NWFP Digest-L

No. 10/02

1. Expert Consultation on developingan action programme towards improved bamboo and rattan tradestatistics

From: FAO's NWFP Programme

FAO and the International Network on Bamboo and Rattan(INBAR) are organizing an Expert Consultation that will beheld at FAO HQ in Rome from 4 to 6 December 2002. The aim ofthis Expert Consultation is to improve the visibility ofbamboo and rattan products in international trade statisticsby proposing a set of new and/or improved Harmonized Systemcodes dealing with bamboo and rattan products.Thisinitiative is intended to act as a test case from which wewish to draw lessons for developing better trade statisticsfor other NWFPs.

Several hundreds of millions people worldwide depend onbamboo and rattan for their livelihood. According to INBAR,the world trade in bamboo and rattan is currently estimatedat US$14 billion every year.

However, the huge economic and social importance of thebamboo and rattan sectors, be it at the national or globallevel, is based on estimations and compilations of scattered,often unreliable data or on data that are not even comparableamong countries. Indeed, bamboo and rattan are used for awide variety of products for construction, furniture,papermaking, music instruments, toys or food markets and atvarious levels of processing. For the vast majority of theseuses, no adequate product classification and/or trade codes(Harmonized System) exist. Even when data on production andtrade are recorded in national accounting systems and/or ininternational trade statistics, the majority of bamboo andrattan uses is often grouped together with other products orincluded in the category "any others".

The Common Fund for Commodities has recently added bamboo andrattan to the list of commodities, and with the request thatreliable statistics on production and trade be compiled. Acritical assessment of the present situation and fulleconomic value of bamboo and rattan products would provideresource managers, decision-makers and investors with theessential baseline information for future investmentscenarios; and be a basis for the elaboration of adequatepolicies and mechanisms to guarantee the sustainable andequitable development of the bamboo and rattan sectors.

This joint INBAR/FAO Consultation would provide a neutralforum where representatives of key stakeholders in the bambooand rattan sector and experts in the field of statisticaldata gathering on production and trade could meet to discussand propose a set of Harmonized System trade codes for bambooand rattan products and a plan of action to guide theirimplementation at national and international level for morereliable and transparent production and trade statistics. Themeeting and the subsequent process it will set in motionwould foster further collaboration among key agencies andfacilitate the identification of their respective mandates,activities and responsibilities regarding data gathering onbamboo and rattan.

Expected outputs of the Expert Consultation are:

A set of Harmonized System trade codes for bamboo and rattanproducts; and

A plan of action towards improving bamboo and rattanstatistics at the national and global level, with a programmeof work and with the roles of the different agenciesdiscussed and agreed upon during the meeting, including theidentification of specific action proposals and/or projectsfor submission to interested donors

For more information, please contact:

Mr. Paul Vantomme, Forestry Officer (NWFP),
Forest Products Division,
FAO, Viale delle Terme di Caracalla,
00100 Rome,
Italy
E-mail:[email protected]
www.fao.org/forestry/FOP/FOPW/NWFP/nwfp-e.stm

2. The Overstory -Bamboo

From: FAO's NWFP Programme

Issue #110 of the Overstory features "Bamboo for Development"by Karina N. Quintans. Before the advent of industrializationand the cash economy, bamboo played a significant role in theself-sustaining economies in many nations that are nowgrouped together as developing countries (it still does insome remote parts of these countries yet untouched by moderneconomics). This is hardly surprising, considering thatbamboo is the fastest growing and most useful plant in theworld. Research has proven bamboo's engineering andmechanical qualities, and its aesthetics have never been inquestion.

For more information, please contact: The Overstory[[email protected]]

3. New FAO Publication onNon-Wood Forest Products in Tropical Asia

From: FAO's NWFP Programme

Non-Wood Forest Products in 15 Countries of Tropical Asia:An Overview (ISBN 974-90666-0-X) is a regional study thatpresents an overview of the socio-economic importance of theuse of NWFP in 15 countries of Tropical Asia.

