Comparing a top-down and bottom-up approach in the identification of criteria and indicators for sustainable community forest management in Nepal

Sustainable forest management (SFM) plays a critical role in maintaining ecological balance, supporting livelihoods, and mitigating climate change. This study was conducted to explore the management practices and user perspectives regarding sustainable forest management in Nepal, focusing on community forestry and government-led initiatives. Using a mixed-methods approach, data were collected through surveys, interviews, focus group discussions and field observations. A total of 180 user’s opinion were collected in 9 selected forest user groups from four district of Nepal (i.e. Ilam, Jhapa, Sarlahi, and Makawanpur). The study revealed that major forest management practices applied by community users’ are thinning, pruning, and improvement felling. Majority of the users (70.56%) were unsure about the forest management practices prescribed in the Operational plans (OPs). Accordingly, most users (92.78%) were agreed with the opinions that they need to be trained about forest management practices and its implementation. Majority of the users (92.00%) also agreed that participatory forest management modalities like Community Forest (CF), Collaborative Forest Management (CFM) and Leasehold Forest (LHF) area protecting biodiversity and reducing environmental risks. However, people believe that arbitrary policy changes was the main challenges for proper implementation of sustainable forest management practices. Therefore, strengthening capacity-building programs, enhancing government support, developing a consistent guideline, and promoting adaptive management practices are essential for improving sustainable forest resource management in Nepal.

Conservation, protection, and proper utilization of forests play an important role in environmental sustainability of the globe. The ultimate goal of sustainable forest management is to create a balanced and appropriate solution for human well-being and preservation of forest ecosystems. However, one of the prominent obstacles to achieve this goal is the gap existing between governmental development aims and the perspectives of local people and communities. Forest conservation requires an integrated management that works in partnership with local communities. Local and community-based forest management is a multi-dimensional approach to sustainable forest management in which different stakeholders with different interests play a part in achieving a common goal. However, little research has been done in this area. In this regard, the main purpose of this chapter was to examine the role of participation of local community in sustainable land and forest management. This purpose fulfilled through six steps. In the first step, the role of community participation in sustainable forest management and its typology were explained. I the second and third steps, the barriers and drivers of local communities’ participation were introduced, respectively. In the fourth step, techniques for participation of local communities in forest management were analyzed. In the fifth step, some practical experiences related to the participation of local communities in forest management were highlighted. In the sixtieth or final step, some social principles were introduced for agricultural system and interventions aiming at sustainable management of forests and lands.

Epiphytic lichen diversity and sustainable forest management criteria and indicators: A multivariate and modelling approach in coppice forests of Italy

Growing concern about forest degradation and loss, combined with the political impetus supplied by the Earth Summit in 1992, led to the establishment of eleven intergovernmental, regional, and international forest-related processes focused on the use of criteria and indicators (C&I) for sustainable forest management (SFM). Up to 171 countries have participated in these processes to apply C&I frameworks as a tool for data collection, monitoring, assessment, and reporting on SFM and on achieving various forest-related UN Sustainable Development Goals. Based on an expert survey and literature analysis we identify six interlinked impact domains of C&I efforts: (1) enhanced discourse and understanding of SFM; (2) shaped and focused engagement of science in SFM; (3) improved monitoring and reporting on SFM to facilitate transparency and evidence-based decision-making; (4) strengthened forest management practices; (5) facilitated assessment of progress towards SFM goals; and (6) improved forest-related dialog and communication. We conclude that the 25-year history of C&I work in forestry has had significant positive impacts, though challenges do remain for the implementation of C&I and progress towards SFM. The work should be continued and carried over to other sectors to advance sustainability goals more broadly.

