Field workers with farmers in Central Laos.
Photo: Xiong Tsechalicha
By Bijaya Raj Paudyal, Marietta Guanzon, Xiong Tsechalicha, Vern Weitzel
(BMX-V Consultants)
This book will help community-level development field workers understand the basic concepts of Environmentally Sustainable Development, or ESD. ESD asks people to live without degrading the environment or disregarding future generations. Field workers are often the critical link between the community and outside organisations. While many field workers have important technical or social skills, they may less understand ESD. If you don't understand ESD, then this book can help you. We've tried to make this a non-technical book.
It can sharpen your skills in working with local communities to promote ESD. We give a short a checklist of major environmental problems that can help you see problems that may be outside your special interest area.
This book is designed mainly for use in Asian rural communities, but the concepts are general enough that this book may have greater applicability. If you think it has, then by all means use this book to your advantage.
This book just gives an overview of ESD, we hope it will be enough to help you make some wise decisions about the future. However, the wisest thing you can do is to learn even more about ESD, so you can improve environmental awareness in your community.
Yet environmental awareness is not a simple subject. Though we are learning more about environment management, science is not perfect nor can it see everywhere. We all need to help one another to build better solutions to environmental problems. Local people and scientists, social workers and, politicians and government officials need to work together. Everyone has valuable knowledge. And everyone can learn from everyone else.
Several good books are available, often in your own languages. Here are examples. Caring for the earth, a strategy for sustainable living [World Conservation Union (IUCN), Gland, 1991] can tell you a great deal about the ESD approach to development. Robert Chambers', Rural development: putting the last first. [Longman, New York, 1983] shows rural poverty from the viewpoint of poor people. The World Bank participation source book. [World Bank, Washington DC, 1996] has many examples of motivating local people. The Global Biodiversity Strategy [IUCN, Gland, 1989 and 1992] gives ideas on how to live with nature. Agenda 21 [United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, 1992]. We have relied heavily on these books.
We have presented the material to help you come up with your own ideas on improving the environment. Innovation can start with you. It need not be tied to government programs. However, if at all possible, you should integrate these concepts with existing environmental programs in your country.
We have published this field guide without copyright. Individuals and development agencies may republish this material, providing the authors are credited.
Bijaya Raj Paudyal, Marietta Guanzon,
Xiong Tsechalicha, Vern
Weitzel
Field workers with farmers in Central Laos.
Photo: Xiong
Tsechalicha
Two eyes, two ears, one mouth.
That proverb is the core of this little book.
Both the world and the local garden patch are changing so rapidly that science can't keep up. At the same time, the farming skills that people in the country side developed over of generations often are no longer so useful because conditions have changed.
You can see changes in water, soil, pastures and forests, maybe even in the behaviour of your neighbours. Most of us talk about the problems that some of those changes cause. How do we see - find the basic causes - and how do we listen to one another so we can together respond more effectively?
Some changes are hard to interpret. These may need a detailed scientific study. But many changes are easier to see if we know how to look. It is important that everyone today see these changes and know how to respond to them. Everyone can help. Many farmers know their own fields (and maybe their neighbours fields) as well as technicians know their special subjects. The farmers' closeness to the land makes their knowledge very valuable.
In order to make a difference, people need to work together. Community welfare is a community task. This isn't something that just happens. It takes a special kind of skill to organise communities and different interests among communities so they can face challenges. Skilled people who understand critical issues. Critical issues like:
* how a community uses its natural environment and the environment's capacity to adapt,
* what improvements a community may want and the problems those changes can cause,
* how government or aid agencies can help and how much local people can do on their own,
* what communities can do themselves and how much more they can do when neighbouring communities work together,
* how all groups in a community can make a living and still leave a chance for their children's children for a better future.
Perhaps just as important, there is a need for people who can be 'change agents'. Change agents are inventive people, people who can and see better solutions to the problems they face today, but solutions that are healthier both for the community and the environment. Change agents can be anyone, perhaps the most important are local people who may have more ideas than ways to develop them. You are a change agent.
Environmental awareness is for everyone: from school children to the aged. Children can be energetic change agents. The wisdom of older people should never be neglected even in these times of change.
You can see change everywhere. If you can foresee this change better then you can better determine the well-being of your family, your community and your country through future generations. It depends on whether you can make informed choices today to ensure your family's security in years to come.
This book gives only some of the more important ideas to help you think about how your work fits into the bigger and the smaller picture. We can't cover many details, problems or disputes among experts and villagers alike. We hope that you can find more detailed information in your country to learn more.
