268 results
Search Results
Now showing 1 - 10 of 268
Conference Paper Handmade Paper Value-Chain of Nepal: Prospects and Challenges in Growth, Distributional Equity and Conservation(2006) Subedi, Bhishma P.; Binayee, Surya; Gyawali, Sushil"This study examines the access of the actors along the value-chain of handmade paper markets in Nepal. The access has been found to be influenced not only by the existing policy provisions and implementation practices but also other factors including community structure, institutions, technology, finance, markets, knowledge and social relations. The industry has the potential to link thousands of rural poor into a remunerative value-chain providing economic incentives for sustainable harvesting, good governance and equity. The analysis of the growth and dynamics of this industry and existence of various innovative business practices shows a huge potential to improve the access of rural poor to Lokta resource, markets, technology, knowledge and finance, and in turn increase their productivity and income. Specific recommendations are made to improve policy and natural resources management and distributional equity, reduce poverty and promote good governance, while maintaining the growth of the industry."Conference Paper Strengthening Women's Participation through Collective Action for Inclusive Decision Making Processes: Lessons Learned from Two Villages in Jambi Province, Sumatra, Indonesia(2006) Siagian, Yuliana L.; Morgan, Brihannala; Neldysavrino; Yentirizal"In the context of decentralization, community participation becomes a key to the building of a successful learning process. By providing the opportunity for access and control, to both men and women, better decision making processes can be created. This paper presents preliminary research findings from the villages of Sungai Telang and Lubuk Kambing, Jambi Province, that reveal women's experiences of various types of gender inequity. These inequities preclude women from participating effectively in decision making processes for development planning, both within the family and at the village level. "We have been using the Participatory Action Research approach, and working with four groups, two all women, and two all men. In Sungai Telang, there are significant matrilineal tendencies; whereas Lubuk Kambing presents more patrilineal or at least bilateral leanings. In both communities, women are actively involved in day to day natural resource management. A central purpose of our research is to catalyze more effective collective action among these naturally occurring groups. One of our goals is to strengthen community members' capacity to make their aspirations known at the district level. "This paper will examine both people's motivations to engage in collective action, and provide some indicators for the assessment of its effectiveness in these two communities."Conference Paper The Role of Community Based Institutions in Sustainable Management of Forest, Water and Soil: A Case Study of Mount Elgon Ecosystem, Uganda(2006) Kato, Stonewall S.; Okumu, James Okot"This review paper is on the role played by community based institutions in the sustainable management of forest, soil and water in the last two decades at Mount Elgon, Uganda. "The paper explores how the state can create good conditions for community based institutions to participate in natural resource management without itself taking a much active role. The case of Mount Elgon, Uganda is where NGOs and CBOs by default, 'mushroomed' to fill in the gap created by the central government, which had failed to manage the mountain natural resources since 1970. In the early 1990s, the government realized its weakness and put in place good policies and legislation, which made community based institutions to blossom, and without even proper coordination mechanism, yielded a significant positive impact towards the sustainable management of Mount Elgon ecosystem. "The paper evaluates some key indicators used to determine the successes and failures of CBIs. Among them are, the contribution of CBIs to policy and legislative reforms and adherence to good sustainable management principles. The level of capacity building especially in the areas of strengthening of local peoples' rights, negotiation power and self- governance is discussed. Another indicator analyzed is the level of promotion of management of livelihood assets. Also review is level of strengthening financial availability and mechanism towards (un) sustainability. The level of reduction to vulnerability is considered. Promotion of environmental benefits and the contribution by CBIs towards reduction of threats on biodiversity was evaluated "The analysis compared the rich experience of mount Elgon case with related national resource management practices elsewhere. The paper then ends by making some recommendations on the way forward for the management of the ecosystem, which offers good lesson learning for the region and the entire global community."Conference Paper Ecological and Institutional Analysis of Inland Fisheries Resource Management: Productivity in the Case of Tawa Reservoir, India(2006) Jyotishi, Amalendu"Fishing in inland water bodies such as flood plain lakes, river, estuaries and reservoirs, has an important role for rural people. Fish is an important source of protein diet of many households and generate significant income as well as provide employment opportunities. 