Abstract
In biodiversity hotspots, there is often tension between human needs and conservation, exacerbated when protected areas prevent access to natural resources. Forest-dependent people may compensate for exclusion by managing unprotected forests or cultivating planted woodlots. Outside Bwindi Impenetrable National Park in Uganda, household wood product needs are high and population growth puts pressure on the environment. We investigated the role of privately and collectively managed woodlots in provisioning wood products and supporting local livelihoods. We found that households relied heavily on woodlots for daily needs and as resources during time of need. We also found that locally relevant social institutions, called stretcher groups, played a role in the management of woodlots, providing shared community resources. Privately and collectively owned woodlots support local livelihoods and wood product needs in the region. Long-term management of forests in Uganda should consider the value of woodlots and the mechanisms required to support them.
Highlights
Tropical forests hold exceptionally high biodiversity value and support the livelihoods of millions of people globally
Our study system was comprised of communities, forests, woodlots, cropland, and pastures adjacent to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park (BINP) in southwest Uganda
Household size Household educationa Households with off-farm employment Primary water source Toilet type Households that own a radio Poverty probabilityb Land owned Years land owned Primary crop Secondary crop Land planted with trees Households using fertilizer Soil qualityc Livestock per household Household healthd Months of food insecurity Primary fuel source Total types of wood products used Total types of wood products sold Households able to meet wood product needs Woodlot ownership Woodlot size Years woodlot ownership Primary woodlot species planted Access to private woodlot only Access to group-owned woodlot only Access to both private and group woodlot No woodlot access Stretcher group membership Stretcher group size Years of membership
Summary
Tropical forests hold exceptionally high biodiversity value and support the livelihoods of millions of people globally. The establishment of strict PAs (e.g., no extractive human activity allowed) has often limited access to natural forests and forest products by adjacent communities (Andrade and Rhodes 2012) and caused eviction and dispossession of local people (West et al 2006). Such outcomes have often occurred without the provision of land, access to alternative sources of resources, or creation of viable alternative livelihood strategies (West et al 2006; Lele et al 2010). This intensifies sustainable development challenges in such landscapes, requiring natural resource management outside of PAs to support both livelihoods and conservation goals
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