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Rural Outmigration and its Double-edged Effects on Community Forestry Ecology and Governance
Rubina Adhikari1,2, Truly Santika3
1Natural Resources Institute (NRI), University of Greenwich, Chatham Maritime, ME4 4TB, UK.
Environmental Management
|August 1, 2026
Summary
Rural outmigration aids forest regeneration in Nepal but weakens community forestry governance. Declining populations reduce resource pressure, enabling ecological recovery, yet diminish participation in forest management and decision-making.
Area of Science:
- Environmental Science
- Sociology
- Forestry
Background:
- Community forestry (CF) is a decentralized governance model with social and ecological benefits.
- Rural outmigration due to economic factors is reshaping community demographics and challenging CF governance.
- The impact of outmigration on CF governance remains empirically underexplored.
Purpose of the Study:
- Investigate how rural outmigration affects forest cover, resource reliance, and participation in community forestry.
- Assess the multi-dimensional impact of population decline on CF governance in Nepal.
- Analyze the relationship between migration drivers and participation levels.
Main Methods:
- Utilized primary and secondary data from Sindhupalchowk, Nepal.
- Assessed community participation across operational activities, decision-making, and meeting attendance.
- Correlated population decline and migration rates with forest cover and resource reliance.
Main Results:
- Population decline, driven by limited livelihoods, correlates with forest regeneration and ecological recovery.
- Increased depopulation corresponds with reduced reliance on forest resources and transformed livelihood practices.
- Higher migration rates significantly reduce participation in CF operational activities, decision-making, and meetings, especially unemployment-driven migration.
Conclusions:
- Outmigration presents a double-edged dynamic: enabling forest recovery while weakening participatory governance in community forestry.
- Sustaining inclusive and effective CF requires adaptive strategies aligning ecological recovery with institutional renewal amidst demographic change.
- Addressing unemployment-driven migration is crucial for maintaining robust decision-making in community forestry.
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