the land to heal itself and for the soil to regenerate. It was not feasible considering the terrain, the total absence of topsoil, the scanty rainfall and high winds.

The collective has leased a piece of land nearby, where natural and organic farming is being tried out. The Collective believes that they must make their own experiences with alternatives ways of farming and different cropping patterns. The Collective wants to learn from the traditional knowledge of the farmers, acquired over many generations, and develop new approaches together with them.

The results of the efforts of the past twelve years can easily be observed when one visits Timbaktu. A large number of trees and other plants create a sharp contrast to the barren lands and hills nearby. Even in the summer much of Timbaktu and hills surrounding it retain the greenery and is full of wildlife.

The quality of the soil is slowly improving: The plants loosen up the ground, accumulate carbon and bring up needed minerals from deeper areas of the soil. The roots retain the moisture and the leaves of the trees further improve the soil.

The trees grow better now and the types of plants have changed. After an initially drastic increase in the number of different species, the variety of the plants has now stabilised at a high level of about 320 species. Other plants dominate now and the overall number has dramatically increased. The groundwater level in the bore wells has risen from initially 50 to 60 feet to 20 to 25 feet presently.

The number and variety of birds has also increased sharply - from about 40 species in 1992/93 to about 100 species in 2001. There may be only few other places where wild birds come so close to human beings without being afraid. Now there are birds such as the Indian Pitta from the Himalayas, the Paradise Flycatcher, Peacocks and even two types of bulbuls.

13 types of snakes can be found in Timbaktu - the Indian Cobra, the Wolf Snake the Russels Lokukra are quite common. Besides a number of bears, deer and wild boars have made the hills surrounding Timbaktu their home.

The villagers profit now from the ecorestoration efforts of the community at Timbaktu. As many as 400 to 600 bullock carts of grasses are carried out of the hills every year as cattle feed. This is especially important, since there is almost no grass available in other commons nearby during May and June. Plum trees have reappeared and now provide the villagers with some income, when they come to collect and sell them. Another source of income is the broom and the thatching grasses.

In addition to the members of the Collective cadre who live at Timbaktu, around 15 workers from the village nearby are employed on a regular basis by Collective for its conservation work in and around Timbaktu.

The dream of the Collective is have a fully regenerated forest within the next 20 -30 years. This they hope will be a leading example for the people in Anantapur district. It has already become an inspiration to many individuals and organisations all over the country. The dream will be fulfilled when more people in the district begin to restoration of their land and to protect what they have left of nature's wonderful gift. The Collective envisions a habitat in which plants, animals and human beings can coexist together in a sustainable and ecological manner.