With tens of millions of hectares and hundreds of millions of lives in the balance, the debate over who should control South Asia s forests is of tremendous political significance. This book provides an insightful and thorough assessment of important forest management transitions currently underway. MARK POFFENBERGER, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF COMMUNITY FORESTRY INTERNATIONAL The contributions in this volume not only breathe life into the fi eld of writing and analysis related to forests, they do so on the strength of extraordinarily insightful research. Kudos to Springate-Baginski and Blaikie for providing us with a set of thoroughly researched, provocative studies that should be required reading not only for those interested in community forestry in south Asia, but in resource governance anywhere. ARUN AGRAWAL, ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR OF NATURAL RESOURCES & ENVIRONMENT, UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN, USA Makes a significant contribution to theory and practice of participatory forest management. YAM MALLA, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, REGIONAL COMMUNITY FORESTRY TRAINING CENTER FOR ASIA AND THE PACIFIC, BANGKOK This excellent and timely book provides thought-provoking insights to the issues of power and politics in forestry and the difficulties of transforming age-old structures that circumscribe the access of the poor to forests and their resources; it challenges our assumptions of the benefits of participatory forest management and the role of forestry in poverty reduction. It should be of interest to policy-makers and to all those who have been involved with the struggle of transforming forestry over the decades. DR MARY HOBLEY, HOBLEY SHIELDS ASSOCIATES (NATURAL RESOURCE MANAGEMENT AND PLANNING CONSULTANCY) A rare combination of extensive field study, social science insights and policy studies will be of immense value DR N. C. SAXENA, MEMBER OF NATIONAL ADVISORY COUNCIL, GOVERNMENT OF INDIA In recent decades participatory approaches to forest management have been introduced around the world. This book assesses their implementation in the highly politicized environments of India and Nepal. The authors critically examine the policy, implementation processes and causal factors affecting livelihood impacts. Considering narratives and field practice, with data from over 60 study villages and over 1000 household interviews, the book demonstrates why particular field outcomes have occurred and why policy reform often proves so difficult. Research findings on which the book is based are already influencing policy in India and Nepal, and the research and analysis have great relevance to forestry management in a wide range of countries. Published with DFID."

With tens of millions of hectares and hundreds of millions of lives in the balance, the debate over who should control South Asia s forests is of tremendous political significance. This book provides an insightful and thorough assessment of important forest management transitions currently underway. MARK POFFENBERGER, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF COMMUNITY FORESTRY INTERNATIONAL The contributions in this volume not only breathe life into the fi eld of writing and analysis related to forests, they do so on the strength of extraordinarily insightful research. Kudos to Springate-Baginski and Blaikie for providing us with a set of thoroughly researched, provocative studies that should be required reading not only for those interested in community forestry in south Asia, but in resource governance anywhere. ARUN AGRAWAL, ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR OF NATURAL RESOURCES & ENVIRONMENT, UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN, USA Makes a significant contribution to theory and practice of participatory forest management. YAM MALLA, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, REGIONAL COMMUNITY FORESTRY TRAINING CENTER FOR ASIA AND THE PACIFIC, BANGKOK This excellent and timely book provides thought-provoking insights to the issues of power and politics in forestry and the difficulties of transforming age-old structures that circumscribe the access of the poor to forests and their resources; it challenges our assumptions of the benefits of participatory forest management and the role of forestry in poverty reduction. It should be of interest to policy-makers and to all those who have been involved with the struggle of transforming forestry over the decades. DR MARY HOBLEY, HOBLEY SHIELDS ASSOCIATES (NATURAL RESOURCE MANAGEMENT AND PLANNING CONSULTANCY) A rare combination of extensive field study, social science insights and policy studies will be of immense value DR N. C. SAXENA, MEMBER OF NATIONAL ADVISORY COUNCIL, GOVERNMENT OF INDIA In recent decades participatory approaches to forest management have been introduced around the world. This book assesses their implementation in the highly politicized environments of India and Nepal. The authors critically examine the policy, implementation processes and causal factors affecting livelihood impacts. Considering narratives and field practice, with data from over 60 study villages and over 1000 household interviews, the book demonstrates why particular field outcomes have occurred and why policy reform often proves so difficult. Research findings on which the book is based are already influencing policy in India and Nepal, and the research and analysis have great relevance to forestry management in a wide range of countries. Published with DFID.

Based on original survey data and other source materials, this study analyses the functioning of participatory forest management (PFM) in Orissa, both due to the local people's own initiatives and through the state supported JFM programme and their impact on the livelihood. The working of the PFM has not been satisfactory due to poor governance, weak local institutions, lack of effective participation of women and the poor, unequal product distribution, lower access to forest resource. Lack of robust intra and inter village conflicts management among different stakeholders has weakened proper management of resources; created problems in benefit sharing, usufruct rights, and boundary disputes over the forest area. A number factors - low literacy and awareness of the forest related policies among the primary stakeholders, high dependence of poor on traders and others for land and credit, low bargaining power of women within PFM institutions, and the presence of forest mafias - have contributed to it. PFM has led to improved forest condition, and increased access to a variety of forest products for the households. But improvement in the livelihood conditions of participant households has been marginal due to a number of factors including no value addition to collected products, marginal improvement in market relation for NTFP sale, high dependence on informal loan at onerous terms and conditions and low level of human capital development. PFM has raised the expectation of members, and now it has to improve the economic conditions of the poor. The authors have suggested a number of policies including - democratization of Forest Protection Committees, assured tennurial rights to the local communities, recognition of multiple participatory management practices including JFM and Community Forest Management, recognition of forest based subsistence use, promotion of value addition and forest based enterprises, improvement of marketing networks through collaboration with other local institutions, increased investment in forest sector and effective coordination with other stakeholders. The book will be of interest to all those who have interest in Environment and Natural Resource Economics and Forest policies.