Sharing the Wealth

• DOI: 10.1300/j091v15n02_01
• Publication Date: 2006-05-15T14:24:09Z
• Authors: M. A. Rechlin; A. L. Hammett; W. R. Burch; Y. Song
• Keywords: 0301 basic medicine; 0303 health sciences; 03 medical and health sciences; 11. Sustainability; 15. Life on land

Abstract Although rooted in many indigenous systems of forest management, community forestry has only recently emerged as a national forest management strategy. It has spawned both new processes of forest management decision-making and new institutions empowered with the authority to protect and control the use of common forest resources. To explore the distribution of benefits from community management, two organizational approaches were examined: the Forest User Group (FUG) in Nepal, and the Share Holding Integrated Forest Tenure (SHIFT) system in southern China. Village management groups must share with all stakeholders the monetary and material benefits derived from any harvest. Incentives are needed for the continuance and expansion of community forestry. Community forestry organizations and their decision-making processes will have to adapt and change as the resources increase in value, and needs of the stakeholders evolve.