This book is like a third eye or a new set of glasses. It should help you see better. But it is up to you to think about what you see.
Some of you come from within a community and so you may know a lot about the people and problems in that community. Some of you come from outside, and you may know a lot more about aid and other resources that can be sent to communities. Some of you have technical, management or social skills. Many of you have some special skills. Many others are local volunteers who mainly want to help in their communities - and that too can be a very special skill.
Just so, most people have some kind of focus, something they do very well. And because they have this focus, it is often easy for them to neglect wider concerns.
A field worker listening and learning as well as advising.
(Nepal
Australia Community Forestry Project)
In this book we will look first at those wider concerns (to step back and see the world), and then refocus on what you are doing at home. The idea isn't just to know more, it is to know more about how things work together so we can better manage change.
You should think both globally and to act locally (to apply those goals in what you do every day). If you think globally and act locally you constantly adjust your focus as changes occur around you, as new problems develop, and as you solve those problems.
As a field worker, you help make change possible. Maybe this means you will be a leader. Leadership depends on local conditions and there are many ways to lead. Lao Tsu said that "the Best Leaders are those who the people do not even see.... When the Best Leader's work is done, the people say, 'we did it ourselves'".
It is sometimes hard to see what is going on in any community. Even insiders form groups which may not share knowledge. Outside field workers can fail in many ways. You may see only some places and not others, some seasons or times in the day. You may work only in places associated with your project. You may talk with certain people (leaders, male adults, active people or certain workers) and not others (those excluded from leadership, women and children, the sick or weak or those who are absent).
Professionals too have many different viewpoints: some have practical aims and others prefer research. Some look close, others step back. Almost nobody has enough time to do as much as they should.
Maybe you are too polite to ask difficult or searching questions. Or you rely so much on their filling in papers, that you miss the obvious fact.
"And what is your occupation?"
It is not enough for you to check items on a question form that was designed by people who have never visited the community - it is far more important to look behind the answers that people give to search out the issues that are important to locals.
If you think about this ahead of time, you can work out ways of doing this that don't cost you a lot of time. Call them cost-effective insights.
In this book we encourage you to look for insights in local communities, and especially to support projects that start locally. Yet it is also true that local people often depend on an outsider's knowledge. This is especially true in such areas as health and nutrition, technology and market knowledge, aid and government assistance. But outsiders can also bring along some wrong assumptions. For example, why use chemical instead of organic fertilisers and pesticides? Is it more practical to use mechanical instead of human power?
Please remember this: Field workers too may have biases. What you may believe is best for a community, just might be wrong. If this worries you, then you need to adjust your thinking. Because innovation has its root in doubt, discussion and a willingness to learn as well as the ability to teach.
Social and environmental problems and solutions are mixed up like a big knot of string. By tracing single lengths of string you can save most of the string. But cutting through the knot with a knife leaves you only worthless little bits.
But poverty is a relative condition. People are poor compared to what at least some people think isn't poverty. Different people, even within a community, have different ideas of what poverty means. For example, subsistence farming communities may be poor in education, money or power but rich in fresh air, food security and beautiful view out the door. All of this has a value to us. In setting a goal to improve some things, we should be careful about what we trade away. What we lose this way may be something you never regain.
The most obvious factor is poverty: poor housing, no land or other assets, little food or money. Families can become isolated from other community activities and the outside world. Lack of assets makes them vulnerable in the face of emergencies such as illness or death, crop loss. These uncertainties occur in any society. Disadvantaged families are often physically weak, sick, handicapped. Those who can work spend time helping those who cannot. With so few resources, and no bargaining power, disadvantaged families are powerless. They can be victimised by more powerful people.
Some groups may be especially disadvantaged. For example, women may do most of the work yet maybe you can only speak with the men. How would you solve this problem?
A field worker and community interest groups.
(Nepal Australia Community
Forestry Project.)
Cultural issues are very important. People may believe that dowries, funerals and festivals are necessary expenses. A family may need expensive medicine. Working groups may be tied to legal battles or business problems.
Exploiters can threaten a family until it collapses from stress. Anything that happens will make everything worse for some people. This makes it easier for others, who are not so disadvantaged, to exploit them. But as often as not the 'exploiters' feel they are mistreated in doing what they think is the right thing.
Each of these five factors (poverty, isolation, vulnerability, physical weakness, powerlessness) contributes to making the others worse. People with only a little wealth, can lose it easily. And this will draw them even deeper into poverty. It can be very hard to get out of poverty. Poor communities as well may become more impoverished without influence, resources or after a natural disaster.
