Forests worldwide are home to approximately 1.3 billion people and must cater to the multiple needs of people - from providing local goods and services (access to income, food, clean water, wood energy, construction materials, fertile soils, medicinal and cosmetic products, and recreation) to providing global goods and services (climate change mitigation, biodiversity conservation, hydrological and mineral cycles). It is a tall order because many of these needs compete with one another. This book presents 19 case studies from 14 developing countries showing how local people have been democratising forest businesses, and offers conclusions based on an analysis of the case studies.

Published by the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED), this book includes the following case studies developed with RECOFTC:
Thailand - Doi Chang Coffee Farm (DCCF): A family-run coffee enterprise in northern Thailand 
Vietnam - Ben Hai Forestry Company: A company–community partnership in plantation wood production
Indonesia - Wana Manunggal Lestari Cooperative (KWML): Weaving dreams from teak logs
Lao PDR - Keoset Organic Coffee Producer Group: Coffee and forests: the hopes, fears and actions of organic coffee farmers in Laos