Local Institutions in forest management A Policy Brief

The successes of community organizations in management of natural resources depend largely on the ability of local communities to self organize themselves into collective action groups. Natural Resource Management being an approach that integrates research on different types of natural resources into stakeholder-driven processes of adaptive management and innovation, local institutions may use collective action to improve livelihoods, ensure ecosystem resilience, improve agricultural productivity and ensure a sustained availability of environmental services. Since the introduction of a New Forest Policy in 2005, Kenya has now accepted the important role played by local community institutions in management of natural resources.