Prescriptions of the Forest Management Planning Manual (FMPM) for Ontario's Crown forests are examined for conformance with the elements of the Canadian Council of Forest Ministers (CCFM) Criteria and Indicators (C&I) of sustainable forest management (SFM). The examination identifies gaps and highlights forest management planning aspects that require gap–bridging interventions at the forest management unit (FMU) level. The three levels (parts) of the FMPM—Management Planning, Annual Operations, and Reporting & Monitoring—are examined. Gaps are categorized in three groups—major, intermediate, and minor gaps. Major gaps are recorded for five out of 22 elements of the CCFM C&I framework, and these gaps indicate inadequate prescriptions for the corresponding elements at all the three levels. Minor gaps are also recorded for five elements, and these gaps indicate inadequate prescriptions at the monitoring level. Intermediate gaps are recorded for 11 elements, and depending on the specific element and indicator, inadequacy of prescriptions may only be for operations, reporting and monitoring, or may also include the planning level. The main findings of the gap analysis are that none of the six criteria of SFM has been fully incorporated in the FMPM; Part C (Reporting and Monitoring) has the highest degree and Part A (Plan Contents) has the lowest degree of non–conformity with respect to CCFM C&I framework; at the criterion–level the Global Ecological Cycles has major gaps while three criteria—Soil and Water Conservation, Multiple Benefits, and Society' Responsibility—have intermediate gaps; and the changes in the FMPM have been incremental while the shift in the concept of forest management from Sustained Yield Timber Management to SFM was a drastic change. Key words: biological diversity, Canadian Council of Forest Ministers, criteria and indicators, ecological cycles, forest management, multiple benefits, society's responsibility

Forests and trees have social, ecological and economic importance to humankind. It is high time to manage worlds’ forests sustainably to ensure supply of forest based goods and services and reduce the adverse impacts of climate change. This paper highlights the history and current status of forest management, challenges and opportunities, various approaches adopted in forest management and recent initiatives in sustainable and scientific forest management (SFM) in Nepal. About one-third of the total 6.61 million ha (45%) of Nepal’s forest has been handed over to over 30,000 forest user groups. Various failed attempts in forest management in the past were mainly due to lack of institutional capacity, political back-up, conflict, etc. “Forestry for Prosperity” - a new vision announced at the 10th National Conservation Day in 2012, re-introduced the concept of sustainable and scientific forest management and launched this in ten districts with designated program and budget in the same year. Accordingly, forest blocks are identified, inventoried, management plans drawn and implemented. Over 69, 000 ha forests in 11 districts are under silviculture management to date. Thus managed forests show profuse regeneration, improved supply of forest products, increased revenue, improved forest health and enhanced capacity of forestry professionals. Yet, lack of political and professional commitment, inadequate human and financial resources, and weak institutional and professional competency are specific challenges to SFM in Nepal. Creating enabling environment, institutional reorganization, enhancing forest management capacity, improved forestry governance, reducing non-forestry workload of government forestry staff, and preparation and use of standard silvicultural operational guidelines have been suggested to upscale SFM in Nepal. Banko JanakariA Journal of Forestry Information for Nepal Special Issue No. 4, 2018, Page : 15-20

A growing literature on collective action focuses on exploring the conditions that might help or hinder groups to work collectively. In this paper, we focus on community-based forest management in the inner Terai region of Nepal and explore the role of community and user attributes such as group size, social heterogeneities, forest user’ perception on forests, and affiliation to the user group, in the collective action of managing community forests. Household surveys were carried out with 180 households across twelve community forest users’ groups. We first measured ethnic diversity, income inequality, landholding inequality, and user perception towards the use and management of community forests to understand their effect on the participation of forest users in the management of community forests. Our results show that among the studied variables, group size (number of forest users affiliated to the community forests) and perception of the management of their community forests are strong predictors of forest user participation in community forest management. Income inequality and ethnic diversity were found to have no significant association. Land inequality, however, was found to decrease participation in the management and use of community forests. These community and user attributes play a crucial role in the success of collective action and may vary from community to community. Hence they need to be duly considered by the practitioners prior to any community-based project interventions for stimulating successful collective action.

