Forest Livelihood Values and Management Opportunities to Support the Agrarian Transition in Nepal

There are significant changes in rural livelihoods as Nepali society passes through an agrarian transition. Understanding those changes is fundamental to guiding approaches to support communities to generate sustainable development pathways and to adapt to risk. The socio-ecological research examines how community forests are used by different household groups across the mid-hills of central Nepal. Results from a quantitative survey of community forest user group members suggest that households are increasingly reliant on off-farm/forest activities. While the forest remains important for subsistence activities, including providing fodder and mulch to support agroforestry, households are less actively managing or utilising community forests. As rural societies evolve and people become less immediately dependent on their local environments, policy will need to adjust to support complex agroforestry systems for multiple direct livelihood benefits. Socio-economic and demographic structural changes are important determinant factors in driving a divergence in the direct use values of the forest. Knowledge of complex local socio-ecological situations can guide multifunctional natural resource management outcomes that provide unique pathways for different types of households reliant on subsistence agroforestry and commercial harvesting activities. Without such knowledge of changing local environmental management needs, the evolving relationships between communities and their natural resources are likely to remain important, largely overlooked drivers of policy complexity within developing countries during agrarian transitions.