Dr. Senthil Babu, is a historian of mathematics based at the French Institute of Pondicherry, where he is involved in studies concerning Nature, Knowledge and Labour. He is interested in issues affecting the coastal communities in general and the fishing community in particular and he has worked along the east coast on various issues for the last several years. He was actively involved with our work in the Shencottah Gap, working on the social aspects of payment for ecosystem services.