Community involvement in KPH Yogyakarta (Yogyakarta Forest Management Unit) land management: a case study of RPH Mangunan

Abstract

The management of protection forests in KPH Yogyakarta has involved the surrounding community. Community involvement is expected to keep forest sustainability and contribute to the surrounding community’s income. Community engagement activities in the protection forest at RPH Mangunan have been developed long time before the KPH Yogyakarta was formed. Several social forestry activities was designed by utilizing forest land to involve the community in protection forests, especially in RPH Mangunan. Activities with the community on KPH land are permitted as long as the crops and trees are not disturbed. This paper aims to identify community involvement in RPH Mangunan and calculate the economic contribution of each land area used by the community. The research was conducted in July-August 2018. The collection of socio-economic data are obtained through household surveys of KPH land users, in-depth interviews with key stakeholders and Focus Group Discussion (FGD) of parties involved in KPH land management. The income from managing the KPH land is still below the needs of one household based on Yogyakarta provincial minimum wage. Apart from carrying out agricultural activities, some community members have other sources of livelihood. To increase the community’s income and support forest sustainability, some strategies need to be implemented.