People and forests
News
Following the rhythm of Mother Earth
09/08/2021
Learning from Indigenous Peoples’ food systems and their respect for nature.
The female guardians of Venezuela’s Imataca Forest Reserve
06/08/2021
The indigenous women spearheading an FAO-GEF forest conservation project.
When forests flourish, communities do too
02/08/2021
In northern Cambodia, a reforestation project has given a lifeline to the environment and community.
Publications
FAO Forestry Paper 179: National socioeconomic surveys in forestry
2016
Forests and trees contribute in multiple ways to reducing food insecurity, supporting sustainable livelihoods and alleviating poverty. As FAO’s State of the World’s Forests 2014 (SOFO 2014; FAO, 2014a) shows, for about one-third of the world population wood is the primary or only energy source, demonstrating the relevance of “wood security” in food security in many regions.
FAO Forestry Paper 176: Forty years of community-based forestry
2015
Since the 1970s and 1980s, community-based forestry has grown in popularity, based on the concept that local communities, when granted sufficient property rights over local forest commons, can organize autonomously and develop local institutions to regulate the use of natural resources and manage them sustainably.