1. Cameroon demands bushmeat action
2. Kenya: Opposition to New Forest Regulation
3. Amazonia studies use of an oil against dengue
4. The battle over Amazonia's guarana
5. Mexico: The Sierra Madre Alliance - Nature, Culture & Economy in Balance
6. Mexico: Course in Southwest Mexico
7. Canada: Coalition agrees to ban industrial activities in Canadian forest
8. Canada: FSC Canada's Boreal Forest Standard unanimously approved
9. China: From Mao to markets in China's forests
10. Malaysia: Community approach to save forest
11. Internship at Forest Community Research
12. Request for assistance: Honduran Ethnobotanical Projects
13. New Journal: Nature and Environment Law Times
14. Web sites and e-zines
15. People in Parks: Call for papers
16. Other events
17. Publications of interest
Welcome to FAO's NWFP-Digest-L a free e-mail journal that covers all aspects of non-wood forest products. A special thank you to all those who have shared information with us.
We wish our readers a happy and healthy 2004.
Back issues of the Digest may be found on FAO's NWFP home page:
Source: BBC News Online, 15 December 2003 (http://news.bbc.co.uk/)
The rate at which Africa is devouring its wildlife is entirely unsustainable, Cameroon's Environment Minister says. He is demanding international action to control the trade, which produces as much as five million tonnes of bushmeat from the Congo basin alone every year. The trade threatens the survival of several already endangered species, including elephants and great apes.
The minister, Chief Clarkson Oben Tanyi-Mbianyor, is visiting London to address a Bushmeat Campaign conference. The campaign says Mr Tanyi's call for international cooperation is the first time any African leader has made such a proposal. The aim of the conference is to secure agreement on how to tackle the unsustainable bushmeat trade, in which London plays a prominent part.
Other speakers include Ghana's Minister for Lands and Forests, Dominic Fobih, the Okyenhene (tribal king) of Akyem Abuakwa in eastern Ghana, the UK's International Development Minister, Gareth Thomas MP, and representatives of the timber trade.
Mr Tanyi told BBC News Online: "What we are saying is that we cannot go on selling bushmeat, because people believe in looking after the environment. It's not local consumption that's the problem, but the wider trade, taking the meat into the towns and out of the country. So we're calling on our partners to fight the trade by helping us to recruit and train eco-guards, and by providing local people with alternative ways of earning a living that will keep them out of the forest. Some of these forest concessions can be up to 70 000 ha in size, so the guards will need to be able to communicate with each other. We're hoping other countries will help us to equip them. This is in the context of Cameroon itself, of course. But I am also speaking in a wider context, about the need to fight the bushmeat trade across west and central Africa. And I'll be asking Mr Thomas for his help in stamping it out in the UK. But the best way to tackle it is to fight it at source, and keep the animals in the forest."
Adam Matthews, the Bushmeat Campaign's director, is hoping Mr Thomas will spell out how the UK Department for International Development plans to implement the conclusions of a recent study it carried out on the links between wildlife and poverty. Mr Matthews told BBC News Online: "That study said 150 million people - one in eight of the world's poor - depend on wildlife for both protein and income. The report's recommendations were excellent, but we have yet to see any move towards carrying them out. I hope the UK will incorporate wildlife into its poverty strategies."
Some zoologists believe the bushmeat trade is so important to people's survival that it would be better to try to control it than to stamp it out. They say it may be possible to tell when large species like apes are reaching a dangerous point by seeing when smaller animals like cane rats enter the market. The smaller species tend to do so just before the flagship animals reach crisis point, and this could serve as a warning mechanism.
Source: The East African Standard (Nairobi), 7 December 2003
The Government has been accused of interfering with the local communities' right to enjoy forest resources. The leader of the Official Opposition, Mr Uhuru Kenyatta, said yesterday that a new regulation that bars people from entering forests was denying minority communities access to food, grazing lands, water, firewood and medicinal plants.
Speaking at Arama in Eldama Ravine, where he joined six Kanu MPs for a fundraiser, Uhuru said that the two former administrations never denied people access to forests.
Area MP Musa Sirma said the decree was contrary to the Forest Act, which allows local people to source food and other necessities from forests.
For full story please see: http://allafrica.com/stories/200312080119.html
Source: Amazon News, 7 December 2003
The essential oil of rosewood (Aniba rosaeodora), vastly used in the perfume industry, could also be useful for public health purposes. Researchers from the Federal University of Amazonas (UFAM) discovered that it has substances capable of exterminating larvae of the mosquito Aedes aegypti that transmits dengue. Tests showed that linalool, the principal oil in this tree native to Amazonia, is able to eliminate 92 percent of the larvae present in a sample.
The chemist, Katiuscia de Souza, arrived at this discovery following a change of course in her investigation. The initial objective was to verify whether linalool was thrown out with the water in which it was distilled. The extraction process occurs by vaporisation separation. Trunks, sticks and leaves are immersed in water which is then boiled. "The infusion evaporates and is then captured by a condenser, which separates the oil from the water and other components", explained Katiuscia. "In most distilleries in Amazonia, this waste water is then thrown out." Because this water is very fragrant, Katiuscia imagined that it still contained a certain amount of linalool. The tests proved that she was correct. However, another factor attracted her attention. "In the beginning of the investigation, I discovered that many regions in the interior of Amazonia use this material as a disinfectant in bathrooms, toilets and even on walls and in hospital dispensaries", she stated. "So I thought the linalool could be responsible for the larvicide's activity of the waste water.
