Community Forestry in Cameroon: Insights on state institutional deficits

This paper highlights the lessons of using adaptive learning in community forestry that effectively help to resolve forest based conflicts in Terai region of Nepal. The paper is based on a three-year action research carried out in Terai. Qualitative methods including participatory rural appraisal tools and documentation of engaged action and reflections were used. Methods and tools that largely fall under adaptive learning were deployed. The field data was complemented by review of secondary data and literature on environmental history of Terai. We found that policies on land and forest in Terai for the last fifty years have induced and aggravated conflicts over access and control between state and communities and also within diverse groups of local communities. These conflicts have had serious negative impacts on sustainable management of forests and on local people’s livelihoods, particularly resource poor and landless people. Centralised and bureaucratic approaches to control forest and encroachment have largely failed. Despite investing millions of Rupees in maintaining law and order in forestlands, the problem continues to worsen often at the cost of forests and local communities. We found that transferring management rights to local communities like landless and land poor in the form of community forestry (CF) has induced strong local level collective action in forest management and supported local livelihoods. Moreover, adding adaptive learning, as a methodological tool to improve governance and enhance local level collective action significantly improves the benefit of CF. It implies that a major rethinking is needed in the current policies that have often led to hostile relationships with the local inhabitants- particularly the illegal settlers. Instead, transferring forest rights to local communities and supporting them through technical aspects of forest management will strengthen local initiatives towards sustainable management of forests.

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Youth, migration and community forestry in the Global South

Forests Trees and Livelihoods ◽

10.1080/14728028.2021.1958065 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-13

Author(s):

H. Carolyn Peach Brown

Keyword(s):

Community Forestry ◽

Global South ◽

Youth Migration

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What Are the Impacts of Social Innovation? A Synthetic Review and Case Study of Community Forestry in the Scottish Highlands

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su13084359 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (8) ◽

pp. 4359

Author(s):

Carla Barlagne ◽

Mariana Melnykovych ◽

David Miller ◽

Richard J. Hewitt ◽

Laura Secco ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Rural Communities ◽

Rural Areas ◽

Community Forestry ◽

Social Innovation ◽

Local Development ◽

Evidence Base ◽

Social Dimension ◽

Vulnerable Groups ◽

Study Approach

In a context of political and economic austerity, social innovation has been presented as a solution to many social challenges, old and new. It aims to support the introduction of new ideas in response to the current urgent needs and challenges of vulnerable groups and seems to offer promising solutions to the challenges faced by rural areas. Yet the evidence base of the impacts on the sustainable development of rural communities remains scarce. In this paper, we explore social innovation in the context of community forestry and provide a brief synthetic review of key themes linking the two concepts. We examine a case of social innovation in the context of community forestry and analyse its type, extent, and scale of impact in a marginalized rural area of Scotland. Using an in-depth case study approach, we apply a mixed research methodology using quantitative indicators of impact as well as qualitative data. Our results show that social innovation reinforces the social dimension of community forestry. Impacts are highlighted across domains (environmental, social, economic, and institutional/governance) but are mainly limited to local territory. We discuss the significance of those results in the context of community forestry as well as for local development. We formulate policy recommendations to foster and sustain social innovation in rural areas.

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Participatory assessment of biodiversity conservation in community forestry in Nepal

Banko Janakari ◽

10.3126/banko.v16i1.364 ◽

1970 ◽

Vol 16 (1) ◽

pp. 46-56 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

K.P. Acharya ◽

K.R. Goutam ◽

B.K. Acharya ◽

G. Gautam

Keyword(s):

Forest Management ◽

Biodiversity Conservation ◽

Community Forestry ◽

Effective Means ◽

Rural Livelihoods ◽

Community Forest Management ◽

Managed Forests ◽

Community Forest ◽

Participatory Assessment ◽

Community Forest User Groups

The Community Forestry has been the most effective means of managing common forest resources in Nepal. Besides rehabilitating degraded hills, improving environment and contributing to the rural livelihoods, community forestry is claimed to be a major means of biodiversity conservation. It is also argued that the prevalent approach of community forest management threats to the conservation of biodiversity. This paper is based on the findings from two community forest user groups from Central Nepal and argues that the users’ innovative practices of active forest management favor biodiversity conservation. The study has documented users’ innovations to conserve biodiversity in community managed forests. Key words: Nepal, community forestry, biodiversity conservation and livelihoods Banko Janakari Vol.16(1) 2006 pp46-56

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Why is Community Forestry a Socialand Gender-blind Technology? The Case of Nepal

Gender Technology and Development ◽

10.1080/09718524.2003.11910091 ◽

2003 ◽

Vol 7 (3) ◽

pp. 313-332

Author(s):

MarlÈe Buchy ◽

Suman Subba

Keyword(s):

Community Forestry

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The influence of NGO involvement on local people's perception of forest management: a case study of community forestry in Nepal

Journal of Forest Research ◽

10.1007/s10310-005-0172-9 ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 10 (6) ◽

pp. 453-463 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Kasumi Ito ◽

Yumi Oura ◽

Hiroyuki Takeya ◽

Shigeaki Hattori ◽

Katsuhiro Kitagawa ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Forest Management ◽

Community Forestry ◽

People’S Perception

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Effects of forest certification towards sustainable community forestry in Nepal

Banko Janakari ◽

10.3126/banko.v17i1.654 ◽

1970 ◽

Vol 17 (1) ◽

pp. 11-16 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Pem N Kandel

Keyword(s):

Forest Management ◽

Sustainable Forest Management ◽

Community Forestry ◽

Forest Certification ◽

Managed Forests ◽

Forest Stewardship Council ◽

Community Forests ◽

Sustainable Community ◽

Forest Stewardship ◽

Forest Users

In early 2005, 10,045 ha Community Forests (CFs) were certified in Bajhang and Dolakha districts of Nepal by using the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certification scheme. After two years of forest certification, subsequent questions are being asked such as: What benefits have certification brought for the Forest Users Groups (FUGs)? What tangible differences are there in forest management system because of forest certification? and What lessons have been learnt from the certified forests? In an attempt to answer these questions, a study was carried out in April 2007 in Dolakha district where 11 (2,182 ha) community managed forests were certified in 2005. On the basis of field study from two certified forests (Vitteripakha and Suspa) of the district, this paper analyzes the effects of forest certification and its implications for enhancing Sustainable Community Forestry (SCF) in Nepal. Key words: Sustainable forest management, forest certification, community forestry Banko Janakari: A journal of forestry information for Nepal Vol.17(1) 2007 pp.11-16

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