FRST 270: Community Forests and Community Forestry
Faculty of Forestry, UBC
Winter 2014 Term 1
Course Syllabus
3 credit hours, MWF 1400-1500 hours
Monday and Wednesday: Room 260, MacMillan, 2357 Main Mall
Friday: Room 101, Hugh Dempster Pavilion, 6245 Agronomy Road
Dr Janette Bulkan
Room 2021 – 2424 Main Mall, Forest Sciences Centre
Phone: 604-822-8089
Email: janette.bulkan@ubc.ca
Office hours:
Mondays and Wednesdays: 1500-1700 hours
TA: Aneeta Gauchan
Email: aneeta.gauchan@alumni.ubc.ca
Course Description
An introduction to the history and evolution of community forestry globally. Students will analyze forms of tenure, governance and power structures in a range of case studies, and the implications of these processes for the relative success or failure of specific examples of community forestry. Students will consider examples of co-management with different actors for a range of outcomes. Students will also explore the linkages between community forestry and national and international networks. We will review the current environmental politics of land use, examining issues such as common pool resources, customary law, and indigenous environmental knowledge in relation to traditional natural resource management and community forestry.
Students will gain understanding and appreciation of the local-to-international, and vice-versa, driving forces for resource management, and ecological change in community forestry. We will consider how evolution in national and international environmental politics shapes the ways in which indigenous and forest-dependent people(s) present themselves to the dominant cultures, and how such re-envisioning in turn contributes to political evolution.
The aim is to stimulate creative thinking about the construction and uses of community forestry to local communities and their forests, and to the range of governmental and non-governmental institutions with which they interact. This course will enable students to evaluate the constraints faced by indigenous and forest-dependent communities, and the challenges and opportunities opened for them by (re)engagement in community forestry.
Pre-requisites
No formal pre-requisites for taking this course.
Learning Objectives
- Students will be able to describe and analyze examples of community forestry arrangements from around the world, as well as the historical context of their emergence.
- Students will be able to evaluate distinct tenure/property arrangements, and levels of community participation and types of powers devolved to local forest users in community forestry.
- Students will be able to identify challenges and opportunities faced by communities in managing local forests and maintaining and growing small forest-related enterprises, and strategies to overcome the challenges.
- Students will understand how to apply their knowledge of institutions (rules and regulations) to a variety of case studies. The required analytical paper will allow the student to grapple in more depth with a self-chosen topic and to integrate the taught skills by explaining how the student would deal with the problem(s) in the topic.
Course format:
The course will use a combination of interactive lectures, and blended learning through structured blog postings on UBC Connect.
Textbooks
Bullock, R.C.L. and K.S. Hanna (2012) Community Forestry: local values, conflict and forest governance. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press [available online through the ‘Library’ tab on the course’s Connect site.].
Menzies, N. K. (2007) Our Forest, Your Ecosystem, Their Timber: Communities, Conservation, and the State in Community-based Forest Management. New York: Columbia University Press.
All other readings can be accessed through the ‘Library’ tab on the course’s Connect site.
Many of the examples of community forestry in the following book, available as an e-book, can be further explored in your term paper:
Borrini-Feyerabend, G., Pimbert, M. P., Farvar, M. T., Kothari, A. and Y. Renard (2004) Sharing power: A global guide to collaborative management of natural resources. London: Earthscan.
Grading and Evaluation
Course evaluation will be based on five primary components:
- A written question or comment on Connect related to the week’s lectures or readings on each of the ten dates specified in the syllabus. Each post submitted by deadline will be assigned half a point. Participation in each of the discussion sessions on the days following the posts will be assigned half a point.
- A one-page Commentary, based on the assigned readings on a date of your choice. In the commentary, you will summarize some key points of the readings. You can also offer comments, raise questions, suggest further lines of enquiry, etc., with the aim of stimulating class discussion. Commentaries must be posted to UBC Connect 24 hours in advance of the class session. All students will be encouraged to participate in the discussions, online and in class.
- Mid-term examination, with short-essay questions.
- An analytical paper (approximately 10 pages double spaced) applying concepts learned in class to evaluate a specific to evaluate a community forestry case study or the practice of community forestry in a named country. The paper will be written in three stages. Preliminary ideas should be discussed with the instructor during office hours by the end of the fourth week of the term. The structure of the paper and an annotated literature review will be submitted by 1 November. The final paper is due on 15 November. Guidelines on format will be distributed.
- Final examination, with short-essay questions.
