Alternative livelihood projects are an approach to biodiversity conservation which involve substituting a livelihood strategy practiced by local communities that is harmful to biodiversity targets with an alternative strategy that has a lesser negative impact. Environmentally destructive strategies such as bushmeat hunting and trade, unsustainable fishing involving excessive bycatch, and monoculture farming are a few examples of harmful livelihood practices.
Members involved in these occupations are susceptible to less income and dangerous/unsuitable working conditions but continue to pursue them due to lack of alternatives. To combat this, alternative livelihood projects have been introduced by state or national governments, private institutions, and conservation organizations across the world.
These projects aim to provide food and livelihood security for communities through valuable labour, proper working standards and adequate pay while simultaneously mitigating the exploitation of ecosystem resources.
Types of Alternative Livelihood Projects
Alternative livelihood projects can be generally categorized into three types –
- Alternative resource – Projects can provide an alternative resource to the one that is being exploited by local communities. An example of this would be encouraging farming cane rats as a source of protein in place of hunting for bushmeat.
- Alternative occupation – Alternative sources of income can be created for communities as part of conservation projects. This includes ecotourism management, beekeeping, or native plant reforestation.
- Alternative method of resource exploitation – In cases where the use of an ecosystem service/resource is necessary for livelihood survival, livelihood projects can focus on alternative methods for the exploitation of the resource. The use of fuel-efficient stoves as opposed to firewood is a great example of this.
Key strategies
The success of alternative livelihood projects lies in the strategies implemented by institutions to ensure sustainable livelihoods and effective conservation.
1) Outreach
Prior to implementing alternative livelihood strategies, an understanding of the social dynamics and complexities within communities based on income, gender roles, cultural and/or religious values is highly essential.
Perception studies are often conducted to understand public attitudes towards conservation, sustainability and changing occupations. It is also helpful in investigating the direct and indirect pressures which can influence outcomes of the project. Outreach involves designing educational programs, workshops, local discussion groups and collaboration with political and community leaders.
These activities allow conservationists to communicate the importance, strategy and outcomes of alternative livelihood projects and address the potential concerns or limitations raised by local people.
2. Capacity Building
In addition to income generation, strategies also need to focus on building the skills required for local people to sustain themselves and the environment. This prevents long term dependency of communities on an external source for its survival.
In projects that provide alternative employment opportunities, capacity building eradicates a possibility where achieving biodiversity goals could threaten community livelihoods. Additionally, it provides greater climate resilience for communities that are more vulnerable to the impacts of climate change.
3. Diversification of roles
Traditionally, community livelihoods have always involved a diverse field of opportunities for various individuals. Thus, a key strategy for creating alternative livelihoods is to diversify the opportunities available on the basis of financial incentives, skills, and manual labour for both men and women.
Narrowing to occupations or tasks which can only be carried out by certain specific groups of people can lead to lack of inclusivity and inequal distribution of benefits.
Examples of Alternative Livelihood Projects
Alternative Livelihood Development Activities in Sundarbans
Agriculture and fishing are the major forms of livelihood for coastal communities in the Sundarbans. However, these livelihoods are being threatened due to the severe effects of climate change, sea level rise and coastal flooding. SEED (Society for Socio-Economic and Ecological Development) has been working on creating alternative livelihoods in the region for the last decade.
The organisation is working with 700 women self-help groups and 10 fish production groups covering more than 10,000 families in the Sundarbans. SEED is building capacity to progress the underdeveloped economy of communities by generating livelihoods across various sectors.
These livelihood activities include –
- Climate adaptive agriculture – Farmers have been trained in organic farming, integrated pest management, use of bio-fertilizers, vermin composting among various other skills. Training in water conservation methods of betel vine (paan) and vegetable cultivation has also been provided and there are regular expert visits to address any concerns. Moreover, to combat the saline water intrusion turning cultivable lands sterile, 30 farmers were provided with salt tolerant variety of paddies.
- Climate adaptive aquaculture – Technical and theoretical training has been provided to communities to adopt sustainable aquaculture and fishery practices. This includes picking appropriate species for cultivation, harvesting and fingerling density. 145 fish farmers have benefitted from this program in developing a sustainable livelihood.
Additionally, prawn seed collectors including women were informed on its harmful effects on biodiversity and were encouraged to pursue aquaculture as an alternative livelihood. Proper training in various types of aquaculture were provided to them.
- Low methane emitting animal husbandry – Animal husbandry is a major source of livelihood in rural communities of Sundarbans. SEED has provided expert training on alternative husbandry strategies to more than 350 households. These strategies included biogas preparation from livestock manure, using feed additives and grass with lower methane release for fodder.
Community based eco-tourism in Protected Areas of Southern Vietnam
To reduce dependency of local communities on non-wood forest products (NWFP) and improve forest conservation, the Vietnam government implemented a community-based eco-tourism project across the country’s protected areas. One of the initiatives is the Talai Ecotourism Venture for ethnic groups residing in the buffer zone of Cat Tien National Park.
The ecotourism venture led to a decrease in the level of dependency on NWFP by 66% for households employed for this initiatives. Additionally, households involved in the project had generally increased household income, greater awareness on forest conservation and a sense of autonomy for their land and biodiversity.
Livelihoods for Conservation
Think Wildlife Foundation is currently working on the “Livelihoods for Conservation” project to provide alternative, sustainable livelihoods to communities coexisting with wildlife in India’s forests through e-commerce.
Conclusion
Alternative livelihoods can create and promote security, protection and fair living wages to communities that are most vulnerable to today’s degrading environment. Implementing these projects allows greater impact for biodiversity conservation on an economic, cultural, and spiritual level.
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Written by: Namita Nalamala