Community Forestry and Forest and Landscape Restoration in Developing Countries: Learning from the Field

A special issue of Forests (ISSN 1999-4907). This special issue belongs to the section "Forest Ecology and Management".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (24 November 2023) | Viewed by 1573

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
1. PARTNERS Restoration Network, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
2. School of Environmental Studies, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada
Interests: natural resource management; ecosystem ecology; conservation; invasive species
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In response to unprecedented need and global commitments, practitioners, NGOs, and policy makers are seeking ways to scale up restoration over vast areas. Forest and Landscape Restoration (FLR) is an approach that provides benefits to people and nature by choosing from a basket of restoration options, including agroforestry, natural regeneration, tree planting for restoration, and tree planting for harvest. Examples from around the world suggest the most effective restoration projects (1) provide tangible benefits and (2) actively engage local communities in planning, leading and carrying out restoration, with appropriate support (technical, educational, and financial) from implementers. However, the field still grapples with how to implement FLR: how to engage communities, govern and implement restoration, and manage projects autonomously in the long term. Community forestry could play a significant role in this. As a field, community forestry has been tackling how to devolve resource control to local people to achieve both economic and ecological benefits, a problem currently faced by FLR practitioners. As a practice, community forests and forestry could be a key benefit-producing component of an FLR program as these benefits are concrete and tangible.

The goal of this Special Issue is to explore the potential of community forestry in FLR, both as a part of an FLR program and as a field that could inform restoration efforts. What does this look like on the ground? What is the potential of community forestry to contribute to FLR? What are the keys to successful, lasting restoration that benefits both people and forests? This SI seeks papers that address these topics through rigorously researched and documented case examples from around the world. Empirical work or reviews are also welcome. We invite papers from a range of fields and disciplines; these can focus on ecological, social, and/or economic factors, but should attempt to explore all three to some degree (especially case studies). Additional guidance will be provided for case study write-ups.

Dr. Sarah Jane Wilson
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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Keywords

  • forest and landscape restoration (FLR)
  • community forestry
  • rewilding
  • agroforestry
  • silvopastoral systems
  • participatory governance
  • rural livelihoods

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

13 pages, 1962 KiB  
Article
Exploring the Willingness of Chinese Urban Dwellers to Support Community Gardening: A Case Study of Wuhan, China
by Qijiao Xie, Meng Ke and Guan’ao Chen
Forests 2024, 15(2), 280; https://doi.org/10.3390/f15020280 - 1 Feb 2024
Viewed by 666
Abstract
As a new project associated with urban agriculture and community forestry in China, developing community gardens has been a concern of urban planners and managers. However, the response of urban residents to this project is still unknown, creating an awareness gap between communities [...] Read more.
As a new project associated with urban agriculture and community forestry in China, developing community gardens has been a concern of urban planners and managers. However, the response of urban residents to this project is still unknown, creating an awareness gap between communities and policy makers. This gap limits the successful implementation of the project. A combined method of on-site and online questionnaire was performed in eight sample residential areas in Wuhan. Results showed that the majority of the 496 respondents had favorable views, although the specific willingness varied. Lack of awareness about community gardens was considered the biggest obstacle restricting residents’ willingness, accounting for 69.15%. Other factors included confused relationships with neighbors (66.13%), imperfect policies (55.44%), and high planting costs (41.94%). The local government was highly expected to plan more land for agriculture use by 76.61% of the respondents. In addition, the respondents desired the government to conduct training on cultivating technologies (58.67%), address possible conflicts (57.46%), supply seeds and fertilizer (54.23%), and provide guidance in processing food products (34.48%). These findings will help local governments and managers draft scientific proposals closely related to the public’s perspectives in implementing community gardens in urban areas and provide informative references for other cities. Full article
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11 pages, 1793 KiB  
Article
Early Spring Broadleaved Weed Control during Seedling Dormancy in Regenerated Pedunculate Oak Forests
by Verica Vasic, Milutin Djilas, Branislav Kovacevic, Sreten Vasic, Leopold Poljaković-Pajnik, Predrag Pap and Sasa Orlovic
Forests 2023, 14(12), 2286; https://doi.org/10.3390/f14122286 - 22 Nov 2023
Viewed by 629
Abstract
In regenerated oak forests, weeds are present throughout the year, with the ones appearing in early spring representing a major problem. Hence, the aim of this study was to examine herbicides for early spring broadleaved weed control in regenerated oak forests while the [...] Read more.
In regenerated oak forests, weeds are present throughout the year, with the ones appearing in early spring representing a major problem. Hence, the aim of this study was to examine herbicides for early spring broadleaved weed control in regenerated oak forests while the seedlings are in a dormant stage. During 2019 and 2020, two experiments were set up in regenerated pedunculate oak forests with 2- and 3-year-old seedlings, and two herbicides were applied in two doses: fluroxypyr at doses of 360 g a.i. ha−1 and 540 g a.i. ha−1 and clopyralid at doses of 100 g a.i. ha−1 and 120 g a.i. ha−1. Fluroxypyr and clopyralid significantly reduced early spring broadleaved weeds in the regenerated pedunculate oak forests, but both doses of fluroxypyr provided greater control of the presented weeds than the applied doses of clopyralid. Manual weeding reduced broadleaved weeds in the experiments, but that method did not have a long-term effect on the reduction in weeds. The applied doses of the herbicides fluroxypyr and clopyralid did not cause phytotoxicity symptoms in the dormant oak seedlings. All investigated treatments significantly reduced fresh broadleaved weed biomass compared to the control. Fluroxypyr and clopyralid can be successfully used for the control of many early spring broadleaved weeds in regenerated pedunculate oak forests, but 2- and 3-year-old oak seedlings must be in the dormant stage. Full article
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