Assessing "Participation" in Forest Management: Workable Methods and Unworkable Assumptions (original) (raw)
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Ensuring" collective action" in" participatory" forest management
2003
After a decade and half since policy change in India, there are evidences that 'participatory' efforts in forestry are becoming acceptable at various levels of governance. Although community-initiated and NGO promoted 'collective action' based resource management has emerged sporadically throughout India in last 20 years, government has also come up with three subsequent resolutions related to joint forest management (JFM) since 1990, each more liberal than the earlier. This paper is based on three case studies, each belonging to one of the three types of institutional structures: Self-initiated, NGO promoted, and government sponsored JFM. Despite similar basic objectives of all the three institutional structures i.e. strengthening the ecological security and meeting subsistence biomass needs of the local people, each institutional structure is different, with its strengths and weaknesses. If these factors can be identified it could have useful policy implications. The three case studies undertaken belong to similar eco-geographical area; have comparable forest area, and all the three communities with heterogeneous population belong to similar socioeconomic background. The data has been collected by using International Forestry Resources and Institutions (IFRI) methodology, which helps combine the botanical information with the socioeconomic information, with the help of ten research instruments. The study brings out the importance of autonomy for the communities to make decisions. Indigenously formed rules and conflict resolving mechanism are found not only to be more flexible and acceptable to the community, but also helpful in the development of mutual understanding, common norms i.e.
2012
This paper examines voluntary participation in community forest management, and 7 characterizes how more participation may be induced. We implemented a survey of 8 571 respondents and conducted a case study in Central Java, Indonesia. The study's 9 novelty lies in categorizing the degrees of participation into three levels and in identify-10 ing how socio-economic factors affect people's participation at each level. The analysis 11 finds heterogeneous responses across the three levels and also finds that publicly orga-12 nized programs, such as information provision and benefit sharing, are highly effective. 13 Overall, the results suggest a positive perspective and further corrective measures for 14 the success of community forest management.
Forests, Trees and Livelihoods, 2004
Joint Forest Management (JFM) is an effort which involved people to participate for the protection, conservation and rehabilitation of forests whilst safeguarding the rights of forest dwellers. Women and other marginalized sections of the community need to be empowered to ensure their participation in JFM (Aggarwal and Chauhan, 2015). Such programmes while ensuring the conservation of flora and fauna, also provided stability for the agriculture, horticulture, animal husbandry, and local cottage industries and thus, help in all round economic development (Bhatia, 2000). The present study analysed the people's participation in different stages of JFM programmes in the higher hills of Himachal Pradesh (Sundernagar and Kullu forest division). The results showed that people of age group 40-60 years participated most in the JFM programme. The participation of the general category people was found highest followed by scheduled caste, other backward class and scheduled tribe. The literacy rate of the respondents was found to be 98.51 percent while the literacy index was found to be 2.51 representing level of education in between middle class and higher secondary. In both the regions participation of people was found maximum during maintenance stage followed by planning stage and implementation stage. The overall participation index was found to be 61.91 per cent. The capacity building through training and awareness can help in safeguarding livelihood and conservation efforts of JFM.
PARTICIPATORY DEVELOPMENT IN INDIGENOUS FOREST MANAGEMENT
The rapid depletion of indigenous woodlands throughout Southern Africa has severe ecological consequences. The conversion of woodlands into farmland, the lack of national energy policies and programmes and the rapid increase of urbanisation lead to the increased demand for firewood and charcoal. These are contributing factors to deforestation. Also, government departments and their respective field staff are often unable or unwilling to enforce existing legislation. In view of these developments we have observed, over the last couple of years, a change in government forest policies in most SADC member states, making it possible to include and empower local communities in the management or co-management of forest and woodland resources. In Malawi this process takes place on customary as well as State-owned land.
People's Participation in Community Forest Management
International Journal of Science and Society
The proposed study introduced the "People's Participation in Community Forest Management". This study was conducted on community forest of the central part of Nepal in Sindhuli district. The main objective of this study was to assess the participation of users group in forest management activities, decision making, benefit sharing mechanism and finding the factors that effect on people's participation. Primary data was collected through preliminary survey, questionnaire survey, focus group discussion and key informant survey. Secondary data was collected from concerned Division Forest Office (DFO), CFUGs operational plan, constitution of CFUGs, minutes, and documents from local government and non-government organizations. The qualitative and quantitative data was analysed using statistical packages SPSS, MS Excel. For qualitative analysis descriptive methods were used and the result was presented in different charts, tables and graphs. From the study, participation...
Wageningen Agricultural University, 2001
In the last few years there has been a tendency to adopt a new forest management system in which people's participation is the focus of attention. This concept has several different names, such as community forest based management, collaborative forest management, joint forest management and social forestry. Three main principles are applied in this new forest management system i.e. 1) Local people need to be involved in forest management activities; 2) Local people have legal rights and obligations to participate in forest management activities; 3) There is a need to actively involve local people in deciding on which activities to develop in order to guarantee a forest management system which is economically feasible, socially adaptable and ecologically sound. To anticipate the tendency, the Indonesian Ministry of Forestry and Estates (MOFEC) has developed several programmes the main purpose of which is to rationalise and empower the life of local people living near and around the forest area and to increase their participation in forest management activities. There are various forms of social forestry programme in Indonesia i.e. PMDH (Forest Village Development Programme), Community Forestry, Mixed Farming Timber Estate, Transmigration Timber Estate, Small Scale Private Forest, etc. Social forestry programme development shows a dynamic from time to time Since the programme was first introduced there has been a change of heart on the part of professional foresters, who in the past mostly thought they knew more and had a greater right over forest resources. Now they realise that local people also have the right to be involved in forest management activities. Furthermore, the active participation of the people in forest management activities has an important role in determining the success of sustainable forest management. The top-down approach as the only method applied in programme establishment is now being gradually abandoned. The newly introduced method of PRA (Participatory Rural Appraisal) is starting to be used widely in designing alternatives in social forestry programmes. This paper tries to elaborate the establishment of these programmes and to describe how far and in what activities local people could participate in forest management activities in some areas of Indonesia. Some case studies presented in the paper focus on what the local people receive and how they react after the establishment of these programmes. The information presented here has been gathered from several research studies and literature.
The Balance Between …, 2001
In the last few years there has been a tendency to adopt a new forest management system in which people's participation is the focus of attention. This concept has several different names, such as community forest based management, collaborative forest management, joint forest management and social forestry. Three main principles are applied in this new forest management system i.e. 1) Local people need to be involved in forest management activities; 2) Local people have legal rights and obligations to participate in forest management activities; 3) There is a need to actively involve local people in deciding on which activities to develop in order to guarantee a forest management system which is economically feasible, socially adaptable and ecologically sound.