Non-timber forest products and village livelihoods in Rajasthan, India: adaptation in a changing environment

ABSTRACT

This paper presents the results of research conducted between 2009 and 2014 in the village of Khanda Sharol in the state of Rajasthan, India. Our research objective was to determine how the livelihoods of village residents have been affected by the intensification of forest use, and the resulting loss of domestic access to traditionally used forest resources. Results indicate that changes in forest cover have resulted in a loss of livelihood options for village residents. Yet rather than being victimized by environmental change processes, this paper shows how villagers have responded by partnering with public and private actors to develop a community protected forest area that is now helping villagers to meet their livelihood needs. These findings suggest that sustainable livelihoods in rural regions of India require committed and scaled approaches involving local, public, and private actors.

KEYWORDS:

• Non-timber forest products
• community forest management
• collective action
• socioecological adaptation
• tribal people

Acknowledgements

We gratefully acknowledge the overwhelming kindness and support of villagers from Khanda Sharol. Their generosity, together with the genuine contributions, made this research a success. We would also like to thank Alex Gresiuk for producing Figure 1.

This research was made possible by the funding support of the Canadian International Development Agency.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This research was made possible by the funding support of the Canadian International Development Agency.