Tree Adoption in the North-East Philippines Uplands: Analysis of a GO-NGO Partnership

In recent decades, the Philippines have put much effort into designing strategies for motivating upland communities to plant trees. The accomplishments of these programs have been variable, however, and need further investigation. Focusing on five villages located in the uplands in north-east Luzon, this paper assesses the response to a government program that supplied tenure security to upland farmers in exchange for tree planting, implemented through an NGO project that supported farmers with advice, logistics and free seedlings. Response was measured as the percentage of households that joined the program, the percentage of their lots that they submitted for tenure contract and the percentage of these lots that were actually planted with more than 50 trees. The resulting overall tree adoption rate was that 22% of the lots in the villages had been planted, with a variation of 15–35% between villages. Main motivational factors were the land tenure prospect and the perceived stable markets for fruit and timber. Farmers were not only motivated but also capacitated, both financially and in terms of the bureaucratic procedures, by the NGO project. Without these, the government program could only have benefited the few well-off and educated farmers. The case study stands, therefore, as an example of effective government-NGO partnership.     

Researches and Application of Fuelbreaks in China

The fuelbreaks were established in south China from 1950s. With the active work of local communities and state government, the fuelbreaks have been built for 398,000 kilometers. In some areas, fuelbreaks and firebreaks have constructed a network primarily, such as in the provinces of Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi. The fuelbreaks can prevent forest fire effectively. That has been approved by actual examples and burning tests. The fuelbreaks also benefit the forest ecosystem and environment. This paper makes a review on fuelbreaks research and application in China, discussed present research achievements about fuelbreaks mechanism and its development. In the future, the Chinese government and local communities will increase investment in the construction of firebreaks network with fuelbreaks as focal points.     

试论城市空间拓展与土地资源管理的策略与政策

指出了我国当前城市空间释义的理论体系不完善，缺乏对空间拓展机制的全面解析，导致我国的城市普遍面临着空间拓展的需要与土地有限性这一矛盾。从土地市场特征、政府与土地市场的关系进行了分析，阐述了城市空间发展战略研究过程中，对城市空间拓展和土地管理的评估，提出了相关的策略与对策。     

The role of NGOs in improving social forestry practice: Do they promote livelihood, sustainability and optimal land use in Bangladesh?

The encroachment rate in forests in Bangladesh is high and increasing — accelerated by rural poverty and the demand for dwelling space and forest products — causing environmental degradation as well as loss of forest cover and productivity. The forests are managed by the Forest Department, although a substantial area of marginal land belongs to other semi-public agencies including Roads and Highways and the Water Development Board. This marginal land has been left unused or underutilized. In contrast, nongovernmental organizations have an appropriate accessibility and technology disseminating ability to utilize this land in reducing poverty and enhancing rural livelihood, and have been highly active and successful in rehabilitating encroached forests. NGOs have added a new dimension to forest management, which has ensured community participation and protection of the forests, both planted and natural. This study evaluates the social forestry activities of four large NGOs, namely BRAC, Proshika, Caritas and CARE-Bangladesh, as well as national social forestry activities. By adopting a common partnership between public and private authority, property right conflicts have been resolved and rural livelihoods enhanced, and scope has been created for utilizing marginal land. The NGO partnership has been effective in reducing poverty and improving livelihoods. As an outcome of this common partnership, 33,472 km of roadside planting and 53,430 ha of reforestation activities have been carried out during the last two decades.     

