Tropical forest ecosystems are increasingly managed by communities. There is a wealth of information related to the community engagement process and the social benefits of community forest management. However, surprisingly little is known about productivity, economic and environmental performance of community forest management and the prevailing best practices. In the context of the GIZ global forest governance initiative, UNIQUE has been assigned to carry out a “best practice community based sustainable forest management” study. The aim of this study is to determine economically sound community forest best practices and to propose possible investment opportunities for private and institutional actors.

• Desk study of good community forestry practices worldwide.
• Ranking of best practice countries in the context of community forestry.
• Detailed analysis of selected community forest organizations / associations.
• Elaboration of a policy brief concerning community forest management in the tropics.