70 percent of the 0.71 million active fisher folks in India are employed in the inland fisheries and India has a total of 19,370 reservoir units covering an area of 31, 53,366 hectares, hence creates a lot of opportunities for economic development of the rural people. Reservoir fisheries are classic case of Common Pool Resources (CPRS) and hence require comprehensive institutional arrangement that can ensure productivity of the fish resources without compromising with the ecological needs. Therefore, through the case of Tawa reservoir, we are trying to understand the fisheries resource and the production scenario. Tawa reservoir has undergone operation through different management regime, and hence, provides an opportunity to comprehend the performance of these regimes and their implications on fisheries resources. In this paper, our attempt is therefore, to understand the dynamics of the fisheries resource of Tawa reservoir. With the limited available data, we analyse the catch and stocking relationship, predator- prey relationship and also to identify the determinants that influence the productivity of the Tawa reservoir. Based on the time-series data available a model was developed to determine the production possibility of the fish resource in Tawa. Our finding suggests that among different regimes existed in Tawa fisheries management, the cooperative form under Tawa Matsya Sangha (TMS)'s performance is better."Conference Paper Equity, Institutions, and the Environment: Socioeconomic Aspects of Local Forest Governance(2006) Andersson, Krister P.; Agrawal, Arun"Local institutions matter for the relationships between socioeconomic inequalities and forest conditions. Analyzing these relationships in 319 observations from local forest user groups in six countries, we detect no systematic associations between socioeconomic attributes and changing forest conditions. Only when controlling for the presence and performance of local institutions is it possible to discern statistically significant regularities. The fact that we observe systematic differences in these associations depending on the local institutions supports the notion that local institutions have a moderating effect on the relationship between socioeconomic inequalities and ecological sustainability. Socioeconomic inequalities seem to influence ecological sustainability, not directly, but via local institutions that may mitigate, enhance, or even completely cancel out the effect that these end up having on the natural environment."Conference Paper The Use of AHP (the Analytic Hierarchy Process) Method for Irrigation Water Allocation in a Small River basin (Case Study in Tampo River Basin in West Sumatra, Indonesia)(2006) Febriamansyah, Rudi"This paper presents that the water management outcomes in a small river basin are the results of the interaction between the social aspects of water users and the physical aspects of the water resources. The analysis using a cultural ecology perspective to assess the relationship between these two aspects has provided a reasonable rationale to affirm that many social aspects of water users cannot be ignored when deciding or implementing a physical program that may influence the water resources system. Previous experiences have shown that any physical projects in the Tampo basin, West Sumatra, Indonesia have increased the withdraw water at the upstream part and reduce the opportunity for downstream part. As a result, changes in the demand and supply pattern in the basin have created conflict between water users along the river. It is thus clear that an integrated approach in designing and implementing a water resource development and management strategy for the Tampo basin must be used. In this regard, this study has combined the socio-institutional and physical assessment of water resource management in this basin with the AHP method to obtain the most acceptable alternative of irrigation water allocation for all water users along the river course. Since the purpose of this method is to involve the stakeholders in the decision making process, the AHP method has shown its capability to allow the stakeholders to participate in expressing their preferences to compare alternatives. The process of obtaining their preferences is done after the presentation of and discussion about the impact analysis of their proposed alternatives. Besides having the final conclusion of the acceptable water allocation pattern, this study has also collected such comments and suggestions from the spoke-persons in using the AHP. One important constraint in using the AHP is a time consuming process for ordinary small farmers in the case site. Some tricks and shortcut methods are then used to create the process of discussion and value judgments as effective as possible."Conference Paper Access to Forest Resources in the Context of Fast Track Land Reforms: Impacts on Local Level Dynamics: Lessons Drawn from the Zimbabwean Land Reform Programme(2006) Muyengwa, Shylock"The research focused on access to and control of forest resources in former commercial farming areas by communal people in Seke. Primary data were collected from Mhindurwa and Mangwende villages using structured interviews, key informant interviews and observations. Secondary data were collected through documentary review and participation during the 'fire wood week' that was jointly run by the Forestry Commission and the Department of Natural Resources. The results indicate that rules to accessing forest resources have changed following the 'fast track land reform' in Zimbabwe and this has prompted the communal communities to seek alternative fuel sources. The results obtained indicated an interaction of policy options and how these alter local level dynamics, which in turn influence the nature of and management of forest resources."Conference Paper The Roles of Eco-Entrepreneurs in Conserving Common Pool Resources: Wildlife and Natural Areas in Sipadan Island(2006) Alin, James M.; Primus, Datuk Douglas; Razli, Izyanti Awang"With the Government's decision to vacate the island, Sipadan is currently undergoing the process of being gazetted as a Marine Park and later to be listed as World Heritage Site under UNESCO Man and Biosphere Programme. Public debates before the decision were incomplete. The operators were portrayed in mass media as the bad guys who exploited and destroyed Sipadan's common pool resource that is the pristine environment and its terrestrial-marine biodiversity. This oversimplified generalization underestimated one very important fact. The tour (diving) operators were also genuinely concern with what happened to the island. In fact, they had taken many drastic measures (past and present) for conservation. They have very strong incentive to do so their business survival it at stake which is very much dependence on pristine nature and unique biodiversity of Sipadan, Mabul and Kapalai. Examples of such eco-entrepreneurs are Datuk Douglas Primus, Datuk Clement Lee, Robert Loh, Ken Pan, Abdillah