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Safety Nets, Gap Filling and Forests: A Global-Comparative Perspective

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  • Wunder, Sven
  • Börner, Jan
  • Shively, Gerald
  • Wyman, Miriam

Abstract

In the forest–livelihoods literature, forests are widely perceived to provide both common safety nets to shocks and resources for seasonal gap-filling. We use a large global-comparative dataset to test these responses. We find households rank forest-extraction responses to shocks lower than most common alternatives. For seasonal gap-filling, forest extraction also has limited importance. The minority of households using forests for coping is asset-poor and lives in villages specialized on forests, in particular timber extraction. Overall, forest resources may be less important as a buffer between agricultural harvests and in times of unforeseen hardship than has been found in many case studies.

Suggested Citation

  • Wunder, Sven & Börner, Jan & Shively, Gerald & Wyman, Miriam, 2014. "Safety Nets, Gap Filling and Forests: A Global-Comparative Perspective," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 64(S1), pages 29-42.
  • Handle: RePEc:eee:wdevel:v:64:y:2014:i:s1:p:s29-s42
    DOI: 10.1016/j.worlddev.2014.03.005
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