The Role of Government in the Development of Small and Medium Forest Enterprises: Case Studies from The Gambia

Small and medium forest enterprises (SMFEs) can contribute to poverty reduction, while promoting the sustainable use of forests. Governments have a fundamental role to play in generating the conditions necessary for these enterprises to emerge and develop. Unfortunately, the business environment in many countries is unsuitable for SMFEs. That said, The Gambia has been cited as a positive example in terms of providing an enabling environment for community forestry and as being a country where SMFEs are emerging. This qualitative research employed a multiple case study approach to examine the role of The Gambian government in catalyzing the development of SMFEs. Specifically, 16 enterprises that focus on five different activities were selected to shed light on the aspects of government activities that have either enabled or constrained them. Data indicate that The Gambian government has had a positive impact on various SMFEs with respect to the transfer of land tenure to local communities, coupled with the implementation of capacity building and support activities. However, there is room for improvement as wood-related enterprises revealed being affected by significant challenges such as corrupt practices, illegal activities and deficient enforcement.     

中国台湾地区社区林业计划执行过程及内容

社区林业是一种社区总体营造理念与操作方式,鼓励社区主动提出计划与林务单位共同合作,在整个计划执行过程中充分与公众沟通并达成共识,与社区公众及组织形成伙伴关系,共同维护生物多样性及发挥环境资源的生态系统服务价值,达到森林永续经营的目标,并能有效改善所在社区的经济与环境状况,特别是与原住民部落的关系。文中以中国台湾"林务局"编定的8个"林区管理处"2011-2020年森林经营计划书为基础,分析台湾地区社区林业计划的内容,包括"推动社区林业及伙伴关系的建立""雇用原住民及与原住民社区合作共同巡护措施""原住民传统领域森林产物采取"及"森林游乐区公共参与及伙伴关系"等4个议题,以期总结台湾社区林业经营规划的过程、内容及进展,供专家学者进行社区林业相关计划编制或研究时参考。     

A Property-Rights Approach to Understanding Regulations and Practices in Community-Based Forest Management: Comparison of Three Systems in the Philippines

Decentralizing property rights from state control to user communities has encouraged people’s participation in forest management. Relatively few studies, however, examine the forest regulations required for exercising such property rights. To address this issue, Schlager and Ostrom’s ‘bundle of rights’ framework was used to examine various forms of property rights and regulations in three systems of community-based forest management. The field research was undertaken in the northern Philippines, using eight cases of community-based forest management at sites in the provinces of Nueva Vizcaya and Ifugao. Local communities were found to informally retain the authority to create locally crafted property rights and regulations in a central government-initiated program. While forest regulations and practices prescribed at the national level have improved forest conditions, the flow of forest benefits to communities has been limited because of decentralization without devolution of authority. A case study of a site initiated by a local government indicated that the transfer of responsibility from the central government to local government units can create more favourable conditions for the flow of forest benefits to communities. But due to a lack of clarity about devolution of cutting permits and about the locations of afforested critical watershed areas, authorized local users lose their authorization. When forest is managed traditionally, communities can have more assured rights than in government-initiated programs, particularly in relation to tree ownership. This is because individuals have the authority to devise collective-choice rights as well as operational rights.     

Conversion of forests into oil palm plantations in West Kalimantan,Indonesia: Insights from actors' power and its dynamics

Oil palm plantations have been touted as one of the main drivers of deforestation in Indonesia. This paper aims to explain how oil palm companies accumulate power that enables them to control forestland and convert it into oil palm. Specifically, this paper identifies empirical evidence pointing to why oil palm companies emerge as powerful actors in land use conflicts. This paper uses the case of forest lands claimed by different actors – i.e. a timber plantation company, an oil palm company, and local communities – in West Kalimantan, Indonesia. Before the decentralisation policy, the interests of timber plantations were principally safeguarded by coercion from the forest ministry. The timber company was also supported by local communities by promising financial incentives to them. Following the decentralisation policy, additional actors get involved in the land use conflicts leading to more complex power interplays. In fact, some forestlands licensed for timber plantations are used by the oil palm company. Oil palm interests resonate with the economic interests of local governments, who use their legal mandates on land use allocation to facilitate the establishment of oil palm. The power of the oil palm company is also enhanced by the support from local communities, to which it handed more financial incentives than those of the timber plantation. It also used dominant information of customary claims and land appropriation by the ministry of forestry, with which it persuades local communities to pressurize government institutions to support oil palm operations.     

