[List of Publications]

[Anual Report 97 :
Table of Contents]

Forests and People

The time when forests existed independently of humans is long gone. Hardly a square metre of the globe’s forests can now be classified as ‘pristine’ – untouched by human hand or foot. Now, more than ever before, the actions of people have profound and often immediate effects on forests. People influence forests’ productivity, their health, and their very existence.

CIFOR’s interdisciplinary and intersectoral research shows clearly that many underlying causes of deforestation are fundamentally social. Researchers and policy makers have a broad understanding of the physical causes of deforestation, but there is little consensus on the social processes that underlie forest loss. Some causes, however, are widely recognised: human consumption and migration patterns, and government policies are clearly factors in the health of forests.

CIFOR recognises the intimate associations between people and forests, and each of its research themes includes social components.

Of special interest to CIFOR are the communities that exist on the forest margins. Here, people are likely to make their livelihoods from or in the forest. They may cut timber from it, or harvest other products that grow in the forest, or depend on it for their fuelwood or construction materials. They also rely on the forest’s ability to retain, filter and control water.

• Deforestation and Degradation
• Community-based forest management
• The Madagascan experience
• Life on the margins
• Non-timber forest product