The chapter analyses forest degradation in Nepal, where the rate of deforestation is now proceeding at 25% per decade. The cause of degradation is attributed to a combination of flawed forest policies, population pressure, and a fragile environment. Drawing on work as an anthropologist for a community forestry programme in Nepal, the most hopeful management options identified are based on incorporation of indigenous management techniques. This can be achieved through a method of village dialogue that solicits the knowledge of local leaders and farmers, local organizations, and traditional rules regulating forest use, in the planning of forestry programmes. Considerable detail is provided on local management techniques and on the ethnographic method by which they can be discovered and incorporated.