As the ideal conditions did not exist at UNAM, Katiuscia used the laboratories at the National Research Institute of Amazonia (INAP). "The results were very good: in a sample where larvae were exposed to linalool for 24 hours, 88% of the Aedes aegypti larvae died. She extended the exposure for another 24 hours. In the final results, 92% of the larvae had died.
The next step is now to use the essential oil to develop a product to combat the dengue mosquito larvae. "It is possible to exploit linalool or even the waste water to develop a larvacide", says the chemist Jamal Chaar, Katiuscia's advisor in the investigation. "Another aspect that needs to be highlighted is that the waste water cannot be dumped into the environment. It could by very toxic to micro organisms, many of which have not yet been examined."
Source: Amazon News, 7 December 2003
Lower Amazonas State - The dispute involves millionaire investments, spying and a true battle of words. The battleground is the Amazonas State. At issue is the guarana fruit, discovered by indigenous people at the end of the 18th century and industrialized into a drink in 1900. On the one side is Guarana Antarctica, of AmBev, who is proud of being "Originally from Brazil" and who has, for more than 40 years, bought its seeds from small farmers in Maues, a city located about 260 km from Manaus and considered the birthplace of guarana. On the other side is Guarana Kuat, of Coca-Cola, which has just harvested, in the municipality of President Figueiredo (120 km from Manaus), its first crop of guarana with plans to transform the region into the newest pole of this Amazonas' fruit.
In its favour, AmBev has the tradition. Before the actual founding of Maues in 1798, the Satere -Mawe, an indigenous people in the region, discovered the fruit's energetic ingredients. With the dried tongue of the pirarucu fish (Arapaima gigas), this indigenous people would scrape the trunk, extracting a powder which would then be mixed with water, a concoction that guaranteed improved results while hunting. In 1921, a chemist treated the fruit and was successful in making a drink that maintained the guarana flavour without its characteristic bitterness. Thus, the origin of Guarana Antarctica Champagne, whose formula remains a secret even today.
Maues' guarana, the Brazilian leader in production up until the 1980s, began to loose its productivity and the Bahia guarana plants assumed the leadership. One reason for this is time: the average age of Maues' guarana plant is 40 years, with productivity beginning to decrease after 30 years. A bush native to Maues produces 80 grams of seeds, whereas plants that have been genetically altered can increase production by 30 times.
This reduced productivity is exactly what Coca-Cola wants to take advantage of in the attempt to valorise its own guarana, a plant that the corporation introduced to the municipality of Presidente Fugeiredo three years ago. The crop is sown in the Jayoro Sugar Factory, which supplies all the sugar utilized by Coca-Cola in Brazil. In five years, Coca-Cola has invested R$10 million in research, planting, harvesting and improving the guarana plant. According to Coca-Cola, the technicians have reached an average production of 1 kg of seeds per bush. The altered plants are reproduced in a nursery that houses more than 180 000 shoots.
At this year's end, Coca-Cola gathered its first guarana harvest: 40 tons of seeds extracted from 410 ha. By 2005, it hopes to be self-sufficient in its production and to increase production to 160 tons. "We produce 72 percent of the guarana that they produce in an area equal to only 19 percent the area used in Maues (where almost 2 700 ha were planted,) says the administrator of Jayoro, Camillo Pachikoski.
In addition, the multinational is also interested in commercializing the fruit for other purposes. "We have been approached by diverse national and international cosmetic industries that want to buy our extract and the seed's residue to produce crèmes, shampoos and even lipstick", highlighted Pachikoski.
Perceiving Coca-Cola's competitive advancing and the lost of productivity in the Maues's guarana, AmBev responded: it elaborated an investment plan of R$61 million in diverse projects in the region up until 2013; additionally, it has created 12 development poles to offer assistance to the rural communities and to finance the expansion of guarana farming and the recovery of the Maues guarana plants.
At the centre of AmBev's research is the Santa Helena Plantation, inaugurated in 1972 in Maues. "We have distributed more than 280 000 shoots, with an average of 1.5 kg of seeds per plant," explained AmBev's agricultural engineer, Renato Cardoso Costa Jr. In the distribution, the corporation faced strong resistance from the local farmers. "Some said that the plants that they cultivated were from the grandfather of the great-grandfather of the great-great grandfather; so the modernization and technology's incorporation had to be accompanied with a process of re-education and persuading the farmers", explained Gileno Correia, the manager of the AmBev factory in Manaus.
Guarana is responsible for 25% of sodas in Brazil. According to an October report by the AC Nielsen consulting office, Guarana Antarctica controls 75% of the market, while Kuat maintains the other 25%.