Local elites, and businesses, the very people an outside field worker may meet first, may be exploiters or helpers of the very poor. What is certain is that the leaders also have their problems - and their interest in getting resources that a field worker may bring into the community.
The game played with nature is mainly predicting the future. Farmers may not like new farming practices if they can't guess its value to them. Their knowledge is based on their experience. Poor farmers only get poorer by trying a new idea. They may have many reasons for following certain practices. If you understand these it will help you know more about the pressures on a community.
A game played with other people may take many forms. How to help people should work together for common interests and not against one another, is an important part of this book. But there will always be conflicts, even among friends. Self-interest is important so long as other people's interests (including respect for future generations) are included.
When people do not trust one another, they try to guess what the other will do. This can mean that people will make poor choices. If an irrigation canal has only a little water but many people can use the canal, some people may steal water for their fields. Those who may know better may feel they too should take what water they can, even if they know it will empty the canal. If they do not do this, they believe they will have dry fields and a poor crop.
But if people sure that water is given out fairly, then there might be less stealing of water. We are always worried that some people will get an unfair advantage at the cost of the rest of us.
In many communities there is property which people believe does not belong to anyone: common property. Sometimes government property can be seen in this way as well. If everyone feels they can use common land but no one has responsibility for it, then the land can become degraded and useless for any good purpose. This might not happen if the land had an owner or manager.
In both of our examples, it helps if people can work out, or negotiate, how they use resources. But beware. Some people are in a better negotiating position than others. Can you think of how you can help see that more powerful people do not take advantage of others? How can you encourage people to work together?
As a field worker, you no longer just carry important ideas, science and technical solutions into a community. You now also help local user groups work out differences, and then set and achieve common goals. You bring your skill in negotiating among users, who may well know their jobs very well. You also can help show communities the results different development paths may give and the environmental costs of development.
As the 'change agent', you should understand as much you can about the environment and about how communities work.
Community participation means involving communities in solving their own development and environment management problems. Participation helps local communities work out new solutions to agricultural problems, solutions that combine outsider's science with insider's local knowledge. But there are many ways participation can fail.
Imagine what would happen if you demand that everyone follow their advice. Not respecting local opinions often means that you will not be respected. And even well-intentioned threats terrible environmental losses can lead to anger and distrust.
Very often outside agencies want to get community opinion to help them prepare projects. This helps, but it does not let locals make decisions. In fact, it is easy for their ideas can be misunderstood.
It is sometimes very hard to get local people involved. You need to know the reasons behind this and try to solve the problem. Your goal is to increase community cooperation, negotiation and teamwork. It is also important that certain user groups do not capture participation for themselves. In the best world, everyone should speak, everyone should be appreciated and involved and everyone should benefit.
Consider putting all these ideas together like this: Listening, Learning, Enabling, Empowering, Encouraging, Engaging.
Our world is a house. We all live there.
Some resources cannot be replaced. And we over-use other resources. It is easy to do this because we live in a time of change and uncertainty and it is hard to predict the future. But over time, we can see the effect in degraded lands, in poisoned waters and polluted living conditions.
One way to look at this is to assume that the world is like our house. We use bits of our house to live. If we need firewood, we burn a house post. If we need a bed, tear out a wall. We feed roofing thatch to our animals and heap all our garbage in the corner. Our house falls apart. We don't like to live there.
That is what is happening to our world.
We live in a very big house. Most of it is over the horizon and out of sight. Someone you will never know can pollute the air that you breath, and that will cause your trees to die.
Some damage takes place so slowly we hardly notice it. While it is easy to see what should be done in this simple story, it is much harder for all of us to understand all the things that add up to environmental destruction in the real world.
We can damage our world by destroying things we depend on. It is easy to see that if we clear a hillside forest then farm it and destroy soils, then it is true that farming land is lost and rain falling on bare ground will cause floods. We all see this is bad.
It is harder to see some other damage we are doing at the same time. In destroying forests, we lose many plants and animals. But we also lose the way that all these living things fit together. Plants and animals whose lives weave together like the threads of a cloth, or like the thatched panels of our world-house, to give our world's environment strength and stability. Making the living world simpler makes it harder to bounce back from any disaster.
So it is said that if farming is reduced to a few kinds of crops, then a few pests will eat everything. If we lose the natural plant varieties from which modern crops come, then we will also lose an important way to improve those crops - the natural resistance in wild varieties.
Because many things in nature work together in ways we don't always understand, this kind of change can be very dangerous. If we cannot be sure about the results of our actions, then it is important that we take care that we do not change things too much.
