Global Linkages to Community-Based Ecosystem Management in the United States

Community-based ecosystem management (CBEM) in the United States is closely tied to global processes. Increasing and shifting international market demands for ecosystem products and services together with global trends in climate change and biodiversity loss have tangible impacts in communities in every region of the country. Meanwhile, community-based natural resource management efforts in other parts of the world, particularly in developing countries, have a longer history than in the United States. This history, and the tools and techniques developed elsewhere for community-based resource management, can help to inform North American advocates and practitioners of CBEM. This paper has four objectives. The first is to identify key global trends that affect communities in the United States. These trends include demand and supply relationships (especially of forest resources) and environmental changes that will shape economic and policy choices in coming decades. Second, the paper examines counte...