Source: SMA Update 4 December 2003
The Tarahumara and Tepehuan people of Mexico's Sierra Madre have been under siege for generations. Their lands and forests have been seized. Tens of thousands have retreated to remote and desolate areas, choosing a life of silent suffering over integration in Mexican society. Many have been able to sustain a rich traditional life, but others find themselves caught between two worlds: the old world which is disappearing with the forests and the new world where they find discrimination, poverty, and depression. Corruption, drug trafficking, and violence all contribute to the suffering of these indigenous peoples.
Uncontrolled logging has taken ninety-nine percent of their forests, destroyed vital high-altitude watersheds, and threatened the forest plants they depend on for food, medicine, and ceremonies, as well as a number of endemic and endangered species.
The Sierra Madre Alliance and our Mexican partners have been working to improve the environmental and social conditions in the Sierra for more than ten years, with indigenous community participation. We focus on conservation-priority areas in the Sierra, where both endangered species and endangered communities struggle for survival.
For more information, please contact:
Sierra Madre Alliance
1650 Sioux Dr. CH44-119
El Paso, TX 79925 USA
Chihuahua, Mexico Field Office:
Source: Forest Information Update 1 December 2003 (email@example.com)
The course "Natural Resource Issues in Southwest Mexico" will be offered from 25 May- 10 June 2004 at Lake Chapala Biological Station and the Autonomous University of Guadalajara in Mexico. Areas to be visited will include: Pacific coastal beaches, estuaries, and resorts (Manzanillo, Puerto Vallarta, Barra de Navidad); bio-reserves; forested mountains of Jalisco and Michoacan; and the town of Tequila.
Issues of study will include: ecotourism; indigenous cultures and interactions with nature; watershed management; forest management; non-timber forest products; endangered species; management of bio-reserves; artesian fisheries; and wood products processing.
Space is limited to 15. The approximate cost will be $1 500-1 700, plus airfare and Virginia Tech fees or tuition.
Source: Environmental News Network, 2 December 2003
An agreement announced on 1 December 2003 would exempt more than half of Canada's vast northern forest, about 1 million square miles in all, from industrial activities, including logging and oil and gas exploration.
The boreal forest, as it's known, is just below the Arctic Circle and stretches some 3 000 miles from the Yukon to the Atlantic Ocean. It is the largest intact forest ecosystem in the world and makes up roughly half of Canada's territory. The agreement reached by a coalition of native tribes, environmentalists, and businesses seeks to protect this evergreen expanse that has large bear, wolf and caribou populations, along with other species and hundreds of native communities. Approval by national and local governments is now necessary, as 90 percent of the forest is under public ownership.
For full story, please see: www.enn.com/news/2003-12-02/s_10903.asp
Source: [cfc-news] CFRC Weekly Summary 12/19/03 firstname.lastname@example.org
The Forest Stewardship Council of Canada has given unanimous endorsement to a National Standard for forest management practices in the Boreal forest following a National Forum in Winnipeg last week. The standard will now be submitted to FSC International for international accreditation.
Consensus was reached following a round of public consultation and input that completed over two years of work spanning eight provinces, 2 territories and various international meetings. More than 2 000 individuals and 175 committee members on 15 committees participated in over 70 meetings, two national forums, and four field-testing exercises contributing to this achievement. FSC International accreditation may be expected as early as March 2004.
Jim Webb, an FSC Canada Board member representing the National Aboriginal Forestry Association and the Little Red River Cree Nation in Alberta stated, "The standard provides Indigenous Peoples with an opportunity to cooperatively work with industry in a manner acceptable to them towards mutually agreed solutions in the forest. The challenge ahead is to communicate clearly and help Indigenous communities benefit from this opportunity."
"While challenging for industry, the compelling value of this standard is the degree of agreement among the various interested parties - economic, environmental, communities and Indigenous Peoples,' notes Brent Rabik of Alberta Pacific Industries and FSC Canada Board member.
"Third-party certification of forest management and forest products to this standard provides assurance to consumers that the products they purchase do not contribute to the degradation of the world's forests," says Jim McCarthy, Executive Director of FSC Canada.
Canada is home to over a third of the world's boreal forest and a tenth of total global forest cover. The boreal forest occupies 35% of the total Canadian land area, 75% of Canada's total forestland, and represents 85% of the inaccessible forest in Canada. The boreal forest is home to over 80 percent of the Indigenous communities in Canada and important to their livelihood, culture and spirituality. It provides a critical source of income from forest products and other forest uses for most northern communities.
The Forest Stewardship Council is an internationally based organization that established 10 Principles and Criteria defining the threshold for good forest management around the world. FSC Canada is responsible for the implementation of the Principles and Criteria through the development of performance indicators for Canada.
For further information, please contact:
FSC Canada Executive Director
205 - 1 Eva Rd.
Toronto, ON M9C 4Z5
For full story, please see: www.forestrycenter.org/News/news.cfm?News_ID=319
Source: David Kaimowitz (CIFOR) email@example.com, Polex Listserve
Sweeping reforms since the late 1970s have turned China upside down. 'China's Forests, Global Lessons from Market Reforms', edited by Bill Hyde, Brian Belcher, and Jintao Xu and co-published by Resources for the Future and CIFOR, shows what the reforms have meant for forests.