In doing more damage, we then leave fewer choices for the future. Some changes cannot be reversed. What we had before will be lost forever. We really should try hard think ahead to what we are getting into because the world we are building is not as stable as the one we are tearing apart.
Two important principles are that we should understand our limits and stay within those limits.
People produce things for daily use. They also build things: homes and community halls, roads and canals, hospitals and sewers. What we build is a resource.
We learn important skills in life. We get an education. Some are practical or technical skills which help us at work. Some are cultural or social skills which help us become better people or maybe enjoy life a little more. Traditional knowledge is very important to the livelihood of many people and it should not be lost. Cultural traditions are important if we are to build upon our history. These are all resources.
Then there are natural resources. We use natural resources to build things so we can live better. Clean water and air are also important natural resources. In building our farms or towns, we should not also cause great damage to forests and streams or destroy our of health, safety and sense of well-being.
This is one simple definition of sustainability. Sustainability means you take only enough fish to make sure that there will always be enough fish for people to catch. This is the simple idea. Sustainability becomes more difficult when, for example, you need to balance fishing with other important community uses for your lake.
An overloaded environment sinks.
If you overload a boat, it will sink. If you overload your environment, it will become degraded. This is because there are limits past which you cannot go without if you don't want the whole system to fail. It is probably quite true that you can load more cargo onto your boat, if you rebuild the boat so it can hold more. This may make other problems for you - perhaps the new boat will be too slow. You need to think about those trade offs.
In the same way, innovation or technology can help you produce more from the land. Maybe you can do this as very little cost to the environment. So while there are definite limits to what you can do, it is possible that clever thinking can help you get more out of what you have.
In many countries the human population is growing rapidly. Our 'world-boat' is getting overloaded. We can improve our boat so more people can live on it. But there are limits to this. Most people who are already on the world-boat expect better services for themselves and their children, everything from an education to a refrigerator. So most people expect to consume more. Clever thinking alone may not be enough. We will need to stabilise our population growth if we are to achieve sustainability.
Each of these three parts of our life is important. If we emphasise the jobs and the economy we may lose something from our culture and environment. At the same moment, if we only think of preserving forests or saving our cultural heritage, then we will not benefit economically.
Think of a community as the cooking tripod that farmers use every day. You can only put your pot onto the tripod if all three legs are sturdy and stable. If any one of them (society, economy and environment) is weak, your dinner pot will fall over.
linked goals: environment, economy and society
The question is one of balance. And balance is something that we need to decide as a community, using as much information as we can possibly put together. You, the field worker, are important in helping people give a value to each of these legs of their parts of their life.
* We say that the environment is very important both economically and to our own well-being. The environment supports all life and damaging the environment will effect all our lives.
* Whatever we decide to do, it is not just for today. It is important for us to think carefully about what we are leaving our children and their children, and families everyone else, through out the world.
* It is important that poor people improve their living standards and their choices for the future. Some groups: fore example, women, ethnic minorities, castes, the under-educated and the weak. Denying the poorest people leave them no choice but to unsustainably exploit the world.
* Everyone at every level is important. Everyone has a part. Everyone can contribute.
There are no easy answers to these questions. No one knows everything. But everyone can be environmentally responsible, thoughtful, and at the same time, clever.
You help make change possible by seeing that communities have the skills and knowledge to manage their future. You bring information about government programs and special scientific knowledge.
But at the end of this, your work is to help make the community stronger. And the pebble disappears to the bottom.
You are like a pebble thrown into the water.
The checklist on following pages is to help you improve environmental awareness in your community by identifying existing problems and suggesting possible courses of action. The checklist contains sections on community social services, ways of making a living and natural resources.
We designed the checklist to help you see environmental pressures on your community, then determine the underlying causes of these pressures and then consider possible responses. We list a few common local responses and important sustainability principles that you should consider. Your response should consider what you will do about the underlying causes as well as what you will do about the immediate problems.
Basically, you use the checklist by finding the activities and structures of your community in' Community Situation' column. Then look for the kinds of problems you actually see in the 'Immediate Causes' column . You can tick boxes in all columns under any of these sections. Try to identify 'Underlying Causes' of these problems in the next column.
Tick as many boxes as you can identify problems. For example, if your community use of non-timber forest products, you might tick over-harvesting, resource depletion as problems. You might decide that food and medicinal needs, cash demand, open access, too many licenses or outsider's moving in on local resources may be some of the underlying causes.
The responses too can be of different kinds across checklist sections. The 'Local Response' column gives some options other communities have tried. The last column, 'Sustainability Principles' should give you an idea of what you are aiming for.
