Community teak forestry in Solomon Islands as donor development: When science meets culture

Published Date
30 November 2016, Vol.57:730–738, doi:10.1016/j.landusepol.2016.06.029

Author 

Peter Walters ^,

Kristen Lyons 

School of Social Science, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD 4072, Australia

Received 1 April 2016. Revised 23 June 2016. Accepted 23 June 2016. Available online 16 July 2016. 

Abstract

This paper uses a case study of smallholder teak forestry in the Pacific Islands nation of Solomon Islands to evaluate difficulties that can arise when foreign expertise fails to take sufficient account of local epistemology and practices when implementing market based community level development. The planting of community level smallholder teak is widespread in the Solomon Islands and has the potential to address some of the environmental and livelihood damage done by years of indiscriminate logging. Attempts by successive Australian Government aid programs to better manage plantations for maximum yield and marketability have largely failed as competing livelihood priorities; differing philosophies on long term compounding returns and deferred income; and the geographical challenges of accessing markets have all conspired to prevent this high value timber from being grown to its full potential. We use the theories of indigenous epistemology to highlight the ways in which failure to properly integrate economic activity according to the culture and values of communities can mean that initiatives such as this will struggle to succeed.

Keywords

Solomon Islands

Village economy

Forestry

Donor aid

Local epistemology

Scientific method

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