An electronic version is available from FAO's NWFP homepage:www.fao.org/forestry/FOP/FOPW/NWFP/new/nwfp.htm

For hard copies, please contact:

Patrick B. Durst,
Senior Forestry Officer,
FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific,
39 Phra Atit Road,
Bangkok 10200,
Thailand
E-mail:[email protected]

4. Second Expert Meeting onHarmonizing Forest-related Definitions for Use by VariousStakeholders

From: FAO's NWFP Programme

The Second Expert Meeting on Harmonizing Forest-relatedDefinitions for Use by Various Stakeholders took place inRome, Italy, from 10 to 13 September 2002. The full reportincluding the analytical framework and annexes, can be foundat:http://www.fao.org/forestry/fop/fopw/Climate/climate-e.asp

For hard copies, please contact:
Director,
Forest Products Division,
FAO Forestry Department,
Via delle Terme di Caracalla,
00100 Rome (Italy)

5. Gum Arabic Expert VisitsUganda

Source:New Vision(Kampala), 23 October 2002

An expert from Atlantic Gums Corporation in the US, theworld's largest importers of Gum Arabic, is in Uganda toassess the viability of investing in the product. AnthonyNwachukwu, here on the invitation of President YoweriMuseveni, will fly to Karamoja to get samples that will betaken to the US for tests. "Once this test is passed, thencompanies like Coca Cola will be interested in supportingthis project. So you already have a big company willing towork with you," Nwachukwu told a businessmen's meeting at theexport-led growth strategy (ELGS) and African Growth andOpportunity Act (AGOA) country office boardroom in Kampala onMonday.

Gum Arabic is used in the production of sweets, chewing gum,flavours, confectioneries, paints and other industrialproducts. It is cultivated from species of trees,Acaciasenegaland seyal, that are grown solely in sub-SaharanAfrica. It is grown in parts of the north and northeasternUganda. Uganda is trying for the first time to cash in fromthe trade.

Nwachukwu said the main function of the assessment under theproject will be to determine the presence of relevant acaciatrees, the functionality of the species available as per therequirements of the US industry and the availableinfrastructure to support a viable participation in theinternational market.

President Museveni's assistant on AGOA and other traderelated matters, Mrs Susan Muhwezi, will after the Karamojatrip, also take the guest to Lira district in an attempt toexploit the processing of sesame seed (sim sim) that isabundant in northern Uganda. Muhwezi said if the movesucceeds, it would be another leap towards exportdiversification and yet another opportunity to reap from theUS AGOA tariff and quota free policy. She said the projectwill be conducted under the Uganda Gum Arabic AssessmentProject that was signed between the government and theleaders of the US Gum Arabic industry early this year. It isaimed at developing high-grade food quality Gum Arabic forexport to the US.

Nwachukwu said they were trying to diversify their sources ofthe product after Sudan, the main African exporters, wereslapped an embargo by the US government, four years ago. Hesaid this situation had now left Chad at the top, followed byNigeria. "So this situation presents a unique opportunity forUganda. I will be back in January to look at the farms andharvests and go back with the samples for functionalitytesting again," he said. "If everything is through, then thatwill pave way for the beginning of production."

6. Gum Arabic Plantation

Source:This Day(Lagos), 21 October 2002

Sokoto State government has established a 100-ha Gum Arabicplantation at the cost of over N22 million. The plantation,according to the commissioner, was established at Guadumiforestry reserve and aimed at boosting the state's revenuebase.

Alhaji Isa Achida, the commissioner for Agriculture, hasappealed to the rich in the state to establish similarplantations, because the commodity was becoming "thestrongest export commodity of the time".

7. Goldmine in theForest

Source: This Day (Lagos, Nigeria), 21 October 2002http://allafrica.com/environment/

Despite government's commitment to environmental protectionin the country, its tourism content has not been able tocreate jobs and wealth for the teeming unemployed youths inthe local communities. In a recent article inThis Day,Justina Okpanku wrote on the importance of exploiting thecountry's ecotourism potentials for growth

International attention is now focused on achievingsustainable tourism development through the use ofconservation of the ecosystem. This refers to the naturalenvironment of trees, fishes and animals. Nigeria is noexception. The wind of change has encouraged people to planttrees and start to respect the environment. During the WorldTourism Day (WTD) on 27 September 2002, tourism officialsaround the world planted trees, which is synonymous withconservation.