Communities’ perceptions of benefit-sharing mechanisms for forest-based land reform models in South Africa

One of the dominant challenges facing the South African forestry sector is the issue of land restitution. The aim of this study was, therefore, to assess the perception of beneficiaries of benefit-sharing modalities for forest-based land reform initiatives in their locality. A random sampling technique selected 140 and 175 households in Amabomvini and Cata communities in KwaZulu-Natal and Eastern Cape provinces, respectively. The household beneficiaries showed a lack of knowledge of the criteria used for the disbursement of the benefits. In addition, over 70.0% of household beneficiaries in Amabomvini, compared with far less than 70.0% in Cata, preferred using rental income for infrastructure development in their respective communities. The results further showed that the relationship between the responses of the respondents from both Amabomvini and Cata communities regarding their perception on the existence of the criteria established to share the benefits, was statistically significant (χ² = 34.452, df = 4, p < 0.005). However, a lack of transparency, trust and greed were among the factors that household beneficiaries identified as the root causes to the poor benefit-sharing mechanisms. Therefore, it is recommended that there should be political will and commitment from government in order to ensure the development and strengthening of existing benefit- sharing policies for the improvement of livelihoods of the land beneficiaries.     

集体林地不同经营模式对林地经营投入的影响——以江西省为例

【目的】试图回答集体林地不同经营模式对农户林地资金投入和劳动力投入的影响,以促进森林资源增长和林业可持续发展。【方法】基于江西省集体林区10个样本县50个样本村500户农户调查数据,运用计量模型分析联户经营、股份合作经营对农户林地资金投入和劳动力投入的影响。【结果】联户经营对农户是否参与资金投入具有显著促进作用,其影响系数为1.013,且联户经营对农户资金投入规模也具有显著正向影响,对资金总投入和单位面积投入的影响系数分别为4.174 和1.909;股份合作经营对农户劳动力投入规模具有显著正向影响,对劳动力总投入和单位面积投入的影响系数分别为0.521 和0.180;股份合作经营对采伐政策具有正向调节作用,联户经营和股份合作经营能够减轻偏远山区交通不便对劳动力投入的限制;农户家庭人力资本、林地状况、经济能力等禀赋对农户林地经营投入也具有不同程度影响。【结论】联户经营和股份合作经营能够促进农户林地经营投入,但目前发展程度较低,对林地资金投入和劳动力投入的影响存在较大差异。为促进林业可持续发展,应引导联户经营和股份合作经营的规范化、程序化,尤其在交通偏远的地区,倡导联户经营和股份合作经营,发挥其成员多、信息广等优势;同时,加强集体林权配套改革和林区基础设施改善,增强农户营林积极性。     

广州村镇绿地生态效应研究

文章对广州中心镇绿地中不同公共与道路绿地斑块的生态效应进行对比分析和研究,探讨了不同的绿地斑块在物种丰富度、三维绿量、空气质量改善、降温增湿等方面的差异及原因,指出目前村镇绿化中主要存在应用种类不足、绿地结构简单、生态效益差、养护水平低下等问题及解决途径,说明叶面积指数在绿地生态结构与生态功能中起着关键指标的作用,以期...     

Farm and Village Forest Use Practice in Ekiti State: Analysis of Government Policy and Tenure Issues

