Unwritten social rules, not government oversight, help keep forest land sustainable
A new study suggests that traditional 'slash-and-burn' agriculture is less destructive than previously thought when managed by local communities through unwritten social rules. Researchers argue that supporting these customary practices is more effective for forest sustainability than top-down government oversight.
Why it matters
The findings challenge long-held environmental policies and suggest that empowering indigenous and local land management is key to global forest conservation and climate goals.
by Elizabeth Weinstein, The Ohio State University
edited by Lisa Lock , reviewed by Robert Egan
This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility:
Add as preferred source Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain Swidden agriculture—often called "slash-and-burn"—has been practiced on every inhabited continent throughout human history, and for decades it has been blamed for the destruction of the world's rainforests. However, a new study of more than 18,000 forest patches around the world found that the environmental impact of swidden is more nuanced and less destructive than the term "slash-and-burn" suggests—and that unwritten social rules in small societies, not government oversight, often regulate land use closely enough to support both harvests and forest regeneration sustainably over time.
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