Your task is to pick up most workable and appropriate solutions to your problems. The same approach applies to any other sections. Remember that problems in different parts of this checklist be linked. One problem can worsen the effect of another. Solutions too can be found anywhere on this checklist.
Many more problems and solutions exist in the real world than we show on this very brief checklist! The job for you and your community is to find them.
This short checklist is a guide to help you to see problems so you and your community work together and respond more effectively.
| Community Situation | Problems | Local Response | Sustainability Principles | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Immediate | Underlying Causes | |||
| I. Social and economic situation | ||||
| A. Health and Nutrition | ||||
|
[ ] Clinic [ ] Family planning [ ] Health education [ ] Immunisation Program [ ] Mother and Child Care [ ] Medical personnel [ ] Toilets - [ ] Septic tanks - [ ] Sewerage recycling - [ ] Composting manure [ ] Garbage collection [ ] Cemetery [ ] Water and Sanitation |
[ ] Increasing death among children, mothers, etc. [ ] Poor nutrition [ ] Insufficient doctors, nurses, midwives [ ] Diseases are common [ ] Limited modern medicines [ ] Distant water source [ ] No drinking water [ ] Burial near fields/homes |
[ ] Limited government support [ ] Lack of local funds [ ] Lack of health education [ ] Lack of community health awareness [ ] Few health personnel |
[ ] Paramedics [ ] Use of herbal medicine [ ] Traditional healers [ ] Garbage recycling [ ] Demand from local users to improve health and nutrition services [ ] Local campaign for good health [ ] Appropriate medicine use |
* Health awareness * Health security * Health services and workers * Good Sanitation * Clean water supply and proper waste disposal |
| Community Situation | Problems | Local Response | Sustainability Principles | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Immediate | Underlying Causes | |||
| I. Social and economic situation | ||||
| B. Education | ||||
|
[ ] Basic education [ ] Non-formal education (adult literacy) [ ] Community-based Environmental education [ ] Cultural education [ ] Curriculum on environmental education |
[ ] Shortage of teachers [ ] Lack of classrooms [ ] Low literacy rate [ ] Lack of cultural appreciation |
[ ] Lack of environmental awareness activities [ ] Lack of local initiatives [ ] Lack of funds for education [ ] Work prevents attending school |
[ ] Inclusion of environmental education in curriculum [ ] Sharing knowledge through informal community meeting |
* Environmental awareness in school * Environmental education to government officials * Increase literacy * Adult literacy |
| Community Situation | Problems | Local Response | Sustainability Principles | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Immediate | Underlying Causes | |||
| I. Social and economic situation | ||||
| C. Labour Force | ||||
|
[ ] Agricultural workers [ ] Farmers [ ] Seasonal farm workers [ ] Permanent farm workers [ ] Industrial workers [ ] Government employees [ ] Cottage industry workers [ ] Fishing workers [ ] Forest workers [ ] Livestock raising [ ] Others |
[ ] Low wage [ ] Lack of benefits (health, etc.) [ ] Unhealthy working conditions [ ] Competition for work [ ] Increasing migration from rural t[ ]urban [ ] Lack of capital [ ] No permanent job [ ] Travel to work [ ] Income gap between poorest people and rich [ ] Gender inequality in labour division |
[ ] Lack of job opportunities [ ] Minimum wage regulations are not followed by employers [ ] Contractual basis [ ] No job security [ ] Conflict over limited use of resources [ ] Inequitable income distribution [ ] Gender bias |
[ ] Alternative income sources [ ] Formation of labour unions [ ] Job sharing [ ] Resource allocation and property rights |
* Job security * Good working conditions * Fair wage * Job efficiency * Equal participation |
| Community Situation | Problems | Local Response | Sustainability Principles | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Immediate | Underlying Causes | |||
| I. Social and economic situation | ||||
| D. Infrastructure | ||||
|
[ ] Road [ ] Hospital [ ] School [ ] Irrigation [ ] Community Hall [ ] Religious Centre [ ] Bridge [ ] Electrification [ ] Bank [ ] Small shops/store [ ] Food storage and processing facilities |
[ ] Poor road [ ] Lack of good quality infrastructure [ ] Too far [ ] Flood/ rainy season road |
[ ] Lack of funds for infrastructure improvement [ ] Poor infrastructure [ ] Not accessible [ ] Poor planning [ ] No coordination between agencies |
