Community livelihood and its dependence on nature resources under pressure of conservation

Abstract

Conflict between conservation and community livelihood is a significant issue in China. Based on Sustainable Livelihood Framework (SLA), this study systematically analyzed livelihoods assets of a community in a Yunnan snub-nosed monkey conservation area and found that the livelihood pentagon of the community was shaped by multiple but frail and unstable income sources, abundant natural resources with restricted use right, underutilized labors, inadequate financial resources, inconvenient physical capital and weak social capital. Villagers’ income heavily depended on forest, and grazing and non-timber forest products (NTFP) collection are common and major income sources for villagers. However, differentiation of income dependence on forest among villagers’ groups showed that there is no close correlation between the level of income and the level of income dependence on forest. Households’ daily life also heavily depended on the forest due to heating and pig-feed cooking; hence, fuelwood cannot be easily r...