Browsing by Author "Balooni, Kulbhushan"

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Change We Can Believe in? Reviewing Studies on the Conservation Impact of Popular Participation in Forest Management
(2009) Lund, Jens Friis; Balooni, Kulbhushan; Casse, Thorkil
"This article presents a review of methods in 60 empirical studies on forest conservation impact of popular participation in forest management. The review illustrates a high degree of variance in methods among the studies, and shows that a majority of the studies could benefit from a stronger focus on one or more of the following three areas: (i) the empirical verification and characterisation of popular participation as it exists on the ground, (ii) the indicators of impact and the method used to assess them, and (iii) the disentanglement of the effect of popular participation from other developments in the study area that may impact on forest condition. The variation in methods inhibits comparisons and meta-analyses, as well as questions the basis on which policy recommendations on popular participation in forest management are made. Based on the review, we provide recommendations for future evaluations of the conservation impact of popular participation in forest management."
Curse or Blessing? Local Elites in Joint Forest Management in India’s Shiwaliks
(2010) Balooni, Kulbhushan; Lund, Jens Friis; Kumar, Chetan; Inoue, Makoto
"This article suggests that local elites play an instrumental role – either with positive or negative consequences – in shaping struggles for power over processes and outcomes of participatory forest management interventions, when implemented in communities characterized by social hierarchies. We show how the contrasting outcomes of joint forest management in two case study villages cannot be attributed to institutional reform, but appear to be caused largely by differences in the role assumed by local elites. The evidence indicates that institutional reform itself does not guarantee changes in the actual management of natural resources. Rather, vested interests at the local level and among State actors may continue to shape events while working within or beyond the new institutional landscape. On the basis of the results of our case studies, the article poses the hypothesis that a network theory of social capital could be a useful way of analyzing such diverse outcomes of similar institutional reforms implemented in relatively similar communities. We conclude by arguing that attempts at institutional reform at the level of the community in hierarchical societies should proceed with modest expectations, and an eye for the incentives facing local elites and the implementing and facilitating State actors."
Economics of Farm Forestry: A Case Study in Shankerpura Village, Distict Panchmahal, Gujarat
(1994) Balooni, Kulbhushan; Singh, Katar
"Farm forestry is an important component of social forestry programmes that are now underway in India. Economics of farm forestry varies from region to region and from farm to farm within a region depending upon a number of factors. This paper explores the economics of farm forestry in a tribal village in Gujarat. Net Present value, Benefit-cost Ratio, and Financial Internal Rate of Return are used as indicators of financial viability of farm forestry. Farm forestry was found to be financially viable and ecologically sound use of marginal (degraded) land. It transformed the entire village economy from a backward one to a prosperous one and the landscape from desolate to green."
Emerging 'Authorized Neighborhood Associations' and Changing Communal (Iriai) Forest Ownership in Japan
(2008) Yamashita, U.; Balooni, Kulbhushan; Inoue, Makoto
"In rural Japan, people have collectively managed local forest resources since time immemorial using the traditional 'Iriai' (communal) system. Iriai forests have been changing in terms of use and ownership patterns, and have also declined, due to a series of new forest policies and rapid economic growth that caused the boom and subsequent depression of domestic forestry. In recent years, changes in Iriai forest ownership have been taking place. One cause is the emergence of Authorized Neighborhood Associations introduced under the revised Local Autonomy Law (1991) independent of forest policies. This study analyzes the effects of emerging multi-functional Authorized Neighborhood Associations on collectively owned forests in Japan. First we have undertaken institutional and policy analysis of the formally established Authorized Neighborhood Associations, the government sponsored Forest Producers' Cooperatives and the traditional Iriai system. Thereafter we have provided evidence from case studies conducted in Nagano Prefecture in Japan. This study reveals that the emergence of the Authorized Neighborhood Association institution in Japan has helped to clarify registration of forestland ownership. The Authorized Neighborhood Association institution is also emerging as an alternative to Forest Producers' Cooperatives, which have lost significance in today's forestry market in Japan. Authorized Neighborhood Associations ignore Iriai rights and hence the problems associated with the rights remain. There are also attempts by the Iriai rights-holders to avoid such conflicts, particularly, those arising from the arrival of new settlers. The government of Japan needs to recognize the growing influence of Authorized Neighborhood Associations in the forestry sector and to formulate appropriate forest policies to deal with this new situation. There is also a need to review the present relevance of the Forest Producers' Cooperatives. In view of declining Iriai forests in Japan, it is important for local people to retain their traditional forest rights without too many transaction costs or complex regulations."