[ ] Construct alternative bridge, school, meeting place, ropeway, etc. [ ] Alternative sources of power: solar efficiency [ ] Local credit unions |
* Community facilities improvement * Community accessibility people and private sector in developing facilities * Improvement and Maintenance of road conditions using local materials * Enhance local initiatives to develop infrastructure * Coordination between agencies |
| Community Situation | Problems | Local Response | Sustainability Principles | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Immediate | Underlying Causes | |||
| I. Social and economic situation | ||||
| E. Transportation | ||||
|
[ ] Roads/highways [ ] Buses services [ ] Rail transport [ ] Water transport [ ] Draft animals |
[ ] Inaccessible means of transportation [ ] Increasing transport fare [ ] Not accessible to town centre |
[ ] Poor transport facilities [ ] Traditional means of transport |
[ ] Lobby local government to improve transport [ ] Use indigenous means of transport |
* Transport services improvement * Efficient transport |
| Community Situation | Problems | Local Response | Sustainability Principles | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Immediate | Underlying Causes | |||
| I. Social and economic situation | ||||
| F. Communications | ||||
|
[ ] Telephone [ ] Telegrams/ postal [ ] Television/ videos [ ] Radio [ ] Newspaper [ ] Comics/ magazines [ ] Newspaper wall [ ] Local messengers [ ] Information centre | [ ] Poor information circulation [ ] Limited information [ ] Information limited only to specific group [ ] Far from community |
[ ] Poor communication facilities [ ] Lack of government support [ ] Control by local elites [ ] Poor people can not afford |
[ ] Local messenger to relay information [ ] Lack of local resources (funds) [ ] Lack of local initiatives [ ] Informal meeting to share information [ ] Interaction between user groups/organisations |
* More equitable access to information * Encourage local forms of communication * Use of poster, field guides, which are replaceable * Cheap, faster, reliable, accessible information circulation among local and outside groups * Information must be applicable to people |
| Community Situation | Problems | Local Response | Sustainability Principles | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Immediate | Underlying Causes | |||
| I. Social and economic situation | ||||
| G. Marketing facilities | ||||
|
[ ] Trading post [ ] Community market [ ] Wet market [ ] Dry market [ ] Business establishment |
[ ] Far from the community [ ] Low price of produce [ ] High cost of consumer goods |
[ ] Lack of market facilities [ ] Lack of control over prices of produce |
[ ] Cooperative formation [ ] Negotiate with traders for fair pricing |
* Marketing knowledge * Market accessibility and improvement * Increasing producers control over fair pricing * Local cooperatives |
| Community Situation | Problems | Local Response | Sustainability Principles | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Immediate | Underlying Causes | |||
| I. Social and economic situation | ||||
| H. Community Institutions | ||||
|
[ ] Political groups [ ] Sectoral groups [ ] WomenÕs groups [ ] NGOs/private groups [ ] Informal groups (co-ops, loan groups, etc) |
[ ] Lack community activities [ ] Lack of cooperatives [ ] Organisations not aware of community needs [ ] Lack of planning process |
[ ] No local organisations [ ] Interaction/ collaboration among organisations | [ ] Traditional groupings |
* Active participation in community development * Coordination among local groups |
| Community Situation | Problems | Local Response | Sustainability Principles | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Immediate | Underlying Causes | |||
| I. Social and economic situation | ||||
| I. Energy Use | ||||
|
[ ] Electricity - [ ] Hydro-thermo-electric plants - [ ] Solar power [ ] Wind power [ ] Water power [ ] Bio-gas [ ] Bio-mass (firewood, etc) [ ] Oil, Coal |
[ ] Increasing power use [ ] Lack sources of energy [ ] Energy sources (for example, fire wood or kerosene supplies) are far away [ ] Energy is expensive |
[ ] Poor energy facilities [ ] Lack of funding |
[ ] Use of indigenous and low cost energy sources [ ] Energy conservation |
* Indigenous energy use * Non-conventional energy program * Low cost energy sources * Sustain renewal energy use * Conduct Environmental Impact Assessment * Energy efficiency |
| Community Situation | Problems | Local Response | Sustainability Principles | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Immediate | Underlying Causes | |||
| I. Social and economic situation | ||||
| J. Risk Management | ||||
|
