Conclusion: Sustainable Forest Management through Local Participation—Procedures and Priority Perspectives

Abstract

In its first phase (1998–2001) the IGES Forest Conservation Project (FC Project) aimed to identify principles or elements of sustainable forest management that would account for an important portion of an effective forest conservation strategy, based on experiences in the Asia-Pacific region. The research was carried out by four interrelated sub-teams which dealt with (1) structural analysis of forest destruction (ST sub-team), to provide basic information to other sub-teams; (2) participatory forest management policy (PM sub-team), to make recommendations covering local and national levels; (3) timber trade policy (TT sub-team), to make recommendations covering national and international levels; and (4) legal and administrative measures for forest conservation (LA sub-team). Their work was to elaborate principles and elements of sustainable forest management as a final outcome of the project. Target countries were Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines, Laos, Vietnam, China, and Russia (Far East region).