Grade breakdown
10% Class participation – blog postings (5%), class participation (5%)
5% Written commentary and class presentation
20% Mid-term examination
5% Draft Abstract and structure for term paper
5% Annotated literature review for term paper
5% Oral presentation on term paper
25% Term paper
25% Final examination
Week by week – Summary
Week 1 – Introduction to community forestry
Week 2 – Forms of tenure in community forestry
Week 3 – Introduction to common property
Week 4 – Networks, intermediary and representative organizations
Week 5 – Community forestry in Western Europe
Week 6 – The ejidos of Mexico
Week 7 – Power, equity and rights
Week 8 – Joint Forest Management in India
Week 9 – Community forestry in Canada
Week 10 – Governance issues in community forestry
Week 11–Rhetoric and reality
Week 12–Community forestry and forest certification
Week 13– Student presentations and Wrap-up
Week 1 – Introduction to community forestry
Wednesday September 3
►Introductory class
Introductions and syllabus review
Friday September 5
► Introduction to community forestry
Week 2 – Forms of tenure in community forestry
Monday September 8
► Defining community, forests, and forestry
Reading: Agrawal, A., and Gibson, C. (1999) Enchantment and disenchantment: the role of community in natural resource conservation. World Development, 27(4): 629-649.
Wednesday, September 10
Reading: Bullock, R.C.L. and K.S. Hanna (2012) ‘Defining concepts and spaces for the re-emergence of community forestry’, Community Forestry: local values, conflict and forest governance, pp. 1-22. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Friday, September 12
►Discussion session
Week 3 – Introduction to common property
Monday September 15
Reading: McKean, Margaret A. (2000) ‘Common property: What is it, what is it good for, and what makes it work?’ People and Forests: Communities, Institutions and Governments. C. C. Gibson, M. A. McKean, and E. Ostrom, eds. pp. 27-55. Cambridge, Massachusetts: MIT Press.
Wednesday, September 17
► Case study: NTFP harvesting in Yunnan Province, China
Reading: Menzies, N. K. (2007) Chapter 1: ‘Introduction’; Chapter 2: ‘Naidu Village, Yunnan Province, China,’ Our Forest, Your Ecosystem, Their Timber: Communities, Conservation, and the State in Community-based Forest Management, pp. 1–29. New York: Columbia University Press.
Thursday: post a question or comment arising from readings or lectures on Connect
Friday, September 19
►Discussion session
The following questions are intended to help guide your reading:
- What factors sustain social cohesion in Naidu Village?
- What are the risks in the concentration on a valuable non-timber forest product?
Week 4 – Networks, intermediary and representative organizations
Monday September 22
Reading: Menzies, N. K. (2007) Chapter 3: ‘Jozani Forest, Ngezi Forest, and Misali Island, Zanzibar,’ Our Forest, Your Ecosystem, Their Timber: Communities, Conservation, and the State in Community-based Forest Management, pp. 30–49. New York: Columbia University Press.
Wednesday, September 24
Reading: Menzies, N. K. (2007) Chapter 4: ‘The Varzea Forests of Mazagao, Amapa State, Brazil’, Our Forest, Your Ecosystem, Their Timber: Communities, Conservation, and the State in Community-based Forest Management, pp. 50–68. New York: Columbia University Press.
Thursday: post a question or comment arising from readings or lectures on Connect
Friday, September 26
►Review and discussion session
The following questions are intended to help guide your reading:
- What features distinguish customary law from statutory/common law?
- How does a formal legal system of elected local government compare with decision-making in (a) hierarchical; and (b) egalitarian societies?
Week 5 – Community forestry in Western Europe
Monday, September 29
► Introduction
Reading: Jeanrenaud, Sally (2001) Communities and Forest Management in Western Europe: A Regional Profile of the Working Group on Community Involvement in Forest Management, pp. 1-27. Gland, Switzerland: World Conservation Union.
Wednesday, October 1
Guest lecture (tentative): ‘Family forests in Finland’ – Jorma Neuvonen, Director, Special Projects, Faculty of Forestry, UBC
Reading: Carlsson, L. (1999) ‘Still Going Strong, Community Forests in Sweden’, Forestry 72(1): 11–26.
Thursday: post a question or comment arising from readings or lectures on Connect
Friday, October 3
►Review and discussion session
Week 6 – The ejidos of Mexico
Monday, October 6
Readings: Bray, David Barton, Leticia Merino-Perez, Patricia Negreros-Castillo, Gerardo Segura-Warnholtz, Juan Manuel Torres-Rojo, and Henricus F.M. Vester (2003) ‘Mexico’s Community-Managed Forests as a Global Model for Sustainable Landscapes,’ Conservation Biology 17(3): 672-677.
Snook, L.K. et al (2003) ‘Managing Natural Forests for Sustainable Harvests of Mahogany (Swietenia macrophylla): Experiences in Mexico’s Community Forests’, Unasylva 54:214 – 215.
Wednesday, October 8
► Resource theft in community forestry logging
Reading: Klooster, D. (2000) ‘Community Forestry and Tree Theft in Mexico: Resistance or Complicity in Conservation?’ Development and Change 31(1): 281–305.