In the early 1980s, the collectives that own about 60 percent of China's forests handed most of them over to individual families to manage. Fifty-seven million households received 30 million hectares of degraded land to plant trees on. Millions more were allowed to manage existing forests and share the profits. The government partially liberalized forest product markets, particularly for bamboo, fruits, and pine resin.
Many families that received forests initially overexploited or deforested them. But after a few years both forest area and timber stocks started to grow as farmers planted more trees. Things improved quicker in regions that handed over forests faster, went further towards liberalizing markets, charged lower taxes and had more consistent policies.
The reforms made some farmers better off, particularly those who were more educated and well connected and who grew bamboo and fruit trees. Planting windbreaks increased many farmers' crop yields. However, there are still too many taxes and regulations for most farmers to prosper from selling timber. Over 80 percent of the country's poorest counties are in forested mountainous regions and in many of them life is improving slowly.
The total area in forests grew five million hectares between 1980 and 1993. Yet, while the plantations area increased by 21 million hectares, the area in natural forests declined by 16 million hectares. The net result was good for reducing soil erosion, but bad for biodiversity. The government has since banned logging in several major regions and set aside millions of hectares as nature reserves, which may have improved the biodiversity side.
To meet the growing demand for paper, small factories using agricultural residues sprung up all over. However, those factories soon became the largest source of rural water pollution, so the authorities shut down 2,000 of them. The government is now trying to encourage foreign companies to build large modern pulp and paper mills that use wood instead of residues, but it is unclear where the wood will come from.
They may get it from imports. China is rapidly becoming one of the largest importers of all sorts of forest products. So what happens in China may dramatically affect forests all over the world; and we all need to pay attention.
A limited number of copies of this book are available free for people in developing countries. To request one please write Nia Sabarniati at: firstname.lastname@example.org (Don't forget to include a postal address.) Others can purchase the book from RFF press at: www.rffpress.org. To send comments or queries to the authors, please write Brian Belcher at: email@example.com
Source: Community Forestry E-News 2003.17 (November 28, 2003)
The joint WWF-Malaysia and WWF-Denmark project "A Community-based Approach to Conservation and Development in Ulu Padas, Sabah", launched in January 2002, aims to lay a strong foundation for conservation and sustainable development in the Central Bornean Montane Forests.
Ulu Padas, which includes about 85 000 ha of state and reserve land near the Sabah-Kalimantan border, is part of these forests. In this area are two villages inhabited by about 800 villagers. The local communities depend on the surrounding forest resources for their daily needs, and the scenic areas and cultural heritage sites are the foci of local tourism initiatives.
The project aims to provide the impetus, expertise and funding support needed to improve the capacity of stakeholders, especially the local community, to address land-use and tenure conditions. It should enhance the management and development capabilities of the Ulu Padas community, assist the development of alternative economic uses of forest and promote transboundary co-operation.
(Source: Daily Express News, 4 November 2003: www.dailyexpress.com.my/news.cfm?NewsID=22675)
Source: cfc-news, CFRC Weekly Summary 5 December 2003
Forest Community Research is offering internships in the winter and summer of 2004. Interns will participate in community-focused research and work on community-based resource management projects. Responsibilities include working with resource-based partnership groups, and on tasks associated with a research and education team.
This is an excellent opportunity for someone with good interpersonal skills and who wants to learn more and experience community-focused resource management.
Send cover letter, vita/résumé, names and phone numbers of four people willing to serve as references, and a short writing sample to: Internship, Forest Community Research, P.O. Box 11, Taylorsville, California 95983, USA. The deadline for winter internship applications is 31 December.
For more information about the organization check out: www.FCResearch.org.
From: Jennifer Chesworth, Cafesombra@aol.com
I am seeking advice regarding two botanical collections I am helping to establish in Honduras. One will be located at a rural clinic site about 45 minutes outside of the capital city of Tegucigalpa (tropical temperate highland); the other will be located at a botanical garden on the north coast (Caribbean lowland). The climate zones are distinct though many of the same plants would I am sure do well at either site. The main difference, though, is that the Caribbean lowland site gets plenty of rain, while the number one challenge for garden caretakers at the temperate site will be getting enough water to the plants. So, probably arid-land-loving plants would be best choices for that particular garden.
If you're willing, any suggestions of plants to include in our collections would be welcome. Both gardens are specifically medicinal plant collections, an emphasis will be placed on local plants though we are not necessarily closed to exotic ideas. We are especially interested in selecting a few key cash crops, to develop market support that would generate enough income to keep the gardens going. This could be an export crop of seeds, or dried herbs, or a value-added product if we could handle producing it, ornamentals, spices, or flowers for a local market... basically we want to pick whatever will work.
We are also asking for direct market support, for market contacts who would be willing to support our gardens by contracting some crop from us specifically as a means of supporting the clinical and educational aspects of our work. Both gardens are managed under a cooperative alliance between non-profit Honduran agencies and my agency, Herbalists Without Borders.
