Connecting Communities and Conservation: Collaborative Management of Protected Areas in Bangladesh

Jefferson Fox, Bryan R. Bushley, Wendy B. Miles, and Shimona A. Quazi (eds.)

Jan 1, 2008

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Format

paper

Pages

282

ISBN

984-300-002284-6

Bangladesh has one of the highest population densities and one of the lowest levels of protected area coverage in the world. As a result, sustainable natural resource management and biodiversity conservation are critical issues. To address these issues, the Nishorgo Support Project was launched in 2003 as an undertaking of the Forest Department of Bangladesh, with financial and technical support from USAID. The overall goal of the Nishorgo Support Project is to enhance biodiversity conservation in targeted protected areas through the active and formal involvement of local communities dependent on forest resources.

This book is the second of two volumes investigating recent and ongoing initiatives for the co-management of natural resources being implemented by the Nishorgo Support Project. The first volume investigated issues of rural livelihoods near protected areas selected as pilot co-management sites by the Nishorgo Support Project. This current volume illustrates that the co-management of natural resources and protected areas occurs on multiple levels. The authors show that although community-based natural resource management is still in its infancy in Bangladesh, measurable improvement has been made in terms of poverty reduction, gender equity, resource dependence, and income-earning opportunities. However, co-management is not only about allowing local citizens to participate in forest management activities and share in the benefits that these activities produce; local users and stakeholders must also have the ability to influence the decisions that affect their livelihoods and their access to resources. It is in this area of participation that many issues remain to be addressed. Lack of local stakeholder input afflicts not only the governance machinery in place for co-management (i.e., the structure of the councils, committees, and forest user groups), but also the biological and social monitoring process, and the means by which PA benefits are distributed and selected.

The two volumes were produced under a joint applied research project of the Nishorgo Support Project and the East-West Center (Honolulu, Hawaii). Through this project a series of workshops were arranged in 2006 and 2007 to engage Bangladeshi researchers in developing research proposals and conducting field studies in any of the pilot protected areas, and to write up their results. The overall objective of this research initiative was to encourage the Forest Department and local academic institutions to conduct applied research in order to support the design of new and more appropriate management plans and policies for protected areas in Bangladesh. The applied research process was led by Dr. Jefferson Fox of the East-West Center (Honolulu, Hawaii) in collaboration with the Nishorgo Program of the Bangladesh Forest Department. This research effort was financed by the Government of Bangladesh and USAID. The Nishorgo Support Project receives technical assistance from IRG of Washington DC/USA and its partner NGOs, CODEC, RDRS, NACOM and IUCN/Bangladesh.

CONTENTS

Front matter
Introduction: Participation and the Collaborative Management of Protected Areas in Bangladesh: Shimona A. Quazi, Bryan R. Bushley, and Wendy B. Miles
Chapter 1. Constraints in Policy and Legislation with Respect to the Performance of Co-Management Initiatives at Chunati Wildlife Sanctuary: Md. Abdullah Abraham Hossain
Chapter 2. Governance Through Protected Area Conservation Co-Management Committees: A Case Study at Lawachara National Park: Ruhul Mohaiman Chowdhury
Chapter 3. The Role of Women in Co-Management at Lawachara National Park: Shamima Begum Shewli
Chapter 4. Impacts of Co-Management Activities on Women Members of Forest User Groups in Satchari National Park: Rizwana Subhani
Chapter 5. Assessing Stakeholder Participation in Co-Management Activities at Chunati Wildlife Sanctuary: Md. Kabir Hossain Patwary
Chapter 6. Local Knowledge of Indicator Birds: Implications for Community-Based Ecological Monitoring in Teknaf Game Reserve: Md. Nayeemul Karim
Chapter 7. Co-Management of Protected Areas without Local Knowledge and Participation: A Case Study of Lawachara National Park: Mohammad Abdul Aziz
Chapter 8. Can Alternative Income Generating Activities Reduce Dependence on Protected Areas? Evidence from Teknaf Game Reserve: Quazi Md. Nurul Karim
Chapter 9. Fuelwood, Alternative Energy and Forest User Groups in Chunati Wildlife Sanctuary: Bikash Chandra Saha Roy
Chapter 10. Evaluating Co-Management as a Tool for the Reduction of Poverty and Inequality in Chunati Wildlife Sanctuary: Md. Ehsanul Hoque
Chapter 11. Assessment of Human Well-Being under Co-Management Initiatives in Chunati Wildlife Sanctuary: Abu Rushed Jamil Mahmood
Back cover

Bangladesh has one of the highest population densities and one of the lowest levels of protected area coverage in the world. As a result, sustainable natural resource management and biodiversity conservation are critical issues. To address these issues, the Nishorgo Support Project was launched in 2003 as an undertaking of the Forest Department of Bangladesh, with financial and technical support from USAID. The overall goal of the Nishorgo Support Project is to enhance biodiversity conservation in targeted protected areas through the active and formal involvement of local communities dependent on forest resources.

This book is the second of two volumes investigating recent and ongoing initiatives for the co-management of natural resources being implemented by the Nishorgo Support Project. The first volume investigated issues of rural livelihoods near protected areas selected as pilot co-management sites by the Nishorgo Support Project. This current volume illustrates that the co-management of natural resources and protected areas occurs on multiple levels. The authors show that although community-based natural resource management is still in its infancy in Bangladesh, measurable improvement has been made in terms of poverty reduction, gender equity, resource dependence, and income-earning opportunities. However, co-management is not only about allowing local citizens to participate in forest management activities and share in the benefits that these activities produce; local users and stakeholders must also have the ability to influence the decisions that affect their livelihoods and their access to resources. It is in this area of participation that many issues remain to be addressed. Lack of local stakeholder input afflicts not only the governance machinery in place for co-management (i.e., the structure of the councils, committees, and forest user groups), but also the biological and social monitoring process, and the means by which PA benefits are distributed and selected.

The two volumes were produced under a joint applied research project of the Nishorgo Support Project and the East-West Center (Honolulu, Hawaii). Through this project a series of workshops were arranged in 2006 and 2007 to engage Bangladeshi researchers in developing research proposals and conducting field studies in any of the pilot protected areas, and to write up their results. The overall objective of this research initiative was to encourage the Forest Department and local academic institutions to conduct applied research in order to support the design of new and more appropriate management plans and policies for protected areas in Bangladesh. The applied research process was led by Dr. Jefferson Fox of the East-West Center (Honolulu, Hawaii) in collaboration with the Nishorgo Program of the Bangladesh Forest Department. This research effort was financed by the Government of Bangladesh and USAID. The Nishorgo Support Project receives technical assistance from IRG of Washington DC/USA and its partner NGOs, CODEC, RDRS, NACOM and IUCN/Bangladesh.