Often, ecotourism managers would tell the rural people "don'tshed trees, but when they go home they cut it to sell. Don'teat monkeys, but anytime they are hungry they still kill theanimals." It appears that the Nigerian elite have beentalking to themselves. The tourism industry has receivedattention at the highest level in Nigeria. Yet, tourism inNigeria is not going the way it should. It is believed thatecotourism can take Nigeria out of its troubled tourismstate. What role can ecotourism play in the pursuit ofsustainable development, economic growth and the integrationof the Nigerian economy to the global economy?

Stakeholders in the leisure and tourism industry around theglobe are proud of the ecotourisn concept. Countries,including those not considered to have an edge in the sectorare jostling to polish their image and highlight theirecotourism potentials. Why? $423 billion was foreign currencyreceipts from international tourism in 1996. This outstrippedexports of petroleum products, motor vehicles,telecommunications, equipment and other products or service.Today, tourism is consolidating its position as the fastestgrowing industry in the world. In fact, statistics from theWorld Tourism Organisation (WTO) in June 2000, showed thatinternational tourist arrivals reached 666 million in 1999,an increase of 4.1 percent over the previous year's. Arrivalsalso increased by 34 million last year.

There are tangible signs to predict better days for thefuture of global tourism but WTO and the United Nationsadvised nations to embrace ecotourism. Secretary-General ofWTO, Francesco Frangialli in his message for the WTD saidthat the 14th General Assembly of WTO did not hesitate indeciding the theme for this year's WTD as: "Ecotourism: theKey to Sustainable Development". Frangialli said that thetheme reflects the "growing recognition by the internationalcommunity of the potential of tourism, and ecotourism inparticular, to contribute to the sustainable developmentprocess.

The development of ecotourism in Nigeria can be traced backto 1889 when the colonial administration established thefirst forest reserve in the then Colony of Lagos. The numberof reserves has increased over the years to include wildlifesanctuaries, communal forests and national parks. The firstnational park in the country was established in 1979. Now,Nigeria can boast of seven national parks which were createdin line with government policy on the preservation of thenatural heritage.

Nigeria does not do enough ecotourism, although every statein the federation, including the Federal Capital Territory,has one form of ecotourism potential or the other.Stakeholders concentrate more on seminars and symposia,business tourism, cultural/religious, and sports tourism. Itis commonplace to have exotic animals poached and hunted forlivelihood. By the 1980s, it was obvious that Nigeria hadlost about 90 per cent of her original tropical rain forestcover to bush burning, logging and other forms ofillegalities in the agricultural sub-sector. Rare monkeys,like rain forest monkeys, chimpanzees and gorillas, tomention a few, which abound across the country are dailyabused. It is for this reason that the WTD sub-theme wastitled: "Ecotourism in Nigeria: Problems And Prospects".

Participants at a seminar organised by the Federation ofTourism Associations of Nigeria (FTAN), in collaboration withthe Nigeria Conservation Foundation in Lekki, Lagos to markthe 23rd WTD, said that Nigeria must join the world and startplaying by its rule or risk lagging behind.

The bottom line therefore is to be more realistic andencourage rural people to stop indiscriminate bush burning,poaching, killing of animals for livelihood, hunting and soon. The dominant question is "What can be done to rise up andoptimise the opportunities inherent in ecotourism in Nigeria?

Back in April, the first specific programme of activities topromote tourism development in sub-Saharan Africa as approvedby the General Assembly during its fourteenth session wasdiscussed by the WTO Commission for Africa during its 38thmeeting in Abuja. High-ranking delegates told governmentofficials including President Olusegun Obasanjo, for example,that training seminars and management for sustainabledevelopment are to be organised for local authorities andtechnicians for effective ecotourism. In fact, there are manyslogans in support of sustainable ecotourism in Africa,including: "Sustainable tourism can be one of the fewdevelopment opportunities for the poor. Let us use it wiselyand soon," and "STEP," an acronym for Sustainable TourismEliminating Poverty". Ecotourism is expected to play animportant role in promoting sustainable development in theentire tourism industry. Put succinctly, ecotourism, whichrepresents rare trees, exotic animals and space create jobsand wealth.