This study analyzed the influence of government policy and tenure issues on farm and village forest use practices in Ekiti State, Nigeria. Three rural communities that were still far from urban influence were selected from each of the 16 local government areas of the state. In each community, 20 household heads were selected and interviewed with the aid of a semi-structured matrix. The interviews aimed at the determination of respondents' socioeconomic status, awareness and belief in the effectiveness or otherwise of the forest laws and regulations, land use, tenure and property rights. Results obtained revealed that the awareness of forest laws and regulations cut across the socio-economic categories. Most of these laws and regulations that were considered to be necessary could also constitute disincentives to sustainable forest development. Three types of land tenure niches—private holdings, commons, and government reserves—exist in the state. These led to land fragmentations in which individuals are now left with small holdings. Individuals with small and medium landholdings found it difficult to invest in tree planting; hence, they meet their subsistence use of wood and non-wood forest products from diverse sources. Individuals with large landholdings were found cultivating cash tree crops; timber species were not cultivated though their wildlings were preserved. Also, when land is let or leased out, tenants were not allowed to invest in tree planting on such land.     

Participatory Research for Adaptive Ecosystem Management

Summary

Participatory research involves members of interested communities who work with researchers to apply their joint skills and experience to explore issues of mutual concern. There is an increasingly explicit federal mandate for participatory research efforts involving stakeholder groups in public land management. This paper presents a case study of one effort ongoing in the Hayfork Adaptive Management Area (AMA) on the Six Rivers and Shasta-Trinity national forests of northern California. There, a network of U.S. Forest Service staff, scientists, local nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and nontimber forest product harvesters (wildcrafters) has been working to address ecological, economic, and social aspects of harvesting nontimber forest products (NTFP) from public land. This paper discusses the challenges of NTFP management on public lands and analyzes participatory research as an approach for addressing some of these challenges.     

Poplar agroforestry in India

The development of poplar agroforestry and associated research in India is reviewed. The model of agroforestry development involving a partnership between farmers, the private sector and the government is worthy of further investigation for application in other areas of India and to other countries. A number of suggestions are given for further research in the context of optimising the system for resource-poor farmers. These include changes in tree and crop varieties, tree spacing, and utilisation of small diameter logs, and other poplar products.     

Conflicts as enhancers or barriers to the management of privately owned common land: A method to analyze the role of conflicts on a regional basis

Communal forests, or Montes Veciñais en Man Común (MVMC), are a specific form of communal land tenure and a singular legal category in Galicia, a region in Northwest Spain. MVMC extend over one third of the area of the region. Over the years, MVMC have undergone many changes in terms of ownership and resource management. Such changes have resulted in land tenure insecurity among current landowners, who live in rural areas. The new land uses–mainly related to energy sources–the demographic changes, the role of the Public Administration as a manager of MVMC, the presence of private companies with interests in forests, and the disagreement between forest communities or among commoners of the same community have brought about many conflicts that have gone beyond the limits of forests and have been reflected in public opinion. This paper aims to provide a deeper insight into the level and mode of management of MVMC by determining the level and cause of conflicts associated with this type of forest. To this end, local and regional newspaper articles about conflicts in forest communities were compiled from libraries. In order to find correlations between the different social, economic or environmental variables and the degree of conflict, statistical and spatial analyses were performed. Results reveal a stronger impact of environmental conflicts and conflicts between commoners and government organizations, and a very uneven spatial distribution of conflicts. In addition, this article discusses the interpretation of the higher or lower degree of conflict as a positive or negative contribution to the management of privately owned common land, thus contributing a new methodology to determine the causes and consequences of conflicts over common land management.     

Farmers’ Fruit Tree-growing Strategies in the Humid Forest Zone of Cameroon and Nigeria

Many studies have stressed the importance of trees to rural households. Few, however, have focused on actual numbers and densities of trees in different land-use systems. Based on community-level participatory research in six communities, semi-structured household interviews and full-farm fruit tree inventories, this study aims to understand farmers’ tree-planting strategies. Relationships between the diversity, number and density of fruit trees and farm size, land-use system, land tenure, distance from the homestead, proximity to the forest, market access and household characteristics are investigated. The key factors determining the differences in tree-growing strategies between communities appear to be market access, land use and access to forest resources. Within communities, differences between individual households were less easy to explain but tenure was important as was farm size. Smaller farms had higher fruit tree densities, a relationship that was particularly strong in communities with good market access. Overall there was a great deal of variability both within and between communities and many of the factors affecting tree-planting decisions were found to be highly inter-related. Despite this complexity, trees on farm play an important role in rural household's livelihoods. Therefore, expansion of tree cultivation should be recognized as a promising pathway to achieve increased income and food production by policy makers and extensionists alike. In addition to improved tree propagation and management techniques, farmers should be strengthened in the processing and marketing of agroforestry tree products and more emphasis should be placed on the development of tree enterprises. By doing so, farmers will be able to earn a more important and consistent income from fruit trees, contributing to the Millennium Development Goals.     

