Why not 'alternative livelihoods projects'?

‘Alternative livelihoods projects’ are often promoted by conservation organisations to reduce people’s reliance on or use of particular natural resources, or to compensate them for loss of access to such resources, but... [ view full abstract ]

‘Alternative livelihoods projects’ are often promoted by conservation organisations to reduce people’s reliance on or use of particular natural resources, or to compensate them for loss of access to such resources, but the effectiveness of such interventions has been limited. A common weakness of many such interventions is a failure to understand, or to pay sufficient detail to,the complex dynamics of people’s livelihoods and how this relates to natural resource use. To address this problem, FFI promotes the use of a sustainable livelihoods approach (SLA) to working with communities to achieve positive outcomes for biodiversity and for people. SLA uses participatory, holistic methods to help understand the reality and complexity of people’s lives and livelihoods. We recognise livelihoods as being as much about a ‘way of life’ as they are a means of making a living. Our approach is to support sustainable livelihoods,including diversification of livelihoods strategies where appropriate; that is,to empower women and men to make their own livelihood choices moreenvironmentally, economically and socially sustainable. In this presentation weexplore some of the factors that lead to the failure of many ‘alternative livelihoodsprojects’, and highlight some of the ways we are trying to support thedevelopment of sustainable livelihoods alongside biodiversity conservation.