The destruction of forests and wildlife is not just a biological issue. The biological loss is strongly correlated with the loss of cultural diversity. Many indigenous and other forest dependent communities have been increasingly marginalised and impoverished by such losses as they directly depend on various components of the forest and wildlife for food, drink, medicine, culture, sprituality, etc. In many societies women bear the major responsibility of collection of fuel, fodder, water and other basic subsistence needs. Depletion of these resources increases drudgery of women affecting their health as well as leading to negligence of home and family due to longer hours required to acquire the resources. This often has serious social implications. The indirect impact of degradation are severe drought or deforestation induced floods or dust storms due to soil erosion, etc. These hit the poor the hardest. Poverty in these cases is a direct outcome of environmental destruction. The indigenous culture of these forest dependent communities are severely affected as a result.