Learning from self-initiated community forest management in Orissa,India

There is growing recognition in tropical countries that safeguarding forests requires the active involvement of local communities, but knowledge of how best to do this is limited. Orissa's extensive experience of community forest management (CFM) provides some valuable lessons and insights regarding: (a) how and why communities manage their forests; and (b) the sustainability of CFM initiatives. The paper discusses the following aspects of CFM in Orissa: (a) the conditions that give rise to the initiation of CFM; (b) the size and nature of the benefits and how they are distributed among the various sub-groups of a community; (c) the factors affecting its sustainability, including conflicts and their management; and (d) communities’ support needs. The principal research activity was a survey, primarily socio–economic, of 43 forest-dependent communities. CFM was examined in the context of people's livelihood systems as a whole, since these can affect the size and nature of any benefits they derive from forest protection and also their main reasons for deciding to protect. The authors conclude that CFM has made an important contribution to the regeneration and sustainable management of Orissa's forests and argue that the formal balance of control of forests be shifted further towards communities. They highlight the plurality of institutional and management arrangements that communities have developed and caution against forest departments imposing a standardised, blueprint approach, as has tended to happen in government Joint Forest Management (JFM) programmes. Several weaknesses are identified in India's JFM programmes and reforms are recommended.     

我国土地利用动态预测与模拟研究新进展

指出了随着土地利用/覆被变化研究的深入和3S技术的发展,土地利用变化的预测和模拟研究取得了很大的进展,涌现出许多建模方法,有力地推动了土地利用/覆被变化研究的发展。通过对典型性研究进行梳理,总结了近年我国在这一领域的研究状况和存在的一些问题,并对发展方向进行了展望,以期为该领域研究提供参考。     

基于GIS的洞庭湖区沙化土地空间动态分析

Spatial Dynamic Analysis of Desertified Land in Dongting Lake Area Using GIS     

Urban land-use impacts on composition and spatiotemporal variations in abundance and biomass of earthworm community

Soil fauna can sensitively respond to alterations in soil environment induced by land-use changes.However,little is known about the impact of urban land-use changes on earthworm communities.In this study,three land-use types(i.e.,forest,nursery and abandoned lands)were chosen to identify differences in diversity,abundance and biomass of earthworm community in Kunming City.Urban land-use had a pronounced difference in species composition,evenness and diversity of earthworm communities.Forest land had the highest density,biomass and diversity of the earthworm communities.Total abundance was dominated by endogeic species in nursery land(70%)and abandoned land(80%),whereas in the forest land,the earthworm community comprised epigeic,endogeic and anecic species.Temporal changes in earthworm density and biomass were also significantly affected by land-use change.Total density and biomass of earthworms in the forest and nursery lands were highest in September,but highest in the abandoned land in October.The influence of soil physicochemical properties on the earthworm density and biomass also varied with land-use types.Soil temperature significantly affected earthworm density and biomass in the three land-use types.Soil pH was positively correlated with earthworm biomass in the forest land,but negatively associated with earthworm density in the abandoned land.Soil organic matter was positively correlated only with density and biomass of earthworms in the nursery and abandoned lands.Our results suggest that the species composition,abundance and biomass of earthworm communities can be determined by the modification of soil properties associated with urban land-use type.