Source: Forest Information Update 1 December 2003 (firstname.lastname@example.org)
Print World (Nature Book Shop) is pleased to announce the publication of a quarterly Journal "Nature and Environment Law Times" to cater to the intellectual and professional requirements of Foresters, Environmentalists, Lawyers, Social activists, Academicians and Nature Lovers. For information regarding subscription and pre publication offers please contact email@example.com
From: FAO's NWFP Programme
Geographic Aspects of Inequality and Poverty
The Guiana Shield Initiative (GSI)
Instrumentos Institucionales Para El Desarrollo De Dueños De Pequeñas Tierras Forestales
Este sitio presenta los resultados de un estudio que reviso las experiencias de integración horizontal y vertical que involucran dueños de pequeñas tierras forestales en cinco países de LAC (Brasil, Chile, Honduras, México, y Nicaragua), y que adecuo instrumentos y metodologías disponibles en la literatura aplicable a la integración. El sitio fue diseñado para apoyar a los dueños de TVF, a los industriales y a los gobiernos a identificar y considerar los instrumentos institucionales, legales y financieros que permitan a los productores o a los industriales forestales superar los problemas de la fragmentación de las TVF, a través de estrategias de integración horizontal entre los dueños de TVF y/o de integración vertical entre estos y los industriales.
Urban Forestry Forum
The National Urban Forestry Unit in the UK has opened a (free) online urban and community forestry forum.
From: Iona Hawken firstname.lastname@example.org
People in Parks: Beyond the Debate
Achieving Conservation in Human-Inhabited Protected Areas
2-3 April 2004
International Society of Tropical Foresters
Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies, USA
Call for Papers
The debate over people in parks has been a fiery one, yet one thing has become clear: Human Inhabited Protected Areas (HIPAs) are a reality of the conservation landscape. Protected area managers and policy-makers acknowledge that areas of high conservation value are already a home and subsistence base for local communities, and are attempting to incorporate these communities in conservation planning. The challenge that remains is how to achieve conservation in HIPAs.
Although formally HIPAs are a relatively new phenomenon, some preliminary conclusions about what works and what does not can now be drawn. Major efforts to integrate communities within protected areas have been underway for the last decade, providing time for reflection and analysis of empirical data. Other protected areas that incorporate local community participation may also prove highly instructive for identifying the effective elements to conservation in HIPAs.
The Yale Chapter of the International Society of Tropical Foresters will convene all sides of the debate to identify constructive lessons in the effort to create Human-Inhabited Protected Areas of lasting conservation value. Social and natural scientists, resource managers, policy-makers, community leaders and other interested parties will come together to share their experiences dealing with this challenge.
We hope the conference will stimulate debate on a range of topics, including but not limited to such questions as:
¿ What policy elements make for effective conservation in HIPAs?
¿ How and when do local people conserve nature? Is there a formula for effective local organization? Under what conditions and institutional frameworks?
¿ How do differing values amongst stakeholders affect reserve viability? How can conflicts between state and communities in HIPAs be transformed? How can humans and wildlife co-exist in protected areas? Are maximum sustainable yields for forest products and wildlife useful, viable instruments for community-based conservation?
¿ How do HIPAs play into regional conservation strategies and sustainable development programs? Can communities achieve meaningful quality of life improvements in a conservation-driven regulatory context?
¿ How should property rights be allocated between the state and communities, and among communities in HIPAs? How do these allocations affect reserve viability? Are there some conservation objectives that cannot be achieved through HIPAs? What constitutes success and how is it measured?
We encourage the submission of abstracts based upon primary research, or personal or institutional experience. Persons selected will present full papers at the conference, and typically have the opportunity to publish their work in a peer reviewed journal as part of the proceedings. Although the focus of the conference will be on the tropics, we welcome relevant experiences from around the world. Abstracts should be a maximum of 500 words. All correspondence will be addressed to the principal author.
Early deadline for abstracts: 23 December 2003
Final deadline for abstracts: 9 January 2004
For more information, please contact:
Yale ISTF Conference c/o Tropical Resource Institute
Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies
210 Prospect Street, New Haven, CT 06511 USA
From: FAO's NWFP Programme
Multipurpose trees in the Tropics: Assessment, Growth and Management
22-25 November 2004
The Arid Forest Research Institute (Jodhpur, India), in collaboration with IUFRO Divisions 1, 2 and 4, is organizing this international conference.
Although the meeting will deal primarily with tropical and subtropical tree species, the organizers are very interested in experiences from non-tropical regions in relation to assessment and management of tree species for multiple products (in particular Non-Timber Forest Products).
Deadline for abstracts: 28 February 2004
For more information, please contact:
Dr. V.P. Tewari (Forest Resource Management & Economics Division, Arid Forest Research Institute
P.O. Krishi Mandi
New Pali Road
Tel: +91-291-2722588 (O), +91-291-2725348 (R);
e-mail: email@example.com or firstname.lastname@example.org
or the Chair of the International Scientific Committee, Prof. Klaus von Gadow. IUFRO Division 4 Coordinator; email@example.com
From: FAO's NWFP Programme
Brendler, Thomas and Gurib-Fakim, Ameenah. 2003. Medicinal Plants of Indian Ocean Islands: Comores, Madagascar, Mauritius, Reunion and Seychelles. Medpharm Scientific Publishers. ISBN 3-88763-094-7. Hardcover, 700 pp.