Managing Village Plantations through Tree Growers' Co-operatives: Emerging Issues and Policy Implications
(1998) Balooni, Kulbhushan; Ballabh, Vishwa
"This paper seeks to examine the issues emerging from the crafting of institutional arrangements for the management of village common lands. This has been done by analysing six Tree Growers' Co-operative Societies (TGCSs), which are contemporary institutions, formed under the aegis of the National Tree Growers' Co- operative Federation (NTGCF). These TGCSs are involved in the rehabilitation and management of degraded village common lands. "The analysis of the sample TGCSs revealed that the various issues confronted in the management of plantations on village common lands are: encroachment of plantation site; distribution of benefits accruing from the new plantations among members and between members and non-members and geographical configuration hamlets and plantation site. It was found that the formation of TGCSs is hampered by the problems in acquiring degraded revenue village common lands. The analysis of the sample TGCSs corroborates that performance of a TGCS is affected by geographical configuration of forest users from the plantation. These issues are not only related to TGCSs but also to Joint Forest Management (JMF) Programmes implemented in various parts of India. The paper argues that there is a need to clearly define the role of implementing agency and the government agencies. It also argues that the TGCS should be provided more flexibility to tackle these issues and the implementing agencies and Forest Departments should play a facilitating role by removing the obstacles in the way of formation of TGCS."
Perception-Based Methods to Evaluate Conservation Impact in Forests Managed Through Popular Participation
(2010) Lund, Jens Friis; Balooni, Kulbhushan; Puri, Lila
"We reviewed construct validity in perception-based methods assessing status and/or trend of forest condition as applied in 19 empirical studies that evaluated the conservation impact of popular participation in forest management. Perception-based methods focus on eliciting peoples’ assessment of the status and/or trend in forest condition or indicators of forest condition through interviews, surveys, or participatory rural appraisal techniques. We found that individual studies generally did not attend to the issue of construct validity in relation to each particular approach to perception-based assessment of status and/or trend in forest condition. Furthermore, the studies provided very little documentation of the construct validity of the perception-based methods as applied to assessments of forest condition in the specific context of popular participation in forest management. This scarcity of evidence implies that any support for the construct validity of these methods must be found outside the literature in which it was applied. A quick review of the literature on local assessments, monitoring, and local ecological knowledge supports the construct validity of such approaches as applied in various contexts; however, we argue that this support cannot be directly transferred to the context of popular participation in forest management. Accordingly, we conclude that there is a need for research to refine and validate perception-based methods as applied in the specific context of popular participation in forest management."
Role of NABARD in Financing Social Forestry Programmes Including Afforestation of Wastelands in India
(1994) Balooni, Kulbhushan; Singh, Katar
"Afforestation of wastelands requires massive investment of funds that is beyond the reach of most of the owners of such lands. The budgetary allocations of the Government of India and State Governments also are not sufficient to meet the need. A lot of institutional credit is, therefore, needed for the purpose. Duly recognizing the need for institutional credit, the National Bank provides refinance facilities to individuals undertaking forestry activities. This is done under a number of different schemes. The number of social forestry schemes refinanced by the National Bank has been increasing at a very high rate. However, social forestry schemes constitute only 0.61 percent of the total number of schemes sanctioned and account for only 1.64 percent of the cumulative disbursements made by the National Bank up to 1992 under schematic lending. A number of factors have been identified as constraints. In particular, government policies are decelerating the progress of development programmes in the forestry sector. Unless these constraints are overcome, the National Bank cannot play any effective role in providing refinance to developmental programmes undertaken in the forestry sector in the Eighth Five Year Plan."
When is Decentralization in Forest Management a Success and when is it a Failure? Case Studies from the Philippines
(2008) Balooni, Kulbhushan; Pulhin, Juan M.; Inoue, Makoto
"The decentralization reforms and political conditions in the Philippines present an ideal environment for forest management by recognizing the land entitlements of upland and indigenous communities and promoting the involvement of local government units. To grasp the present state of decentralization in the forestry sector in the Philippines, this study draws on case studies conducted in Nueva Vizcaya Province in assessing whether current conditions policies, institutions, and programs are conducive to effective decentralization. It attempts to answer a broader question: when is decentralization a success and when is it a failure? These case studies represent a mix of successes and failures that are of interest from a policy viewpoint. The study reveals that there are grass roots realities that slow or cause the failure of decentralization initiatives. The high number of actors and stakeholders affect the pace of decentralization reforms and make it difficult to assign or identify accountability. Some of the reasons for the failure were conflicting positions of institutions during the project planning, peoples organizations being scattered over a large area, ineffective coordination of peoples organizations, overlapping administration and forest management boundaries, and the politicization of local institutions. The study shows that decentralization reforms require highly capable community organizations and self-management capacity. It was found that a mix of site-specific interventions and community endeavors that focus on securing local livelihoods has led to some success. This is a strategy that helps decentralization reforms."