The workshop described in these pages was the culmination of over 12 months of engagement by a team of researchers from the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) and the World Agroforestry Center (ICRAF) under what was to become a research grant from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), provided through the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development. Working under the umbrella of the Liberia Forest Initiative (LFI), the team was quickly made aware of the fact that community forestry, one of the three proposed pillars that would drive the renaissance of the Liberian forest sector, was at...

A group of about 100 national and international experts and stakeholders met near Monrovia, from December 12-15, 2005, to discuss the way forward for community forestry in Liberia. The meeting aimed to develop a clear definition of community forestry within the Liberian context, explore the main expectations of local communities, relevant Government of Liberia agencies, and other stakeholders in community forestry, and deliberate on possible next steps to promote community forestry in Liberia. It was convened under the umbrella of the Liberia Forest Initiative (LFI), with support from the U.S. Agency for International Development, the Forestry Development Authority (FDA), Center...

What follows are selected excerpts from one of three articles that appeared in Liberian newspapers during or shortly after the workshop. Additionally there was a one hour interview with John Woods and Ravi Prabhu on Radio Veritas, which is not reproduced here.

“The government should see reason to recognize customary rights of rural people to the land and forest resources and complete the land registration process with a clear view of equitably taking into account customary rights.”

“Speaking at the closing ceremony, Dr. Amos C. Sawyer described the deliberations at the workshop as democratic and the beginning of a new...

The Liberia Forest Initiative is a concerted effort by the NTGL, the international community, including the U.S. government, the European Union, and a group of international NGOs including CI, FFI, and IUCN, to define critical action programs that will assist the Liberian government in meeting the requirements for the lifting of sanctions imposed by the U.N. Security Council on timber exports and in reforming the forestry sector to international standards of sustainable forest management. Among the reform programs is community forestry.

I invite you to begin this community forestry workshop in the frame of mind set by John Gay, former...

Today, I think you all need a hand of applause first. I know Dr. Sawyer will be speaking after me, but I thought I would just in a special way, on behalf of the FDA family and the folks we’ve worked with, we would want to acknowledge your presence [Dr. Swayer] and say thanks for coming and being a part of our process. I think we have all read the three UN Security Council Resolutions on Liberia, amongst them the continuation of sanctions. And there is one thing that always comes every time we look at the resolutions: revenues from...

About 70% of Liberia’s rural dwellers earn their living from forest and forest related products relying on firewood and charcoal as the main source of energy generation for cooking and heating. Agricultural activities are the other major sources of income for the communities. Protection and management of National Forest areas and reserves have been the greatest concern to the communities. Increasing resistance by resident communities and the declining availability of public funds to meet full protection and management of forest resources has forced government and other conservation organization to consider the role of local communities in the protection of biodiversity...

As our nation recovers from the ashes of war, it is the binding duty of each Liberian professional to give his/her expertise wherever needed so that together, we can improve the lives of our citizens. Community Forestry is one of the ways and means through which we can achieve this objective. Through Community Forestry, our people will be able to appreciate their own environment, the value and usefulness of their forest and in the long term, they will also benefit from community forestry development programs in terms of employment.

In consideration of the importance of the program and the enormous...

The following notes reflect findings in two reports – Community cohesion in Liberia – a rapid post-conflict social assessment (Richards et al. 2005), and Land, agriculture and conflict in West Africa: Cote d’Ivoire, Liberia, Sierra Leone (Chauveau & Richards 2005).

The first report provides a context for debates about community-driven reconstruction post-war Liberia. It shows that because of the country’s history the very notion of “community” is highly politicised and problematic, and that establishing civil society and social cohesion requires considerable debate among Liberians.

The second report frames a discussion about land, property rights, and youth and gender issues to be...

The presentation broadly illustrate how a careful analysis of revenue, social, spatial, management and investment planning issues around trees, tree systems and their products can help us provide development support through research in community forestry in Liberia.

Firestone has over 80 years experience working with communities in Liberia.

Land provided to Firestone by the Government of Liberia through residents of Harbel and its surrounding communities.

Firestone is the single largest employer (private) in Liberia besides the Government of Liberia

There is no meaningful development in Liberia if communities are isolated.

Firestone contributes to development of rural communities through partnership in...

In the context of community forestry, much of the literature sees ‘communities’ in 3 major ways: as a spatial unit, as a social structure, and as a set of shared and locally-evolved norms and rules about managing the world’s critical natural resource base efficiently: forests being the case in point. In other words communities of agrarian and resource-dependent families are defined in terms of space, size, composition, interactions, interest and objectives. It is on the basis of one or a combination of these ideas that most of the advocacy of community rests.

The characterisation of a community as a small,...

Community forestry offers local dwellers enormous opportunities to improve their livelihoods and communities through management of forest resources. Community forestry, according to the 16^th Report of the Regional Community Forestry Training Center, is being increasingly seen as:

A social movement whereby local communities are expressing their desire to be actually involved in the management of their local resources;

A process oriented approach rather than a project or government programme;

A global movement giving voice to community (both in developed and developing countries) and allowing them to better control their own destinies in the face of increasing globalization;

A way to...