This is a scientific evaluation of 350 medicinal plants of the main Indian Ocean islands. For each plant the following data is given: Botanical description, distribution, ecology * Chemistry of active compounds * Pharmacological studies * Use in the traditional medicine * Full colour photographs and chemical structures. An authoritative and fascinating reference work, which captures the interest in traditional medicine as well as the potential for the development of new drugs.
Burnett, C., Fall, A., Tomppo, E., and Kalliola, R. 2003. Monitoring current status of and trends in boreal forest land use in Russian Karelia. Conserv. Ecol. [Online] 7(2):8. www.consecol.org/vol7/iss2/art8
Bystriakova, N., Kapos, V., Lysenko, I., and Stapleton, C.M.A. 2003. Distribution and conservation status of forest bamboo biodiversity in the Asia-Pacific Region. Biodivers. Conserv. 12(9):1833-1841.
Although Asian bamboo species constitute a non-timber forest product of major cultural and economic importance, no detailed regional assessment of their distribution patterns has previously been made. To assess the potential of the existing bamboo species distribution data for production of regional mapping tools for planning the conservation of forest-based biodiversity, data on bamboo distribution and forest cover were combined. Over 1 000 bamboo species from 60 genera of woody bamboos were incorporated, allowing the mapping of individual species or groups of species and genera, along with potential species richness and biodiversity hotspots. Over 6.3 million km2 of Asian forest potentially contains bamboo, with highest densities indicated from northeastern India through Burma to southern China, and through Sumatra to Borneo. The highest figures for potential species richness (144 spp. per km2) were recorded in forests of south China, including Hainan Island. Despite substantial inadequacies and inconsistencies in knowledge of the taxonomy and distribution of bamboo species, this approach may provide a valuable tool for planning in situ conservation of forest biodiversity.
Chistyakova, A.A., and Leonova, N.A. 2003. The state of protected forest communities in the European forest-steppe zone of Russia and prospects for their reconstruction: a case study of specially protected areas of Penza Oblast. Russian J. Ecol. 34(5):285-291.
Conte, R., Nodari, R.O., Vencovsky, R., and dos Reis, M.S. 2003. Genetic diversity and recruitment of the tropical palm, Euterpe edulis Mart., in a natural population from the Brazilian Atlantic forest. Heredity 91(4):401-406
DeYoe, D.R.; Noland, T.; Buse, L.J. (ed.); Perera, A.H. 2003. Addressing resource sustainability and market uncertainty through business diversification: a case for bio-products and non-timber forest products. Meeting emerging ecological, economic and social challenges in the Great Lakes region: popular summaries. Great Lake Forest Alliance's Second Annual Sustainable Forest Management Summit, Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada, June 2003. Forest Research Information Paper Ontario Forest Research Institute. 2003, No.155, 27-29. Ontario Forest Research Institute; Sault Ste Marie; Canada.
This paper presents Ontario, Canada's non-timber forest products/Bio-product project which focuses on the use of forest resources as a source of products and services for key economic sectors, e.g., health, energy, environment, materials manufacturing, food, etc. , and seeks to use the enabling technologies being developed as part of the bio-economy to address issues and opportunities associated with three key focus areas: global climate change, forest health and productivity, and rural economic development.
García-Fernández, C., Casado, M.A., and Pérez, M.R. 2003. Benzoin gardens in North Sumatra, Indonesia: effects of management on tree diversity. Conserv. Biol. 17(3):829-836.
In recent years, research on tropical forest conservation has increasingly focused on traditional management systems as a means of achieving a balance between conservation and development. Styrax paralleloneurum, a forest-canopy tree species that produces benzoin, an aromatic resin, is cultivated in such a system. This study is an attempt to determine the impact of benzoin garden management on forest structure, species composition, and diversity. Forty-five gardens were chosen for study in two Northern Sumatra villages, where data on management practices and ecological structure were gathered. Ecological information was also collected from abandoned benzoin gardens and primary forest areas for purposes of comparison. Although benzoin management requires that competing vegetation be thinned, these activities are not intensive, allowing species that coppice to remain in the garden and thereby reducing the effects of competitive exclusion mechanisms on species composition. Tree species diversity in abandoned gardens was similar to that in primary forest, but endemic species and species characteristic of mature habitats were less common. Traditional benzoin garden management represents only a low-intensity disturbance and maintains an ecological structure that allows effective accumulation of forest species over the long term.
Goulson, D. 2003. The conservation of bumble bees. Bee World 84(3):105-106.
Hamilton, Lucy and Dama, Aly. 2003. Genre et gesion des conflits liés aux ressources naturelles à Nioro du Sahel, au Mali. International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED). ISBN: 1 84369 471 9.
Hyde, Bill; Belcher, Brian; & Xu, Jintao (eds). 2003. China's Forests, Global Lessons from Market Reforms. Co-published by Resources for the Future and CIFOR. ISBN 1-891853-67-8.
