Founded in 1980 by a group of local youth from nomadic tribal community residing in vicinity of the Koyna dam, SJSM has worked on promoting self-reliant community development organisations through a process of forming people’s organizations. The main focus of work has been on facilitating promotion of local natural resource-based livelihoods through formation of formal cooperatives. The cooperatives have been formed around dairying, Self Help Groups, fishing, food processing, cane furniture, herbal plantations and Ayurvedic medicine production, etc. The other programmes include community health, tribal children’s education, disaster management and community preparedness, gender justice, watershed development, water and sanitation, groundwater management, agriculture development, climate change and conducting programmes of awareness on socio-economic and discrimination issues faced by women within the community.