That was the main message implicit in the Quebec Declaration,which summed up the deliberations of more than 1,100delegates who took part in the three-day long WorldEcotourism Summit held in May 2002. The WTO said "The spiritof the declaration is that it recognises the leadership roleof ecotourism as a segment of the tourism market in the bestposition to apply the principles of sustainability. Followingecotourism models, these principles can and should be appliedto the entire tourism sector." This is not all. Governmentshould look into planning, enlightenment, funding,infrastructure development, security, private sectorparticipation among others to enable the people enjoy the newtrend.

Another prominent issue raised at the Summit is the key rolethat small and medium -sized enterprises (SME's) are expectedto play if they are given the opportunity and the necessarytechnical, marketing and financial support. The WTO stressedthe need to involve as many stakeholders as possible in thedifferent phases of developing ecotourism, from policydefinition through marketing to the distribution of benefits."We need to involve everyone, but particularlyrepresentatives of the local communities which receive thetourists."

No doubt, Nigeria, blessed with a rich ecosystem has enormousprospects in ecotourism.

8. Latin American and Caribbeanforests grow into a global model

Source: Newsfront, 28 October 2002, Nora Perez[[email protected]]

A network of model forests being set up in Latin America andthe Caribbean is showing how partnerships with localcommunities and improvements in government policies can leadto more effective forest management, environmentalconservation and poverty reduction.

The Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) and UNDP are joining Argentina, Chile, and the Dominican Republic in supporting the project. Its regional centre, in the UNDP office in Santiago, Chile, aims to be a global model.

"The project will carry out low budget, high impact activities in which the local community is the principal actor," said Juan Carlos Collarte, chairman of the centre's board. Empowering communities can solve the traditional problems caused by tensions between economic development and protection of the environment, he said. "The project will help communities engage in activities such as ecotourism that make the forest valuable, a friend and not an enemy," he noted.

The initiative is based on Canada's Model Forests Programme < http://mf.ncr.forestry.ca/>, launched a decade ago at the Earth Summit, and includes six model forests, some established and others being developed. Such forests are ecosystems large enough to bring together the diverse interests of environmentalists, communities and economic interests in support of sustainable forest management.

A focus of the project will be transfer of sustainable forest management technology from Canada and communications strategies to promote the network's activities. There will be annual monitoring visits to the forests and progress reports every four months.

Chile was chosen as the base for the regional centre because of the performance of the Model Forest of Chiloé, located in the south, which was selected two years ago as the model of Model Forests.

The regional centre will have initial funding of US$1.8 million, with CIDA contributing $1.5 million over three years, and the founding member countries providing the rest of the funding. Forests in Costa Rica, Ecuador, Panama and Peru may also join the project.

For more information pleasecontact[email protected],UNDP Chile,or[email protected] UNDPCommunications Office.

9. The essence ofguarana

Source: Amazon News - 24 October 2002[email protected]

Researchers at ten institutions in the north of Brazilhave begun to create a DNA map of one of the most importantspecies in Amazonia. They aim to discover the generesponsible for protecting guarana from diseases and pests.The trade in guarana is worth R$100 million/year inBrazil.

10. Diplomado Latinoamericanoa Distancia en Plantas Medicinales y Aromaticas

From: Miguel Angel Gutiérrez Domínguez[[email protected]]

En el 2003 iniciará nuestro primer DiplomadoLatinoamericano a distancia en plantas medicinales yaromaticasel cual será impartido por víaelectrónica con la asistencia científica ytécnica de expertos en fitoterapia, aromaterapia ymedicina tradicional.

