Community Forestry International Workshop

International Community Forestry Workshop, 2009, will be held in Pokhara, Nepal from 15-18th September 2009. The theme of the workshop is: “Thinking globally –Acting Locally: Community Forestry in the International Arena”.

This will be the first International Community Forestry Workshop ever held in Nepal. The organising committees are already hard at work developing an exciting programme. With about 150 participants expected, the eyes of the world will be on Pokhara and on Nepal in September 2009. Be a part of the Community Forestry International Workshop, and help us ensure that it has a lasting impact throughout Asia, and globally.

The Community Forestry International Workshop is an ideal opportunity to meet new colleagues and to learn from the experiences of others engaged at local, national and international levels in community forestry. The workshop theme reminds us of the responsibility we have to take both individual and collective action on issues that affect the whole globe. The workshop will be of interest for scientists, researchers, people utilising natural resources, other civil society leaders and professionals working in the field of participatory forestry.

The workshop theme emphasises the need for urgency in the worldwide response to community rights, poverty alleviation, and climate change and for action on the part of all stakeholders at the global, national, regional and local levels. It serves as a rallying call, reminding us that it is only through individual and collective action that we can effectively tackle climate change, address poverty and establish the democratic rights of local communities to sustainably use their natural resources across the world. It is also an important reminder that action on climate change does not exist in a vacuum. Strengthening community forestry systems and addressing the underlying social injustice that contributes to forest degradation and the vulnerability of poor people – such as unsustainable economic growth, poverty, gender inequality, weak governance and social exclusion – are all essential strategies in the international response to addressing climate change and natural resource scarcity.

Broad Objectives

• To share and present Nepal’s progress in Community Forestry with a wider international audience – as an opportunity for Nepal to highlight it’s achievements for others to learn from these.
• To share wider international ideas and experiences key themes that can contribute to the future direction of Community Forestry in Nepal and internationally

Themes

The workshop has four major themes.

1. State and Community Partnerships in Community Forestry

GUIDING QUESTION: How are state-community partnerships evolving and what lessons can be learnt?

• Who are the key partners in community forestry and what are their respective roles and relationships?
• How are the various roles in community forestry defined and what responsibilities go with them?
• What governance models are there for community forestry and what roles do the community, local government, NGOs, government forestry agencies and the private sector play in these?

GUIDING QUESTION: What are the key processes in community forestry and how are these evolving?

• What are the processes for ensuring checks and balances in community forestry between different actors?
• What are the processes for crafting the necessary enabling environment and policies that contribute to sustaining community forestry?
• What are the processes for monitoring and assessing the sustainable impacts of community forestry?

2. Community Forestry, Climate Change and Environmental Services

GUIDING QUESTION: To what extent is community forestry contributing to environmental services, and what potential exists for linking community forestry with the international climate change agenda?

• What have been the experiences in community forestry of systems for payment for environmental services?
• How are community forests coping, adapting and responding to changing climates in different regions?
• What have been the experiences of community forestry and its contribution to biodiversity conservation?

3. Community Forestry, Social Inclusion and Democratic Governance 

GUIDING QUESTION: What are the achievements and continuing challenges regarding inclusive, equitable and democratic governance in community forestry, and what lessons can be learnt for the wider forestry sector from this?

• How successfully have the ‘voiceless’ been engaged in community forestry as participants, beneficiaries and partners?
• What mechanisms and processes work in favour of marginalised groups?

GUIDING QUESTION: To what extent has community forestry become a wider social movement? Is this something that should be enhanced and supported?

• What learning and successes from community forestry can be applied outside the forestry sector?
• What has been the effect of community group networking and its influence on democratic governance?

4. Community Forestry and Economic Development

GUIDING QUESTION: How have community, private and state institutions worked together to realise the economic potential of community forestry and what have been the challenges in this?

• How is community forestry contributing to sustainable and inclusive economic development at both household and national levels – both inside and outside the forestry sector?
• How has community forestry contributed to moving households out of poverty?
• What are the factors that enable community forestry to move towards commercial management of forest resources and establishment of forest based enterprises?

Outputs

• There will be a published document/report consisting of all the prepared papers and workshop resolutions. Participants will receive a copy of this.
• Published papers will also be disseminated on-line.
• Selected papers will be published in recognised, per reviewed journals. 

Key Dates

• 10 April 2009 - Registrations open. 
• 15 May 2009 - Accommodation bookings open. Optional field visit bookings open
• 15 August 2009 - Stall, exhibition and poster registration ends. 
• 15 - 18 September 2009 - Workshop
• 19-20 September 2009 - Optional Field visits

More information at: www.communityforestryworkshop.com.np