Community-based forest management in the Yungas Biosphere Reserve, Northern Argentina

The purpose of this paper is to discuss a methodology for the implementation of a participative plan for forest use and management in a rural community. We present an experience carried out in an aboriginal community located in the ‘‘Yungas biosphere reserve’’ in Northern Argentina. We developed a methodology to work with the community to assess the quality of the forest resources and to find out the causes of degradation. We worked at three levels: the community council, the community, and the school. The community has a very short-term vision. The setup, the feasibility, and the implementation of the plan is highly dependent on the willingness of the community to participate. It is so far the first attempt, in Yungas region, to develop a multi-level methodology to work with local communities to implement a forest-management plan. Findings and recommendations could be useful for others who would like to work in similar contexts.