Para mayor información consulte los portales:
www.geocities.com/redmexicana
www.procomverde.org.co

11. Traditional knowledge andbiodiversity in Asia-Pacific: Problems of piracy andprotection

Source: BIO-IPR resource pointer,[email protected]

GRAIN and Kalpavriksh (an Indian environmental action group)have published a new briefing on the state of traditionalknowledge and biodiversity in the Asia-Pacific region. Mostpeople across Asia, a region rich in biodiversity, aredirectly dependent on plant genetic resources for theirlivelihoods. But both these resources and the knowledgerelated to them are under threat. The quest for "green gold"by transnational companies and global institutions ispenetrating all countries of the region, bringing with it arise in the problem of biopiracy. The misappropriation oftraditional knowledge has been helped by changes inregulations - mainly the introduction of intellectualproperty rights. Governments are increasingly trying tomanage rights to biodiversity and traditional knowledgethrough exclusive monopoly systems, while mechanisms toprotect and strengthen the collective rights of localcommunities remain weak.

This 30-page briefing provides details, with numerousexamples, of the changes that are occurring in Asia-Pacific;from international agreements, and regional initiatives toaction taken by farming communities. Many people at thegrassroots level are working to fight back and protect theirresources and knowledge from blatant exploitation. Emergingstrategies on what communities and organizations could do tofurther ensure the strengthening of community rights areoutlined.

GRAIN and Kalpavriksh, "Traditional knowledge andbiodiversity in Asia-Pacific: Problems of piracy andprotection", October 2002, 30 pp., is available on GRAIN'swebsite:

www.grain.org/publications/tk-asia-2002-en.cfm

(To find out more about Kalpavriksh, visithttp://kalpavriksh0.tripod.com/)

12. Indigenous KnowledgeDossier

From: FAO's NWFP Programme

The Indigenous Knowledge Dossier (produced by: SciDev.Net,2002) is intended to contribute to the exchange ofinformation on indigenous knowledge (IK) by providingrelevant annotated links to external websites, offeringaccess to discussion groups and to electronic versions of keyreports and documents within the field of IK.

The dossier critically addresses key issues relating to the possible contribution of IK to development and science. It does this by presenting the experiences and perspectives of people who are working in the field through analytical policy briefs and topical opinion articles.

The dossier contains policy briefs on key issues, an abstracted list of key background papers, news, features and discussion.

Available online at:www.scidev.net/dossiers/indigenous_knowledge/index.html

13. Celebrating MountainWomen

From: FAO's NWFP Programme

Women from around the world gathered 1 to 4 October 2002 inThimphu, Bhutan for the Celebrating Mountain WomenConference. The conference was an opportunity to articulateconcerns and share experiences and ideas about the future ofmountain women's livelihoods and cultures. Five thematicareas were the basis of the conference's activities:

Natural resources and environment
Health and wellbeing
Entrepreneurship
Legal, political and human rights
Culture and indigenous knowledge

A draft preliminary declaration for the Conference was drawnup earlier this year at the first preparatory meeting inChambéry, France (30 - 31 May). To view the document,visit:www.mtnforum.org/resources/library/cmwpm02b.htm

For more information about the conference, visit:www.mtnforum.org/calendar/events/0205mwaa.htm

14. Non-Timber Forest Productsat UBC Malcolm Knapp Research Forest

Source:beneath theTrees,October, 2002, DianeCarley [[email protected]]

The Malcolm Knapp Research Forest (MKRF) of the University ofBritish Columbia (UBC) is developing a strategic plan toimplement Non-Timber Forest Products (NTFP) projects in its 5000 ha of forest in Maple Ridge, BC.

For further information on the MKRF project pleasecontact:[email protected] visitwww.island.net/~ntfp

15.Ex situconservationof Medicinal and Aromatic Plants in India with specialreference to Madhya Pradesh, India

From: Ajoy Bhattacharya[email protected]

The paper embodies the recent trends inexsitucultivation of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants (MAPs)as an alternative to biodiversity conservation and as anadditional source of income with special reference to MadhyaPradesh (MP), India. Efforts have been made to highlight theproblems encountered in the said cultivation for necessarypolicy considerations if this emerging sector is to become afinancially rewarding and ecologically sustainable one.

The Study was sponsored by the MP Minor Forest Produce Federation as an activity to promote the cultivation of the MAPs.

