Community-based Natural Resource Management: State of the Science—Global Perspectives

How can communities of resource users effectively organize to self-regulate use of shared resources? Can community-based natural resource management (CBNRM) fulfill its promise of enhancing resource management and conservation while improving human lives and livelihoods? These are the central questions driving much research on CBNRM around the world. Since the 1970s, a large volume of mostly case-study-based research has examined the conditions for successful collective action in natural resource management, leading to the identification of over 30 factors that help explain the success or failure of such efforts. However, few studies have used a large number of cases (over 50) to rigorously examine the causal relationships among these factors and the role of context in the performance of CBNRM organizations. Study of contemporary CBNRM organizations is more recent and after a number of initial “success stories,” much current literature has been less positive. Recent work has highlighted the need to critically examine the concept of “community,” and to pay close attention to profound differences within communities in resource access and use, voice, and power along gender, age, ethnic, religious, class, or caste lines. Resilience scholars have also pointed to potential linkages between community-based management and the resilience of social-ecological systems. Few studies have investigated long term ecological or socio-economic outcomes of CBNRM, or compared the outcomes of CBNRM efforts with the status quo or other alternative management regimes. These weaknesses point to the inherent challenges of researching the effectiveness of these organizations. Among these challenges are the great variation in organizations and their ecological and social contexts, and the difficulty of linking observed changes causally to CBNRM organizations and their activities. Mongolia offers a unique opportunity to learn from recent CBNRM initiatives using research approaches that help overcome some of these limitations, and to advance the science and practice of CBNRM in Mongolia and beyond. Introduction and Definitions The central question driving much research on community-based natural resource management (CBNRM) is: How can communities of resource users effectively organize themselves to self-regulate their use of shared resources? These shared resources are often referred to as common pool resources or CPRs. Extensive rangelands are considered CPRs because it is difficult to exclude potential grazers from these areas, and use by one individual reduces the amount of forage available for other herders. In the absence of any rules that limit who may graze and place restrictions on the amount, timing or spatial distribution of grazing, there is a risk of overuse and subsequent degradation of the forage resource. This absence of rules is referred to as an open access situation. Most rangelands are not open access, however. Instead, they are subject to 1 Paper presented at the research planning meeting “Does Community-based Rangeland Ecosystem Management Increase Resilience to Climate Change in Mongolia,” June 16-20, 2008, Ulaanbaatar,