Janse, Gerben and Ottitsch, Andreas. 2003. Factors influencing the role of Non-Wood Forest Products and Services. ScienceDirect, Elsevier B.V.
In the light of social and economic developments, forest functions other than timber production have gained international importance and recognition. Resulting from this development, Non-Wood Forest Products and Services (NWFPS) are becoming more important, both for the general public as for forest owners trying to market them. In order to acquire a better understanding of NWFPS, their role in society and their marketing possibilities, this study aims at defining the factors influencing NWFPS. A comparative study between two countries with a different forest situation, the Netherlands and Norway, has been carried out. These factors are: institutional framework; economic characteristics (rivalry and excludability); demography and forest resources; and attitudes, values and customs. The outcome is that, because of differences on the mentioned factors, forest owners in the Netherlands are better off focusing on offering small-scale, nature-based facilities for (short-stay) recreationists, whereas for Norwegian forest owners it is more promising to focus on offering wilderness-experience `all-in package-deals' to tourists.
For more information, please contact:
Gerben Janse a and Andreas Ottitschb
a European Forest Institute, Torikatu 34, Joensuu, SF FIN-80100, Finland
b Wageningen University, Department of Environmental Sciences, Forest and Nature Conservation Policy Group, P.O. Box 342, Wageningen, AH 6700, The Netherlands
La Torre-Cuadros, M.D., and Islebe, G.A. 2003. Traditional ecological knowledge and use of vegetation in southeastern Mexico: a case study from Solferino, Quintana Roo. Biodivers. Conserv. 12(12):2455-2476.
Lopeti Senituli. 2003. Biopolicy and Biopolitics in the Pacific Islands. Tonga Human Rights and Democracy Movement, Nuku'alofa. Hard copies available from The Edmonds Institute mailto:firstname.lastname@example.org (please send full mailing address).
Miranda, Miriam; Porras, Ina T; and Moreno, Mary Luz. 2003. The Social Impacts of Payments for Environmental Services in Costa Rica. International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED). ISBN 1 84369 453 0.
Mitchell, A.K. (ed.); Puttonen, P. (ed.); & Vyse, A. 2003. Why mountain forests are important. Mountain forests: conservation and management. IUFRO Silviculture Conference, Vernon, British Columbia, Canada, 28 July-1 August 2002. Forestry-Chronicle. 79: 2, 219-222.
Mountains cover 24% of the Earth's land surface, are home to 12% of the global population, and include 28% of the world's forests. Mountain forests provide a wide range of benefits to both mountain and downstream populations, notably the protection of watersheds and of transport infrastructure. They are also important as centres of biodiversity; important sources of timber, fuelwood and non-wood products; places for tourism and recreation; and sacred places. Many are also being considered as possible carbon sinks to mitigate climate change. The International Year of Mountains, 2002, presents a unique opportunity to foster greater co-operation to ensure that mountain forests continue to provide benefits to a significant proportion of the world's population well into the 21st century and beyond.
For more information, please contact the authors at: Centre for Mountain Studies, Perth College, UHI Millennium Institute, Crieff Road, Perth PH1 2NX, UK.
Murthy, I.K.; Bhat, P.R.; Ravindranath, N.G.; & Sukumar. 2002. Non-timber forest product gathering in Uttara Kannada District, Western Ghats: social and gender differences. Myforest. 2002, 38: 3, 237-246.
A study was conducted in Uttara Kannada, Western Ghats, Karnataka, India, to prepare an inventory of non-timber forest products (NTFPs) extracted in the region and their end uses, to understand forest dependence of local communities and the human effort involved in NTFP extraction, and to understand the gender aspects such as time and effort allocated by men and women for NTFP extraction. NTFP assessment was undertaken in four dominant forest zones in the district viz., evergreen, semi-evergreen, moist deciduous and dry deciduous. It was observed that a great diversity of NTFPs were extracted in the evergreen and moist deciduous zones, while in the dry deciduous zone very few were being extracted. There is 100% dependence of all three land holding categories (large farmer, small farmer and areca garden owner) for fuelwood in three of the four forest zones in the study, the evergreen zone being an exemption where only 93% of the households were dependent. The total employment potential was high in the different forest zones and in the range of 198 days/household/year in the evergreen zone to 148 days/household/year in the dry deciduous zone, with the normal gathering day being approximately 6 hours/day. Women play a significant role of gathering different NTFPs.
Ojha, H.; & Bhattarai, B. 2003. Learning to manage a complex resource: a case of NTFP assessment in Nepal. International-Forestry-Review. 2003, 5: 2, 118-127, 187-188, 190.
Due to increasing recognition of the importance of non-timber forest products (NTFPs) to local livelihoods and biodiversity conservation, the need for accurate assessment of NTFPs growing stock and yields as well as identification of sustainable harvesting options has become more critical than ever before. This paper seeks to explore how learning is taking place in Nepal to develop NTFP resource assessment and sustainable harvesting techniques based on an analysis of case studies from contrasting contexts. Using an adaptive management approach as a framework, the analysis focuses on developing an understanding of the strong and weak aspects of the current methodologies, leading to recommendations for ways forward.