For more information, please contact the authors:

Dr. A.K. Bhattacharya, IFS Regina Hansda
Associate Professor Senior Project Research Associate
Indian Institute of Forest Management Indian Institute ofForest Management
Bhopal -462003, INDIA Bhopal -462003, INDIA
Email:[email protected]
Email:[email protected]
Tel: + 91-755-766603 extn-371 Fax: 91-755-772878

16. NWFP Articles

Source: H. Gyde Lund[email protected], FIU 21OCT 02

Pankaj Oudia writes, "Very recently ten more articles of mineon NWFP have appeared on the internet. I am sending the linksfor your reference and eagerly waiting for your comments.

Bhuinimb or Kalmegh (Andrographis paniculata Nees.) -<http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/CropFactSheets/andrographis.html>

Medicinal weed Satyanashi (Argemone mexicana Linn)-
<http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/CropFactSheets/argemone.html>

Arjun or Koha [Terminalia arjuna (Roxb.) W. & A.] -
<http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/CropFactSheets/terminalia.html>

Charota or Chakod (Cassia tora L. syn. Cassia obtusifoliaL.) -
<http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/CropFactSheets/cassia.html>

Keukand (Costus speciosus Koen ex. Retz.) Sm. -
<http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/CropFactSheets/costus.html>

Gudmar or Merasingi (Gymnema sylvestre R. Br.)-
<http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/CropFactSheets/gymnema.html>

Mungesa or Jangli Moong (Phaseolus trilobatus (L.) SchrebSyn. P. trilobus Ait) -<http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/CropFactSheets/mungesa.htm>

Traditional medicinal knowledge about common herbs used toprepare herbal toothbrushes Dataun (Daton) in Chhattisgarh,India.
<http://botanical.com/by_you/toothbrush.html>

Traditional Medicinal knowledge about excreta of differentanimals used to treat many common diseases in Chhattisgarh,India.
<http://botanical.com/by_you/animal_excreta.html>

Allelopathic Effects of Leachates and Extracts of DifferentParts of an Obnoxious Weed Parthenium hysterophorus L. onGermination and Seedling Vigour of Selected Crops. -
<http://www.iprng.org/IPRNG-parthenium_a&w25.htm>
You may contact Pankaj at[email protected]

17. Web sites

From: FAO's NWFP Programme

Lasting Forests

This site is devoted to improving rural, wildland, andnatural resource management by providing useful information,concepts, ideas, and links for students, practitioners, andlandowners.
www.lastingforests.com/

INASP (International Network for the Availability ofScientific Publications)

INASP is a cooperative network of partners aiming to improveworldwide access to information.
www.inasp.info<http://www.inasp.info/>

18. Events

From: FAO's NWFP Programme

Wildland principles & practices
18-23 November 2002
Georgetown, Guyana

Visitor interaction skills for ecotourism
25-30 November 2002
Georgetown, Guyana

For more information on both of these events, pleasecontact:
Training Coordinator
Iwokrama International Centre
67 Bel Air, Georgetown, Guyana
Tel: 592-225-1504
Fax: 592-225-9199
E-mail:[email protected]
www.iwokrama.org

Community-Based Tourism for Conservation andDevelopment

10-25 February 2003
Bangkok, Thailand
Organized by The Regional Community Forestry Training Centerfor Asia and the Pacific (RECOFTC) and The MountainInstitute.

Deadline for registration: 31 December 2002

Course fee: US$2700

For more information, please contact:
Mr. Ronnakorn Triraganon,
RECOFTC
PO BOX 1111, Kasetsart University,
50 Phaholyothin Rd.,
Bangkok 10903, Thailand
Tel: (66-2) 940-5700
Fax: (66-2) 561-4880, 562-0960
E-mail:[email protected]
or[email protected]

http://www.recoftc.org/courses.html

Enhancing the Southern Appalachian Forest Resource
Hendersonville, North Carolina, USA
2-3 October 2003

The symposium will include three concurrent tracks, withpresentations such as these and more:

A New Look at Traditional Approaches
The Forest and the Community
Innovative Approaches (including Non-timber forestproducts)

For more information, please contact:
Susan Moore, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC27695, USA
Tel: +1-919-515-3184
E-mail:[email protected]
www.ncsu.edu/feop/symposium/

19. International TrainingCourse on "Sustainable NTFP Management for RuralDevelopment

From: Dr. Prodyut Bhattacharya[[email protected]]

The International Centre for Community Forestry, IIFM, Bhopalis organizing the 3rd International Training Course on"Sustainable NTFP Management for Rural Development"from 26November to 13 December 2002 in Bhopal, India.

