Platforms for learning: experiences with adaptive learning in Nepal's Community Forestry Programme

Despite the overall success of community forestry in Nepal, local forest user groups still face problems relating to accountability and responsiveness to stakeholders, intra- and intergroup conflict management, and establishment of equitable relationships with outside organizations. As a result, several attempts are now being made to build stronger multi-stakeholder partnerships within and among forest user groups. Using a case study material, I describe three different approaches to involving multiple stakeholders, ranging on a continuum from an entirely self- evolved forest user group network, to a self-monitored forest user group facilitated by an externally funded project, to an entirely outside-initiated workshop for networking stakeholders. Case material is drawn from my experience of working with the Nepal/United Kingdom Community Forestry Project. I analyse the opportunities and limitations of each approach and suggest which factors are most important for building effective platformsfor institutional learning that will lead to improved multistakeholder participation and empowerment in community forestry.