The authors examine some of the social and economic impacts of the forestry bias in state land classification. The maintenance of forest production and environmental services has been the justification from the state for forestland classification, but forest land delineation and gazetting has, at times, significantly restricted smallholder land use and land ownership. This paper explores some of the historical background to the creation of”Permanent Forest Estates” in Indonesia, Thailand and the Philippines. The experience with forest area classification and subsequent encroachments suggests that, in many cases, such areas are domains better placed within a less regulated agrarian framework.
Tag: forest policy
The impact of trade and macroeconomic policies on frontier deforestation
The purpose of this lecture note is to summarise different research results about the impact of macro-level factors and “extra-sectoral” policies on tropical forest cover. Specifically, we are interested in the forest margins – i.e. the spatial transition zone between tropical forests and converted land uses. What are the policy factors that accelerate frontier expansion, and which ones tend to slow it down? The main objectives are: a. To learn how different changes related to trade and macroeconomic policies affect the loss of frontier forests, i.e. to understand both the likely direction and weight of these factors in influencing the speed of forest conversion; b. To comprehend trade-offs and synergies between policies for natural-forest conservation and those designed to promote economic development; c. To appreciate these linkages in the light of a few micro- and macro-level examples. A key finding is that what happens to tropical forests is more determined by events outside the forest arena than by what happens inside the forest sector. In other words, the extra-sectoral impacts will often be more important than, for instance, the new forest law, the participatory tree planting project or the environmental education programme that is implemented at the forest margins. That does not necessarily mean that forestry interventions are not effective. What it does mean is that some macroeconomic and extra-forestry factors tend to set the scene for success or failure of the projects and strategies of forest margin stabilisation, so that the promoters of these strategies need to have a realistic vision about the direction and proportions of impacts. In some cases, the macro decision makers should also explicitly take into account how forests are affected before they make their “extra-sectoral”, macro-level choices.
When Policies Problematize the Local: Social-Environmental Justice and Forest Policies in Burkina Faso and Vietnam
We examine social-environmental justice in forest governance by asking who is problematized as drivers of deforestation and forest degradation. We adapt Bacchi’s “What is the problem represented to be” approach to the community forest (CAF) model in Burkina Faso and the Payment for Forest Environmental Services (PFES) in Vietnam and examine the implementation of these policies in specific sites through disaggregated focus group discussions (men, women, youth, ethnic minorities). We delve into the discursive, lived and subjectification effects of the policies’ problematizations, highlighting tensions and contestations relating to forest access and benefits. For both countries, what is left unproblematized in the implicit policy focus on the local is a “communal fix” of indigeneity tied to idealized and collective governance of fixed areas of land and exclusionary processes for those that do not fit the ideal. We argue that market-oriented approach in policies such as CAF and PFES absent of the wider underpinnings of the political and historical forest will only exacerbate social-environmental injustices.
Archetype analysis of forest policies and measures: towards a new typology
Decision makers have access to a large and growing toolbox of policies and measures that can, in theory, contribute to reducing deforestation and forest degradation. Middle-range theories can be formulated to summarize the conditions under which forest policies and measures are effective in halting deforestation and forest degradation. Such a diagnostics approach can, in turn, provide useful information to help decision makers avoid the trap of one-size-fits-all policy solutions and implement well-informed, context-specific policy solutions. A key element in this approach is the construction of a typology of forest policies and measures. Here we develop and apply an archetype analysis of forest policy and measures as a systematic, bottom-up and replicable way to build such a typology. Our empirical approach is based on three key elements: a broad universe of cases of forest policies and measures, a generic theory of change (ToC) of forest policies and measures, and a list of attributes characterizing this theory of change. Overall, we identify and characterize 10 broad types of forest policies. On the hand, these encompass historical solutions aimed at changing producers’ behaviours such as command-and-control policies and economic incentives. On the other, they encompass emerging demand-side policies and policies triggering psychological mechanisms such as social belongingness.
What is the ‘problem’ of gender inequality represented to be in the Swedish forest sector?