[ ] Disaster Preparedness [ ] Program (social, environmental, etc.) [ ] Long-term [ ] Short-term [ ] Relief and Rehabilitation [ ] Emergency services |
[ ] Increasing victims of disaster [ ] Help takes time to reach the community |
[ ] Lack of contingency plans [ ] Lack of disaster preparedness program [ ] Lack emergency services |
[ ] Locally initiated relief activities/action [ ] Sharing of resources in times of disaster |
* Disaster preparedness and planning * Risk aversion |
| Community Situation | Problems | Local Response | Sustainability Principles | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Immediate | Underlying Causes | |||
| II. Livelihood and natural resources | ||||
| A. Farming | ||||
| [ ] Shifting cultivation (slash and burn) |
[ ] Soil erosion [ ] Floods and droughts [ ] Plant and animal loss [ ] Landslides [ ] Downstream problems |
[ ] Loss of surface cover [ ] Increasing people's dependence on resources [ ] Landlessness [ ] Land tenure insecurity |
[ ] Terracing [ ] Contours [ ] Hedgerows |
* Equitable land distribution * Security of tenure * Integrated farming * Impact study |
| [ ] Monoculture (planting only one type of crop) |
[ ] Loss of soil fertility [ ] Pest outbreaks [ ] Traditional varieties loss [ ] Need for pesticides and weedicides |
[ ] High nutrient demand [ ] Crops genetically susceptible to pests |
[ ] Green manuring [ ] Pesticide application [ ] Hand weeding |
* Mulching and composting * Soil structure maintenance * Intercropping * Agroforestry * Land management |
| [ ] Integrated farming (combination of crops, livestock, fish pond, etc.) |
[ ] Weed problems [ ] Financial difficulty [ ] Organic fertiliser lacking (ie. animal dung, green mulch) |
[ ] Capital and labour intensive [ ] Chemical fertilising [ ] Surface run-offs |
[ ] Reduce chemical use [ ] Maintaining fertility level by breaking run-offs |
* Organic fertilising * Planting trees to control erosion |
| [ ] Wet paddy cultivation |
[ ] Water shortage [ ] Less water downstream [ ] Less reliable source of water [ ] Water leakage [ ] Salinity problems |
[ ] High water requirement [ ] Poor water allocation [ ] Taking too much water [ ] Increase surface water |
[ ] More irrigation dams [ ] Better water maintenance [ ] Use of salt-tolerant species |
* Better water allocation * Water conservation * Planting trees to lower water table |
| [ ] Seasonal farming |
[ ] Ineffective resource use [ ] Less care for resource use | [ ] Many people are involved at the same time | [ ] Restricting access |
* Employment opportunities * Alternative sources of livelihood |
| [ ] Gardening |
[ ] Lack of kitchen garden [ ] Lack of feeds |
[ ] Lack of skills [ ] Lack of area for gardening |
[ ] Planting what is available locally [ ] Adopt kitchen garden |
* Enhancing species diversity * Waste recycling |
|
[ ] Agricultural Facilities and Equipment - [ ] Rice mill - [ ] Thresher - [ ] Dryer (rice, tobacco) - [ ] Weeder - [ ] Farm tools (shovel, plow, etc.) |
[ ] Crop loss [ ] Seed storage problem [ ] Expensive [ ] Requires costly operational expenses (labourer, fuel, transport, etc.) |
[ ] Insect and rat damage [ ] Poor storage and transport facilities [ ] Mechanically sophisticated equipment |
[ ] Indigenous preventive knowledge [ ] Poison application [ ] Use of portable equipment for easy transfer |
* Spread knowledge of crop and seed storage * Locally based equipment * Improve transport * Efficient facilities, tools and machines * Coordination with agencies |
| Community Situation | Problems | Local Response | Sustainability Principles | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Immediate | Underlying Causes | |||
| II. Livelihood and natural resources | ||||
| B. Animal Husbandry | ||||
| [ ] Cattle, Buffalo, Sheep |
[ ] Overgrazing [ ] Diseases [ ] Impact on water sources |
[ ] Too many animals [ ] Inadequate rotation [ ] Poor level of vaccination |
[ ] Increase pasture lands [ ] Traditional treatment [ ] Fencing [ ] In-stall feeding [ ] Increase cropping areas |
* Limiting animal numbers * In-stall feeding * Vaccination |
| [ ] Goat |
[ ] Damage to crops if animals are left astray [ ] Competition with crop production |
[ ] No access to veterinary services [ ] Poor fencing [ ] Poor waste management |
[ ] Increase pasture area [ ] Increase cropping land |
* Training for community veterinary workers * Animal health and sanitation * Fodder tree plantation |
| [ ] Piggery, Poultry |
[ ] Increasing feed demand [ ] Expensive feed |
* Rotational grazing management * Improve productivity | ||
| [ ] Nomadic pastoralism |
[ ] Social isolation [ ] No resource management |
[ ] Local resource shortages [ ] Undefined resource ownership |
