The report was commissioned by Forest Research, and reviews the data available on the management of woodlands by local authorities in England. The report focuses on the extent to which community groups and social enterprises are involved in their management.
This guide proposes tools and approaches to improve forest tenure governance and practical actions to realise this objective. It is intended for government policy-makers, or other public sector, private sector or civil society stakeholders concerned with forest governance and tenure reform.
Programmes to reduce emissions from deforestation and ecosystem degradation, such as REDD+ and other forestry incentive programmes, including Payment for Environmental Services (PES), could represent an opportunity to strengthen processes of conservation, sustainable usage and poverty reduction in the Mesoamerican region, particularly in indigenous territories and communities.
El bienestar humano y la salud del planeta dependen de nuestra voluntad de cuidar de los bosques y de los procedimientos que empleemos para llevar a cabo su explotación. Es por lo tanto esencial saber quién posee y controla los bosques y cómo se ejerce la gobernanza de la tenencia forestal. Esta guía técnica se dirige a quienes desean mejorar la gobernanza de la tenencia forestal, ayudándoles a actuar en cuatro áreas críticas —la comprensión, la organización, la participación y la garantía—, y facilita sus decisiones relacionadas con los bienes y servicios forestales.
The project covers two pilot sites encompassing 41,000 ha of forest land: Vinh Tu Commune in Quang Tri Province and Huong Son District in Ha Tinh Province. Both sites are commercially used forest and have potential for a certification mechanism. The certification project presumes that ecosystem services can be provided alongside sustainable forest management. Innovatively, the pilot test will help develop national standards and indicators for ecosystem certification.
In what is a big step towards commercial community forestry, Cambodia’s Forest Administration, in partnership with RECOFTC and with technical assistance and funding from the Wildlife Conservation Society, began pilot testing in 2008 community-based production forestry in the Seima Biodiversity Conservation Area. It is an innovation unlike any other in the region in which communities are allowed to set up forest-logging operations in buffer-zone forest.
... Unleashing the potential of community forest (CF) enterprise in Myanmar is crucial for two main reasons. First, it will increase local incomes and government revenues, which will reduce poverty. Second, the financial incentive of such enterprises will encourage local people to manage and restore forests. Without enlisting the help of rural communities in these efforts it is likely that forest loss will continue and the contribution of forests to the rural economy will continue to decline.
The Government of Indonesia (GOI) is in
the process of designing a national REDD+ mechanism to allow
it to access donor funding in the medium term, and funding
from a potential performance based mechanism in the long
term. This policy brief is focused on the broad question of
how REDD+ can address underlying community issues such as
lack of access to forest land, and does not deal with the
more specific questions of legal and institutional
Wood energy is vital to the livelihoods of rural communities in the Mekong region, where over five times more fuelwood than timber is extracted for daily use. However, the energy needs of the community are commonly not factored into the establishment of market-oriented enterprises, which can lead to supply disruptions and subsequent impact on income as well as the environment. Hence, the importance of establishing sustainable community forest (CF) management, to ensure a stable provision of wood energy and to prevent gaps in supply and demand is significant.
Forinfo aims to strengthen the capacity of the Provincial Agriculture and Forestry Office (PAFO) by supporting the implementation of improved bamboo management within the two concession areas in Meung district. The project is partnering with officials from the Government of Lao PDR (GoL), from the national to district level, private enterprises, community associations, and other NGOs to foster a wider stakeholder responsibility and ownership of the activities.
This policy brief discusses ways for governments to support community forestry based on the understanding that it can provide numerous economic, environmental and social benefits. The brief also highlights the challenges facing community forestry throughout the region and outlines recommendations for governments to further support community forestry as a pathway to inclusive development, where communities participate in decision-making and get equitable benefits, based on the principles of participation, non-discrimination and accountability.
Building on a very successful previous strategic phase, the new RECOFTC Strategic Plan (2013-2018) has an increased focus on clearer strategic outcomes in RECOFTC’s four thematic areas: Securing Community Forestry; Enhancing Livelihoods and Markets; People, Forests and Climate Change; and Transforming Forest Conflicts. Within these thematic areas, we explore emerging issues, including landscape approaches, food security, water security, and biomass energy security.