Thursday: post a question or comment arising from readings or lectures on Connect
Friday, October 10
►Review and discussion session
Due: One paragraph on the proposed topic of your term paper
Week 7 – Power, equity and rights
Monday, October 13
►Thanksgiving – holiday
Wednesday, October 15
Review session
Friday, October 17
Mid-term examination
Week 8 – Community forestry in British Columbia, Canada
Monday, October 20
Reading: Bullock, R.C.L. and K.S. Hanna (2012) ‘A “watershed” case for community forestry in British Columbia’s interior: the Creston Valley Forest Corporation, Community Forestry: local values, conflict and forest governance, pp. 82-99. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Tuesday: post a question for our guest lecturers arising from reading or lecture on Connect
Wednesday, October 22
►Guest lectures: Susan Mulkey, Manger, Communication and Extension, B.C. Community Forest Association and Ken Day, Manager, UBC Alex Fraser Research Forest
Friday, October 24
Reading: Bullock, R.C.L. and K.S. Hanna (2012) ‘Contested forests and transition in two Gulf Island communities’, Community Forestry: local values, conflict and forest governance, pp. 100-25. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Week 9 – Governance issues in community forestry
Monday, October 27
Review of mid-term examination
Wednesday, October 29
Reading: Ribot, Jesse. 2009. ‘Authority over forests: empowerment and subordination in Senegal’s democratic decentralization,’ Development and Change 40(1): 105-29.
Thursday: post a question or comment arising from readings or lectures on Connect
Friday, October 31
Film: Weex Dunx and the Quota: the plucking of local democracy in Senegal.
Due: Abstract, structure and annotated literature review for term paper
Week 10 – Joint Forest Management in India
Monday, November 3
Reading: Blaikie, Piers, Oliver Springate-Baginski, Ajit Banerjee, Binod Bhatta, Sushil Saigal, and Madhu Sarin (2007) ‘Actors and their narratives in participatory forest management. Forests, people and power: the political ecology of reform in South Asia. O. Springate-Baginski and P. Blaikie, eds. pp. 92-115. London, UK: Earthscan Publications Ltd.
Wednesday, November 5
Reading: Banerjee, Ajit (2007) ‘Joint Forest Management in West Bengal’, Forests, people and power: the political ecology of reform in South Asia. O. Springate-Baginski and P. Blaikie, eds. pp. 221-260. London, UK: Earthscan Publications Ltd.
Thursday: post a question or comment arising from readings or lectures on Connect
Friday, November 7
►Film on Joint Forest Management in West Bengal
Week 11 – Rhetoric vs reality
Monday, November 10
Reading: Menzies, N. K. (2007) Chapter 5: ‘Kangra Valley, Himachal Pradesh, India’. Our Forest, Your Ecosystem, Their Timber: Communities, Conservation, and the State in Community-based Forest Management, pp. 69–86. New York: Columbia University Press.
Wednesday, November 12
Reading: Menzies, N. K. (2007) Chapter 6: ‘The Community Narrative of Forest Loss and Degradation,’ Our Forest, Your Ecosystem, Their Timber: Communities, Conservation, and the State in Community-based Forest Management, pp. 87–99. New York: Columbia University Press.
Thursday: post a question or comment arising from readings or lectures on Connect
Friday, November 14
Review and discussion session
Week 12 – Community forestry and forest certification
Monday, November 17
Reading: Jeanrenaud, Sally (2001) ‘Saami Reindeer Herders: Losing Traditional Grazing Rights in Swedish Forests’, Part V: Case Studies in Community Involvement in Forest Management in Europe. Communities and Forest Management in Western Europe: A Regional Profile of the Working Group on Community Involvement in Forest Management, pp. 83–87
Review
FSC Sweden (2010) Swedish FSC Standard for Forest Certification, including SLIMF indicators. V2-1 050510.
Wednesday, November 19
Reading: Menzies, N. K. (2007) Chapter 7: ‘Invoking the Community, ‘Our Forest, Your Ecosystem, Their Timber: Communities, Conservation, and the State in Community-based Forest Management, pp. 100–122. New York: Columbia University Press.
Thursday: post a question or comment arising from readings or lectures on Connect
Friday, November 21
Review and discussion session
►Term paper due
Week 13 – Wrap-up
Monday, November 24
Reading: Menzies, N. K. (2007) Chapter 8: ‘The Capacity to Manage,’ Our Forest, Your Ecosystem, Their Timber: Communities, Conservation, and the State in Community-based Forest Management, pp. 123–151. New York.
Wednesday, November 26
► Presentations and discussions of student papers
Thursday: post a question or comment arising from readings or lectures on Connect
Friday, November 28
►Wrap-up: how well do the case studies and other readings support our initial list of global requisites for successful and sustainable community forestry? What factors may be situation-specific rather than global? What other requisites should be added?
► Presentations and discussions of student papers