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Summary: The Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan (GIRoA), in power during 2002–2021, initiated the process of instituting community-based forest governance and building local capacity for natural resource management. These efforts coincided with the presence of international security forces and the mobilization of civil society organizations, and they were in response to community aspirations to protect and restore often degraded local forests. Legislation was passed to enable forest protection and management, including a provision to encourage participatory management by local community user groups organized as Forest Management Associations (FMAs). By the end of the GIRoA era, c. 20 registered FMAs were operating with c. 400 others in various stages of development across Afghanistan. Our analysis of relevant policy documents revealed that the policy framework developed during the GIRoA era scores favourably on the ideal criteria for community-based resource management. Despite the change in political administration with the inception of the current Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan regime, the influence of the GIRoA era serves as a starting point and may have enduring influences on rural communities in Afghanistan and the natural resources that support them. Anecdotal evidence suggests that community-based forest management may persist under the current national leadership despite international isolation and funding constraints. The model developed in Afghanistan may be relevant to other fragile states, especially in contexts where rural forest-dependent communities have strong local institutions, such as shuras , and where forests are not prone to heavy extraction pressure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The growing realization of the inadequacies of the conventional approach to climate change adaptation has generated interest in sustainable forms of adaptation that could promote long-term ecosystem health and social equity. In this regard, the concept of ecosystem-based adaptation has been receiving attention as an integrative framework for maintaining healthy ecosystems, with the aim of building the resilience and reducing the vulnerability of social–ecological systems to climate change impacts. However, there is currently an inadequate understanding of the institutional requirements for the transition towards ecosystem-based adaptation. A promising institutional mechanism for addressing these governance challenges is adaptive governance, a governance mechanism that relies on flexible, multi-level institutions to connect actors across multiple scales in managing conflicting values and uncertainties in ecosystem-based management processes. This paper discusses four roles of adaptive governance in the transition of water resource systems towards ecosystem-based adaptation: (1) creating awareness about climate change through social learning and the integration of diverse sources of knowledge; (2) generating interest for policy change through the provision of economic and non-economic incentives; (3) creating opportunities for change through the promotion of vertical and horizontal interactions among actors; and (4) building capacities for change through enhanced access to relevant institutions and resources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pistachio (Pistacia vera L.) forests support livelihoods in communities within Afghanistan's Pistachio Belt, a region characterized by extreme poverty and chronic insecurity. In this study, we used ecological data, as well as survey data to characterize standing attributes and resource user perceptions about local pistachio forests and their management. The survey questionnaire was verbally administered to 507 household representatives in remote communities that were chosen from eight districts in northern and northwestern Afghanistan based on accessibility and their location within the Pistachio Belt. Stand density and tree form varied widely between sites and as a function of elevation. Partial harvesting for fuelwood collection was positively correlated with stand density. The survey data also showed that pistachio forests support a variety of livelihood activities among respondents and their households. However, suboptimal nut collection timing and use of damaging nut harvesting methods were widespread with little effort to accommodate natural regeneration. Forest users typically recognized the degraded condition of the pistachio forest and the negative impacts of grazing and fuelwood collection on forest density. Respondents also recognized the impacts of nut collection practices, fuelwood collection, and grazing on forest regeneration status. These results suggest that efforts to sustainably manage pistachio forests must recognize considerable variation within and between communities regarding forest physical condition, accustomed uses by associated communities, and existing or potential mechanisms regulating forest uses. All of these necessitate context-specific forest management planning. We discuss challenges inherent to collecting baseline data needed for planning multiple-use community-based natural resources management in highly insecure environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]