Community forest management led to rapid local forest gain in Nepal: A 29 year mixed methods retrospective case study

Global trends of increasing threat to forests and the environment, as well as the efforts of humanity to achieve greater material and economic benefits have influenced the acceptance of the concept of sustainable development and forest management. Sustainability in forestry is applied as a principle of regulated management that has long been associated with the concept of sustainability (continuity) of production, yield and income. It represents the basic principle of forest management in the Republic of Srpska in which the priority is the production (economic) function. Sustainable forest development is enabled if forests are managed in such a way as to preserve their biodiversity, productivity, natural regeneration, vitality, and their potential so that forests now and in the future perform significant ecological, economic and social functions locally, nationally and globally. level. Regarding indicators of sustainable forest management, there are differences between organizations, so there is a need to achieve widely recognized harmonization in order to facilitate the analysis and adoption of measures to improve sustainable forest management. Forestry is often viewed in the context of overall sustainable development, because the SDGs goals affirmed the economic and environmental component of sustainable development. Strategic development goals in modern European forestry are of a sectoral, social, political, economic and environmental nature. The United Nations has defined 17 basic goals of sustainable development, and almost all of them are directly and indirectly related to forestry. The global goals and measures in forestry that need to be achieved by 2030 are: stopping the trend of forest loss around the world, increasing economic, environmental and social support provided by forests, increasing the area of protected forests and strengthening cooperation and partnerships in scientific and technical forestry. Due to the mutual interaction and contradictions of goals and measures, certain compromises are needed, and due to the pronounced multifunctionality of forests and the manner of their use, the principles of certification of sustainable forest management have been promoted. The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC 1993) and Program for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC 1999) are mainly applied. In the Republic of Srpska, the FSC FM certificate has been held by JPŠ "Šume Republike Srpske" a.d. since 2008. Sokolac, while private forests are not certified. In the Republika Srpska/BiH, FSC standards for sustainable forest management have been developed, which have been used since March 22, 2020. years (FSC 2019) and have a validity period of five years. The evaluation of the functions of our forests is not always in line with modern trends in the evaluation of forest resources, because the indicators related to productivity from the point of view of raw material base, growth and simple reproduction are quantified. Forestry development guidelines must be strategically focused on priority areas: forest cultivation and protection, development of a sustainable environment, development of human resources and education systems, and business use of information and communication technology. Necessary coherence, complementarity and integration of sustainable development goals have influenced the inclusion of forestry as an important economic activity for achieving human health, access to renewable energy, food, drinking water, the fight against climate change and others. Contemporary intentions that are insisted on when it comes to the importance of forest ecosystems, and current topics in the process of education, forestry science and profession relate to ecosystem services and biodiversity, forest protection, biomass production for energy, new technologies, information systems and monitoring.

Despite the socio-economic and environmental benefits of forests globally, these ecosystems have been degraded due to poor governance. Effective governance in the forest sector calls for the identification of concrete elements within the administrative sector by systematically analysing the current situation and direct efforts towards improving the systems. A functional governing system would promote positive changes and progress by identifying challenges and gaps and come up with guidelines geared towards strengthening global co-operation. Our study explored the various factors influencing effective governance in forest management and protection in Kenya, using the case of Mt. Elgon Forest Reserve. Purposive sampling design was used to collect data through structured questionnaires and interactive interviews among forest managers, forest adjacent communities and other relevant stakeholders. The study shows that majority of the local communities living adjacent to the forest have been sensitized about forest conservation, however, the capacity building did not entail technical forestry operations. This has hampered effective involvement of the communities in forest management. Majority of the forest management staff are well trained in forest management and therefore could implement sustainable management strategies, however, due to insufficient fund, these strategies could not be fully implemented. Most of the members of the local communities are not economically empowered and mainly derive their livelihood from the forest leading to overexploitation. This strains sustainable utilization of the forest resources. Cultural practices such as livestock grazing and living within the forest are hampering sustainable management of the forest. The study suggests that successful management of the forest is limited by inadequate involvement of local communities. This has led to apathy and degradation of the forest by members who feel that their views are not sort in the management of the forest. The study recommends multi-sectoral planning and representation of sectors involved in forest management and conservation Keywords: participatory forest management, forest adjacent communities, forest products, sustainable forest management DOI: 10.7176/JESD/11-12-06 Publication date: June 30th 2020

This chapter explores the different approaches to assess criteria and indicators (C&I) for sustainable forest management (SFM) as a result of the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development 1992 and presents a case study of computing indicators at the local scale. It focuses on the international processes and provides an overview of national initiatives for the C&I and forest certification. The chapter focuses on the international processes and provides an overview of national initiatives for the C&I and forest certification. The 10 Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) principles and criteria form the basis for all FSC forest management standards and policies. The criteria at forest management unit level are likely to be identical or very similar to those defined at national level, although they are more flexible. The chapter presents a methodology and a case study for evaluating SFM indicators related with forest structure, timber yield, and biomass, assessed with information from light detection and ranging airborne system.