This course has been developed to address the prevailingsituation of NTFP Management in Asian and African region.
The deadline for the receipt of applications is31 October2002.

For more information, please contact:

Dr. Prodyut Bhattacharya
Course Director
Indian Institute of Forest Management,
PO Box 357, Nehru Nagar,
Bhopal, India

20. Publications ofinterest

From: FAO's NWFP Programme

An, T., and Ziegler, S.2001. Utilization of medicinalplants in Bach Ma National Park, Vietnam.Med. PlantConserv.7:3-5.

Aumeeruddy-Thomas, Y.2001. Working with Tibetandoctors (amchis) for the conservation of medicinal plants andhealth care development at Shey Phoksundo National Park,Dolpa, Nepal.Med. Plant Conserv.7:8-11.

Berg, Å., Gärdenfors, U., Hallingbäck, T.,and Norén, M.2002. Habitat preferences ofred-listed fungi and bryophytes in woodland key habitats insouthern Sweden - analyses of data from a nationalsurvey.Biodivers. Conserv.11(8):1479-1503.

Blouin, G.2002.A Book on the Traditional Medicinaland Other Uses of The Trees and Shrubs of Atlantic Canada bythe Mi'kmaq and Maliseet First Nations(send requestto:[email protected])

Cunningham, T.2001. Return of the pepper-bark.Med.Plant Conserv.7:21-22.

Grow, S., and Schwartzman, E.2001. The statusofGuaiacumspecies in trade.Med. PlantConserv.7:19-21.

Harsha, V.H., Hebbar, S.S., Hegde, G.R., and Shripathi,V.2002. Ethnomedical knowledge of plants used by KunabiTribe of Karnataka in India.FitoterapiaVol 73, issue4.pp 281-287. ISSN: 0367-326X.

Therapeutic effects and medicinal efficacy of wild herbs havebeen identified and administered by tribal people to curevarious ailments. Recently, this herbal medicine practice hasbeen diminishing, which may lead to the loss of valuableinformation about healing herbs. The Uttara Kannada Districtof Karnataka in India is a rich biodiversity center ofWestern Ghats. Many tribes, like Gowlis, Siddis, HalakkiOkkaligas and Kunabis, inhabit the semi-evergreen forests ofthe District. The mixed marathi speaking Kunabis migratedfrom Goa and settled here a long time ago and are even todaywithout modern facilities. Thus, this paper is an effort torecord the valuable ethnomedical knowledge of the tribeKunabis of Uttara Kannada District in Karnataka in order torevitalize traditional herbal medicines. A total of 45species of plants used by Kunabi community people aredescribed based on an ethnomedical field survey. These plantsbelong to 26 families and are used to treat a wide range ofailments.

Full text via ScienceDirect :www.sciencedirect.com/science

Huang, H., Han, X., Kang, L., Raven, P., Jackson, P.W.,and Chen, Y.2002. Conserving native plants inChina.Science297(5583):935-936.

Mayers, J.; Vermeulen, S. 2002.Company-communityforestry partnerships: from raw deals to mutualgains?Instruments for sustainable private sector forestryseries. International Institute for Environment andDevelopment, London. ISBN: 1-899825-94-0.

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Pakenham, Thomas. 2002.Remarkable trees of theworld.192 p. W.W. Norton. ISBN 0-393-04911-6.$49.95.www.wwnorton.com/catalog/fall02/004911.htm<http://www.wwnorton.com/catalog/fall02/004911.htm>

Prieditis, N.2002. Evaluation frameworks andconservation system of Latvian forests.Biodivers.Conserv.11(8):1361-1375.

