Stringer Lindsay C, Twyman Chasca, Thomas David S G
Institute for Development Policy and Management, School of Environment and Development, University of Manchester, UK.
Ambio. 2007 Jul;36(5):387-93. doi: 10.1579/0044-7447(2007)36[387:cldtpm]2.0.co;2.
This paper examines a community grazing project to rehabilitate degraded land in Swaziland. Using data from interviews, questionnaires, and focus groups, we show that the ways in which participatory, decentralized approaches to natural resource management play out at the local level are closely linked to national-level power structures. The successes and issues that emerge at different stages of the grazing project reflect local socioeconomic priorities and show how people manage their time and labor according to household livelihood goals. However, the project favored the interests of cattle owners who were already the more socially and politically powerful members of the community. We argue that for participatory natural resource management to be more meaningful to communities, projects should focus on local ecological priorities, rather than addressing the environmental concerns that are rooted within existing dominant power structures. This requires change to social and political relationships across levels and the building of new institutions.
本文考察了斯威士兰一个旨在恢复退化土地的社区放牧项目。通过访谈、问卷调查和焦点小组收集的数据，我们发现，参与式、分散式自然资源管理方法在地方层面的实施方式与国家层面的权力结构密切相关。放牧项目不同阶段出现的成功与问题反映了当地社会经济优先事项，并展示了人们如何根据家庭生计目标来管理时间和劳动力。然而，该项目偏袒了那些在社会和政治上已经更具权势的社区养牛户的利益。我们认为，要使参与式自然资源管理对社区更有意义，项目应关注地方生态优先事项，而非解决源于现有主导权力结构的环境问题。这需要改变各级社会和政治关系，并建立新的机构。