Gender equality in natural resource management is a matter of sustainability and democracy for Sweden’s government, however the country’s forest remains a highly gender-segregated sector. We examine how gender inequality is problematized within Swedish forest and rural policy documents using the What’s the problem represented to be? (WPR) approach. We build on previous efforts to investigate gender inequality in the forest sector by expanding the critical analysis to rural development policy. We conduct interviews with forest experts, owners, and practitioners to shed light on where there are gaps within the policy representations and uncover alternative policy options that are presented. Our findings corroborate that gender inequality is represented to be a technical problem, with policy measures aiming to increase the number of women within a forest sector that continues to maintain rigid conceptions about forestry production values. While there are claims of success in the increase of women within the sector in aggregate, there is little change in the numbers of women in decision-making positions. Forest policy relies upon women to bring growth and sustainability to the forest industry, while rural policy expects women to halt rural population decline. Our findings suggest that merely trying to fit more women into a mold that has been shaped for and by inflexible forestry and masculine values is an impediment not only to gender equality but also to the inclusion of other social groups and ideas in the changing rural landscapes of Sweden.
Challenges to smallholder forestry policy reform on a postindustrial logging frontier: lessons from the Amazon estuary
In 2013, policy makers from the Brazilian state of Amapá launched regulatory reforms intended to streamline options to formalize smallholder forest management. This paper reviews that policy reform process and analyses observations from local stakeholders to identify lessons for the promotion of smallholder forestry. In 2014, 2017 and 2021, interviews were conducted with family timber producers and sawmill operators in floodplain communities and regional timber buyers to evaluate the impact of the policy reform on their operations. Interviews with policy makers sought to understand the rationale behind the reform and how the process played out. Although the reform efforts were well intentioned, results illustrate how bureaucratic inertia and complexity obstructed efforts to simplify policy and how policy did not address smallholder needs. While the reforms did not have the intended effect, the case offers lessons for future policy reform efforts.
Understanding Payment for Forest Environmental Services in Vietnam in times of Covid-19: Research methods and guidelines
The Government of Vietnam and donors have launched numerous programmes and policies to support vulnerable communities’ livelihoods, nutrition and agency and to cope COVID-19. Payment for Forest Environmental Services (PFES) has a potential role in contributing to the government policy mix to address Covid-19 impacts.
Between zero-deforestation and zero-tolerance from the state: Navigating strategies of palm oil companies of Indonesia
Since late 2013, Indonesia’s biggest palm oil companies have positioned themselves as strong advocates of zero-deforestation. However, their commitments to zero-deforestation have not always been well-received by the Indonesian government. The government has taken many initiatives to promote sustainable palm oil and to put an end to deforestation, but prefers to do so on its own terms. The palm oil companies have had to organize and frame their zero-deforestation policies vis-a-vis the government strategically. Our research question is: how have the major palm oil companies of Indonesia navigated their zero-deforestation commitment around Indonesian public authorities’ regulatory power? Using the concept of corporate political activity, we distinguish three episodes of corporate zero-deforestation commitment, each characterized by different strategies of companies. We show that palm oil companies have changed the strategies of implementing their zero-deforestation policies from trying to influence government policy to operating in the shadow of hierarchy.
Tools to improve inclusion in multistakeholder forums (MSFs)
Key messages
- Organizers and designers of multistakeholder forums (MSFs) are increasingly seeing the inclusion of women and Indigenous Peoples as both a responsibility and duty. However, in a global survey, practitioners also informed us that they needed tools to help them apply a rights-based framework to their work and improve inclusion in practice.
- Responding to this need, we used our findings to develop a theory of change and two tools to help practitioners focus their inclusion efforts, providing step-by-step instructions on how to apply these tools in an MSF setting, as well as examples.
- Getting it right is the result – a practical guide that draws on lessons learned from the literature and practitioners around the world, to help organizers and designers of MSFs unpack and operationalize the inclusion of women and Indigenous Peoples.
- This infobrief provides an overview of the process behind creating the guide, its key features, and recommendations for next steps.
- Possible areas of future research include lessons learned and best practices from the application and testing of the guide, as well as understanding the success factors and constraints specific to other under-represented groups.
Taking stock of national climate action for forests: 2021 NYDF Assessment report
The original aim of Goal 7 of New York Declaration on Forests (NYDF) has been met: the Paris Agreement confirms forests’ pivotal role in the international climate agenda. But at a time when the protection, restoration, and sustainable management of forests have never been more urgent, global forest loss is in a worrying upward trend. It is still too early to assess country’s progress on their commitments under the Paris Agreement because countries will only report the status of NDC implementation few years from now. In the meantime, we take stock of governments’ existing domestic efforts and policies, and offer recommendations on what governments can do to accelerate forest-based mitigation outcomes.