family and others. They ventured into the business out of their passion for recreational diving as well as their deep concern for the conservation of marine marvel. But when Sipadan's fame grew, everyone tried to grab a slice of the magical islands for quick cash. So back then, operators had free rein of the island. Many firms ( some illegal operators ) operating from the neighboring islands or from Tawau, Semporna and Lahad Datu usually free ride, add to the seasonal overcrowding making enforcement of quota of visitors very difficult. No one could ask them to leave because no one had the jurisdiction to do so. The swelling visitor numbers and ensuing need for supporting facilities led to environmental strain. Sipadan was simply being loved to death or put simply, become the victim of the tragedy of a common. The government's responded by deciding to vacate the island. Six eco- entrepreneurs located on the island - Borneo Divers, Pulau Sipadan Resort, Sipadan Dive Centre, Syarikat Ramai Benar , Borneo Sea Adventures and PB Borneo Safari and Abdillah Sipadan Paradise were ordered to relocate to the neighboring islands of Mabul and Kapalai. They were not consulted, not offered any compensation and not given ample time to relocate. The reason behind the eviction was to conserve Sipadan's biodiversity. This paper is based on the benefit of hind-sight. We employed rapid appraisal techniques in examine the roles and efforts taken by the eco-entrepreneurs in the past and present towards the conservation of Sipadan (and the neighboring Mabul and Kapalai islands). Our initial findings are; (i) the divers and diving operators helped to deter illegal and destructive fish bombing; (ii) they contributed in slowing down the extinction process of endangered turtle species by pooling resources to buy turtle nests from the traditional collectors."Conference Paper Regulating the Commons in Mauritania: Local Agreements as a Tool for Sustainable Natural Resource Management(2006) Kirsch-Jung, Karl P.; Soeftestad, Lars T."The present situation in Mauritania with regard to management of natural resources is complex. There is tribal law, colonial French law (Code Napoleon) and modern state law, layered on top of each other as it were. These legal codes, in and off themselves, are not necessarily suited to tackle the situation of local natural resource management (NRM) today. In connection with local-level management of the commons, specifically land, relating to and using these different and often contradictory legal codes represents a somewhat bewildering picture. As a result, conflicts between specific rules in these codes at times arise. "In this situation, efforts to achieve sustainable land management have to work within and negotiate the delicate balance between these codes. At the same time, these efforts have to relate to and work with relevant stakeholders, specifically local resource users and public sector and political structures at the national level. One such approach is to establish 'local agreements' (LAs), here understood as constituting a set of regulations drawn up in a participatory manner by as many stakeholders as possible, in order to promote equitable and sustainable NRM. The LA aims to bring together divergent interests and overcome the danger of one stakeholder's interest dominating to the exclusion of others, in particular, vulnerable groups such as transhumant pastoralists. "The paper presents ongoing work on establishing LAs in the south and southeast of Mauritania by GTZ and World Bank. Following an overview of the legal situation and its evolution, the ongoing work is presented, including experiences and outcomes. The analysis discusses related approaches and efforts elsewhere in Sahel, raises some problematic questions on how to increase the effectiveness of LAs, and concludes with lessons for future applications of this approach for regulating commons and achieving sustainable land management."Conference Paper Beyond Economic Efficiency and Towards Coping with Complexity in Biodiversity Conservation(2006) Gatzweiler, Franz W.; Volkmann, Jörg"This paper aims to explain why it is important to move from economic efficiency to complexity-led approaches for the purpose of biodiversity conservation. Economic values of biodiversity are not a sufficient reason for deciding to conserve biodiversity. Achieving economic efficiency requires the internalization of values of biodiversity which are outside the economic system and a rational choice among conservation alternatives in favor of those with higher net benefits. But economic valuation methods are themselves 'value articulating institutions' influencing the outcome of the valuation exercise. As biodiversity conservation confronts us with very complex social-ecological systems, the choice of the 'value articulating institutions' needs to consider their various features and functions. The choice of conserving biodiversity or not can not be made on the grounds of economic valuation alone because that choice itself requires addressing a second-order problem: the choice of a valuation method. Methods are required which help to understand systems' behavior, that are able to bring together multiple stakeholders and initiate deliberative, social processes of choice-making. The choice of valuation and decision making tools needs to match the complex nature of the task. Therefore, the question involved in successful biodiversity conservation is not only which conservation strategy is economically preferred but also which method should be used to articulate and account for people's biodiversity values. This involves a choice of the type of rationality and the type of social process applied in the decision-making process. Institutions and governance structures at all scales are needed to conserve biodiversity. This process begins with the choice of an adequate mix of valuation methods ranging from balancing costs and benefits to processes of awareness building, communication and negotiation. The Vester Sensitivity Model was used to model the socio-ecological system 'coffee forest' with stakeholders in Ethiopia, and facilitate first steps in a participatory and deliberative process towards biodiversity conservation."