[ ] Adjusting activities to existing resources | * Adjust movement to take advantage of social services |
| [ ]Aquaculture |
[ ] High water requirement [ ] Mangrove destruction [ ] Mosquito outbreak |
[ ] Water diversion for ponds [ ] Mangrove conversion to fish farms |
* Managing natural fishes * Proper pond maintenance * Fish farming in paddy fields | |
| Community Situation | Problems | Local Response | Sustainability Principles | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Immediate | Underlying Causes | |||
| II. Livelihood and natural resources | ||||
| C. Forestry | ||||
| [ ] Plantation (Trees, shrubs, forests) |
[ ] Single species planted [ ] Poor habitat for wildlife [ ] Inadequate planting [ ] Low survival rate [ ] No land rehabilitation planting (erosion, salinity) [ ] Spread of diseases [ ] Loss of soil fertility |
[ ] Production objectives [ ] Firewood needs [ ] Land shortages [ ] Poor management [ ] Lack of local initiatives [ ] Over-use of chemical fertiliser |
[ ] Indigenous farm management [ ] Community-based plantation management |
* Multi-purpose plantation * Increase species diversity * Better land allocation * Planting right species * Community woodlots * Rehabilitation planting |
| [ ]Natural Forest Use |
[ ] Overcutting [ ] Logging [ ] Degrading [ ] Land compaction [ ] Forest fires [ ] Forest disturbances |
[ ] Firewood and construction needs [ ] Large scale commercial logging [ ] No firebreaks [ ] Forest product harvest [ ] Too many logging licenses |
[ ] Substituted with other materials (dung, straw, hay) [ ] Selective logging [ ] Restricting access [ ] Firebreaks |
* Planting trees, shrubs for firewood * Introducing energy-efficient stoves * Fire control awareness * Forestry management |
| Community Situation | Problems | Local Response | Sustainability Principles | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Immediate | Underlying Causes | |||
| II. Livelihood and natural resources | ||||
| D. Resource Use | ||||
| [ ] Non-Timber Forest Products |
[ ] Overharvesting [ ] Depletion of forest products |
[ ] Food and medicinal needs [ ] Open access [ ] Too many licenses | [ ] Indigenous systems of resource use |
* Conservation program * Enforcing property rights * Incentives for conservation |
| [ ] Use of Wild Animals | [ ] Overhunting/ harvesting |
[ ] Subsistence [ ] Cash demand [ ] Exporting [ ] No regulations to protect wildlife | [ ] Restricting access |
* Keeping harvest below replenishment level * Laws obeyed * Community-based conservation |
| [ ] Fisheries |
[ ] Overfishing [ ] Declining yield [ ] Habitat destruction |
[ ] Using small size fishing nets [ ] Dynamiting [ ] Poisoning [ ] Outsiders use locally owned resources |
[ ] Indigenous customary ownership [ ] Restricting outsider access |
* Regulations on the use of fishing gears * Exclusion of outsiders * Selective catching * Seasonal restraints * Harvesting rights |
| [ ] Water Use |
[ ] Taking to[ ]much water [ ] Water pollution [ ] Sediments build up [ ] Lack of catchment management |
[ ] Household use [ ] Agricultural needs [ ] Dumping [ ] Run-off from household and agricultural waste [ ] No water use planning |
[ ] Monitoring for offences [ ] Water Conservation |
* Catchment management * Water users rights * Appropriate water allocation * Establishing users groups * Payments for water |
| [ ] Land Use |
[ ] Soil degradation [ ] Contamination [ ] Loss of wildlife habitats |
[ ] Agriculture [ ] Construction [ ] Infrastructure development |
* Habitat preservation * Environmental Impact Assessment | |
| [ ]Parks and Reserves | [ ] Disturbances |
[ ] Encroachment by people to harvest products [ ] No clear park boundaries [ ] Forest dependency | [ ] Restricting access |
* Managing buffer zones * Harvesting must be below regenerative capacity * Resource use rights |
| [ ] Mining |
[ ] Pollution [ ] Climate warming [ ] Landscape destruction [ ] Resource depletion |
[ ] Mineral effluent/ particles released [ ] Use of machinery [ ] Fossil fuel use |
* Use more renewable resources * Use wood, wind and solar energy | |
| Community Situation | Problems | Local Response | Sustainability Principles | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Immediate | Underlying Causes | |||
| II. Livelihood and natural resources | ||||
| E. Equity Issues | ||||
| [ ] Income and Gender Equality |
[ ] Income gaps [ ] Poverty [ ] Gender inequality in labour division [ ] Unequal participation |
[ ] Lack of access to resources [ ] Inequitable income distribution [ ] Gender biases |
* Meet basic needs * Income redistribution by government policy * Equity within and between generations * Equity among gender and other groups | |