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Governance challenges for commercial exploitation of a non-timber forest product by marginalized rural communities

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 April 2016

ALAINE A. BALL  and
PEDRO H.S. BRANCALION
ALAINE A. BALL*
Affiliation:
The Whitney and Betty MacMillan Center for International and Area Studies, Yale University, Luce Hall, 34 Hillhouse Avenue, New Haven, CT 06511, USA Department of Forest Sciences, ‘Luiz de Queiroz’ College of Agriculture, University of São Paulo, Avenida Pádua Dias 11, Piracicaba-SP, 13418-260, Brazil
PEDRO H.S. BRANCALION
Affiliation:
Department of Forest Sciences, ‘Luiz de Queiroz’ College of Agriculture, University of São Paulo, Avenida Pádua Dias 11, Piracicaba-SP, 13418-260, Brazil
*
*Correspondence: Alaine A. Ball, Rua Diogo Jácome, 1030 Ap 61 Moema, São Paulo-SP Brazil 04512-001 Tel: +1 505 672 8703 e-mail: alaine.ball@gmail.com
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Summary

While conservation and development projects focusing on non-timber forest products (NTFPs) remain popular approaches to address complex issues of livelihood improvement and conservation, governance of NTFPs is still poorly understood. In the Atlantic Forest biodiversity hotspot of Brazil, non-governmental organizations, researchers and community leaders are encouraging the commercialization of fruit pulp-based products from the endangered palm Euterpe edulis, known as juçara, to replace income from illegal heart of palm extraction. In order to assess the governance of development of juçara pulp as an NTFP and the potential to increase conservation of juçara through management on smallholder properties, we conducted qualitative research in São Paulo State from October 2012 to October 2013. Major challenges include policy barriers, difficulties integrating production and commercialization, problematic assumptions about poverty alleviation and the inability of the most disadvantaged members of communities to benefit. These governance challenges are a function of poor access, or the ‘bundle of powers’ that enables the ability to benefit. However, engagement with juçara fruit pulp production links farmers and former poachers with sustainable agricultural concepts and with networks, changing their perceptions of conservation and enhancing ability to benefit from improved policy.

Keywords

Atlantic Forestcommunity-based conservationEuterpe edulisforest governancesocial capitalsustainable development
Type
Papers
Information
Environmental Conservation , Volume 43 , Issue 3 , September 2016 , pp. 208 - 220
Copyright
Copyright © Foundation for Environmental Conservation 2016 

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