Rajbhandari-M; Wegner-U; Julich-M; Schopke-T;Mentel-R.2001. Screening of Nepalese medicinal plants forantiviral activity.Journal-of-Ethnopharmacology. 2001,74: 3, 251-255. For more information, please contact:Department of Pharmaceutical Biology, Institute of Pharmacy,Greifswald, Germany.

Schopp-Guth, A., and Fremuth, W.2001. Sustainable useof medicinal plants and nature conservation in the PrespaNational Park area, Albania.Med. Plant Conserv.7:5-8.

Smith Olsen, C.2001. Trade in the Himalayan medicinalplant product Kutki - new data.Med. PlantConserv.7:11-13.

Tandon, V.2001. Mainstreaming conservation ofmedicinal plants.Med. Plant Conserv.7:13-14.

Walter, S.(2002): Certification and benefit-sharingmechanisms in the field of non-wood forest products - anoverview.Medicinal Plant Conservation, Volume 8,Newsletter of the IUCN Species Survival Commission, MedicinalPlant Specialist Group. Bonn

www.fao.org/DOCREP/ARTICLE/001/AB542E01.HTM

Weiss, E.A.2002.Spice Crops. CABI Publishing.411 pages.

Spice Crops is essential reading for anybody seriouslyinterested in commercial spice production. Although writtenfor professional spice growers and traders, anybody with aninterest in pharmacognosy will find interesting informationin this book. The research is very thorough and clearlypresented. It covers just about all aspects of the variousspices discussed, from their basic botany tophytopharmacology, to details on cultivation, processing andpreservation.

The introductory chapter offers a general overview on worldspice trade with a rather brief sketch of that enormouschapter of plant/human history. A whole book could be writtenjust on this subject alone, but this particular book focusesmore on the specifics, rather than the general. A briefoverview of the major spice crops covered within the mainbody of the book outlines details of trade statistics for thevarious spices.

The main part of the book presents various families of spiceplants and a selection of their important members. Familiescovered include Cruciferae, Lauraceae, Leguminosae,Myristicaae, Ochidaceae, Piperaceae, Solanaceae,Umbelliferae, Zingiberaceae, and some minor species. The mostimportant spice crops in each of these families are treatedin detail, covering history, botany, ecology, growingconditions, soil and fertilizers, cultivation, weed and bugcontrol, harvesting, processing and storage, aspects ofessential oil distillation where applicable, products &specifications, medicinal uses, other related species as wellas similar, but unrelated species.

The back-matter of the book comprises of a very extensivebibliography/ reference section, a glossary to explaintechnical terms as well as a couple of Appendices, a table ofspecifications of Europeans standards for quality minima andworld spice harvest calendar.

(Reviewed in Sacred Earth newsletter, September 2002.)

www.sacredearth.com/Ezine/September2002/Sept2002.html#spices

Which Way Forward? People, Forests, and Policymaking inIndonesia

Carol J. Pierce Colfer and Ida Aju Pradnja Resosudarmo,editors. January 2002. 464 pages. Cloth: $50.00; Paper:$23.95. A co-publication of Resources for the Future andCIFOR.

Indonesia contains some of the world's most diverse and threatened forests. The challenges result from both long-term management problems and the political, social, and economic turmoil of the past few years. The contributors to Which Way Forward? explore recent events in Indonesia, while focusing on what can be done differently to counter the destruction of forests due to asset-stripping, corruption, and the absence of government authority.

Contributors to the book include anthropologists, economists, foresters, geographers, human ecologists, and policy analysts. Their concerns include the effects of government policies on people living in forests, the impact of the economic crisis on small farmers, links between corporate debt and the forest sector, and the fires of the late 1990s. By analysing the nation's dramatic circumstances, they hope to demonstrate how Indonesia as well as other developing countries might handle their challenges to protect biodiversity and other resources, meet human needs, and deal with political change.

For more information visit:www.rff.org<http://www.rff.org>and towww.jhupbooks.com<http://www.jhupbooks.com>to order titles,or contact:

Resources for the Future, Hopkins Fulfillment Services, POBox 50370, Baltimore, MD 212, USA

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