comparing aboriginal community-based criteria and indicators in forest management planning
abstract
criteria and indicator (c&i) frameworks have been developed and implemented
on national and international scales to measure sustainable forest management. the
purpose of this research is to examine the reasons why indigenous communities would
develop local-level criteria and indicator frameworks, what the process is for their
development and how they are being used. criteria and indicators were collected from
published and unpublished literature for six first nation communities. the indicators
were reorganized using researcher definitions of institutional, cultural, environmental,
social and economic indicators for ease of data analysis. representatives from each of
the case studies were interviewed to provide contextual information about their
framework development. indigenous indicators capture values rooted in traditional
knowledge and cultural practices and seek to remedy social issues centred on
community well-being. in the last decade the use of c&i in forest management is
declining, but c&i still serve as an important tool to collect data and values to measure
change and achieving goals, especially at the local level.