Abstract
Local communities are frequently judged as the main driver of forest degradation and deforestation because of the weak recognition to local ecological knowledge (LEK) or traditional ecological knowledge (TEK). We assessed that it is important to elaborate the attributes of LEK and TEK as a way to describe why and how the local community clears the forest, as well as its relation to local practices, named parak and rimbo. Our research uses case study method to describe the local practices in Simancuang community, Alam Pauh Duo Village, South Solok District, West Sumatra Province. We conducted unstructured interviews, observations, and documents selection which were analyzed through categorization and codification as well as complemented with history analysis, spatial analysis, and related document analysis. The results showed that Simancuang community knowledge can describe the attributes of LEK and TEK as a unified whole of local knowledge for sustaining their livelihoods. Therefore, the forest clearing by Simancuang people is one of the livelihoods strategies, but they were not the main driver of forest degradation and deforestation in South Solok District.
Highlights
Forest resources utilization by local and indigenous communities for sustaining their livelihoods always generates a discourse in related to forest degradation and deforestation issues
Some challenges in using this concept were identified (Houde 2007; Bart 2006), but we introduce the attributes of local ecological knowledge (LEK) and traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) from Menzies and Butler (2006) as a way to explain LEK and TEK systematically and holistically
We elaborated the attributes of LEK and TEK in studying local practices of forest clearing
Summary
Forest resources utilization by local and indigenous communities for sustaining their livelihoods always generates a discourse in related to forest degradation and deforestation issues. According to the first view, local community that depended on agriculture and forestry activities was judged as a driver of the increasing forest degradation and deforestation (Mulyanto and Jaya 2004; Kissinger et al 2012). This argument is supported by the facts that subsistence/local agriculture practices have contributed 33% of deforestation We assess that discourses on the driver of forest degradation and deforestation have degraded the understanding about the relationship between local communities and forest resources and may occur in 3 causes. Elaborating the attributes was related to the existence of parak as one of agroforestry practices and rimbo as production, protection, or reserved forest for the community
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