The Canadian Council of Forest Ministers' (CCFM) framework of Criteria and Indicators (C&I) for Sustainable Forest Management, published in 1995, provide a science-based framework to define and measure Canada's progress in the sustainable management of its forest. In 2001, the CCFM launched a review of its C&I to ensure the continued relevance of the indicators to Canadian values and to improve the ability to report on indicators. This paper describes the threestep review process, which engaged a broad array of representatives of various sectors of society. First, focus groups were used to identify public values, issues and concerns with respect to the sustainable use of Canada's forest. Second, technical experts from across the forest sector revised the indicators. Third, the revised C&I were validated with users of the framework. The revised framework, released in September 2003, consists of six criteria and 46 indicators. The number of indicators has been reduced, compared to the 1995 framework, by focusing on indicators that are most relevant to Canadians' values, are most often measurable with available data, and are understandable to policy makers, forest managers and an informed public. Links between criteria are better defined and, in some cases, indicators address multiple values under different criteria. A number of tools and techniques originally developed for use at the sub-national level were adapted for use at the national level in this review. Canada's experience with reviewing its indicators may serve as an example and model to other countries now considering reviewing their national C&I frameworks. Key words: Canada, Canadian Council of Forest Ministers, criteria and indicators, C&I, sustainable forest management, review

The ecological sustainability of tropical forest management: evaluation of the national forest management standards of Costa Rica and Nicaragua, with emphasis on the need for adaptive management

Two topics receiving much attention in design of forest policy and management in Nepal are conservation of biodiversity and participation of forest-local people. Government officials, forest users and development workers are all involved in shaping policy for the management of forest for biodiversity and other values. It is therefore crucial to understand the different viewpoints about biodiversity among these stakeholders. This paper is derived from a broad case study on the views of various stakeholders in community forestry in Nepal, but is focused on understanding the views of policy-level government officials in regards to biodiversity conservation. Using a grounded theory approach, qualitative data were collected on two field visits in 2002–2003 to the study area. The results of interviews with officials indicate diverse perspectives in interpreting biodiversity conservation. These include perceptions of forest users' understanding about diversity, and strong beliefs about definition of biodiversity and about dependence of users on forest for their livelihood. Implications of the results include an obvious need for better understanding by staff at various levels of government and other agencies involved in community forestry, of the different concepts and views held about biodiversity conservation. A broader understanding among officials of biodiversity and deeper knowledge of other's views on biodiversity conservation could help in designing and implementing policies and programs in the context of community forest management. Key words: views, perceptions, understanding, community, forestry, users, government officials, policy, qualitative method

The book contains the peer-reviewed, revised and edited invited keynote, overview and review papers presented at a IUFRO/CIFOR/FAO conference for each of the seven generic sustainability criteria for forest management. The sustainability criteria covered are: (i) social and economic functions and conditions; (ii) legal and institutional frameworks; (iii) productive capacity; (iv) ecosystem health and vitality; (v) soil and water protection; (vi) global carbon cycles; and (vii) biological diversity. Criteria and indicators (C&I) are a relatively new tool that have been developed to help better define sustainable forest management and assist with measuring change in forest condition and output of goods and services from forests. Application of C&I in forests has the following potential benefits: (i) raising awareness of, and political commitment for, Sustainable Forest Management; (ii) providing a tool for reporting, at a range of levels, on the state and trend in condition of forests; (iii) when forming part of an environmental management system, providing a way of assessing progress against management objectives, and thus supporting adaptive forest management; and (iv) providing an important plank for the certification of forests as sustainability management, and the associated green labelling of forest products.