For more information, please contact the authors at: ForestAction, P.O. Box 12207, Kahtmandu, Nepal.
Pandit, B.H., and Thapa, G.B. 2003. A tragedy of non-timber forest resources in the mountain commons of Nepal. Environ. Conserv. 30(3):283-292.
Pilz, D.; L. Norvell; E. Danell, and R. Molina.2003. Ecology and management of commercially harvested chanterelle mushrooms. Gen.Tech. Rep. PNW-GTR-576. Portland, OR: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Research Station. 83 p.
Prance, G.T. & Swingland, I.R. 2003. Species survival and carbon retention in commercially exploited tropical rainforest. Capturing carbon and conserving biodiversity: a market approach. 231-240; Earthscan Publications Ltd; London.
This paper contains discussions on: (1) the marketing and valuation of tropical rain forests; (2) ecotourism as a way of marketing standing forests; and (3) the impact of non-wood forest products extraction on the survival of forest tree species and carbon retention.
Singh, A.P.; & Parabia, M. 2003. Status of medicinal plants consumption by the pharmaceutical industries in Gujarat State. Indian Forester. 2003, 129: 2, 198-212.
This study was conducted to estimate the raw material consumption by various pharmaceutical industries in their formulations and to determine the increasing pressure on medicinally important trees, shrubs, climbers and herb species in Gujarat, India. The survey of functional pharmaceutical industries was conducted in 1999, to collect information regarding raw material consumption and their procurement. Tabulated results showed that 270 medicinal plant species (201 indigenous and 69 imported species) are currently consumed to produce different Ayurvedic formulations. The raw materials used in different Ayurvedic medicines are broadly divided into eight categories: whole plant, root, leaf, fruit and seed, bark, stem and wood, flower and exudates (gum resin). All the 310 herbal raw materials obtained from 270 plant species were consumed by the pharmaceutical industries in Gujarat State. Based on tabulated results, annual consumption, percentage of total number of species as well as the percentage constituted by each plant part in the total bulk of herbal drug clearly indicated the heavy pressure on medicinal plant wealth of the State.
van Andel, T.R. 2003. Floristic composition and diversity of three swamp forests in northwest Guyana. Plant Ecology. 2003, 167: 2, 293-317;
This paper reviews the floristic composition, vegetation structure, and diversity of three types of swamp forest that cover a considerable part of Guyana's North-West District. Trees, shrubs, lianas, herbs, and hemi-epiphytes were inventoried in three hectare plots: one in Mora forest, one in quackal swamp, and one in manicole swamp. The Mora forest, flooded annually by white water, was dominated by relatively few, large individuals of Mora excelsa. The very dense, thin-stemmed quackal forest, almost permanently flooded by black water, was characterized by Tabebuia insignis and Symphonia globulifera and contained few palms. The somewhat less dense manicole swamp, flooded regularly by brackish water, was distinguished by large numbers of Euterpe oleracea. Although the three swamps showed little overlap in floristic composition and densities of dominant species, they represent some of the lowest diversity forest in the Neotropics, with an alpha-diversity of 7.4 for the Mora forest, 8.2 for the quackal forest and 5.7 for the manicole swamp. When compared with similar vegetation types in the Guiana Shield, the swamp forests in this study show some interesting differences in species composition and density. The wetlands of the North-West District form the last stretch of natural coastline in Guyana and play an important role in the protection of riverine ecosystems. Furthermore, there is commercial potential for the extraction of non-timber forest products from these low-diversity forests. Nevertheless, in prolonged dry periods, large tracts of quackal forest are being burnt to give way to almost treeless, flooded savannas. For these reasons, adequate management and conservation strategies must be developed for the area.
van Andel, T.R. 2000. Non-timber forest products of the North-West district of Guyana Part I and II.
This PhD thesis contains detailed botanical and use descriptions, drawings and photographs of hundreds of plants used by Carib, Warao and Arawak Indians in Northwest Guyana. This two-volume book can be downloaded for free from the Tropenbos Web site: www.tropenbos.org
For more information, please contact: Tinde van Andel, National Herbarium of the Netherlands-Utrecht branch, P.O. Box 80102, 3508 TC Utrecht, the Netherlands. E-mail: email@example.com
van Andel, T.R., Bánki, O. and MacKinven, A. 2003. Commercial Non-Timber Forest Products of the Guiana Shield- an inventory of commercial NTFP extraction and possibilities for sustainable harvesting. IUCN
This study was carried out within the framework of the Guiana Shield Initiative of the Netherlands Committee for the IUCN in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. The book gives an overview of those plant and animal species that are currently commercially harvested in Southern Colombia, Southern Venezuela, Northern Brazil and the three Guianas: Guyana, Suriname and French Guiana. Special attention has been paid to wildlife harvesting (bushmeat trade).
This book will soon be available to order through the NC-IUCN,www.guianashield.org/ie/index.htm
Walters, B.B. 2003. People and mangroves in the Philippines: fifty years of coastal environmental change. Environ. Conserv. 30(3):293-303.
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