Sustainable Use of Forests
Use everyone’s knowledge, consider everyone’s needs
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This activity helps a community consider how to use and
care for forest resources in ways that benefit everyone. It can
be done with up to 25 people, divided into 3 smaller groups.
It is important to include everyone who will be affected by
decisions about forest use.
Time: 3 to 6 hours (or in more than one session,
as long as you save the maps)
Materials: Pens, pencils, notebook paper, 3 big pieces
of paper with maps of your area, and sticky tape. The maps can be roughly drawn,
as long as people can recognize what they intend to show.
➊ Give 1 map to each group. Ask every person to draw pictures of what they
do in the forest (cut firewood, graze cattle, gather fruit and plants, hunt,
etc.) on their notebook papers.
➋ Within each group, every person talks about what they drew and what it
means to them. 1 or 2 people then draw pictures on the big map to show
where and how each person uses the forest.
➌ Bring the groups together for a discussion about what their big maps show.
Are some parts of the forest used more than others? Do men, women,
children and older people use the forest in different ways? Were there
any surprises in the ways the forest is used?
➍ The facilitator leads a discussion about the health of the forest by asking
questions like these: Does the forest provide the same resources now that
it always did? Are there fewer birds, animals, and plants than there once
were? Are there places where all the trees have been cut down?
What happens now in those places?
➎ Have 1 or 2 people from each group mark their map
using different colors or symbols to show places
where the forest is healthy, degraded, or gone.
➏ Think about the different areas of forest and discuss
what changes people want to see. Draw or write
them on the map. On the
following page are some
questions that can help
guide a discussion.
A Community Guide to Environmental Health 2012