Indigenous People and Tropical Rainforest
Management in the Northern Sierra Madre Natural Park.
The
Northern Sierra Madre Natural Park (NSMNP)
was established in 1997. The park is situated in Isabela
Province, in the Northern part of the Sierra Madre Mountain
Range. It covers nearly 360,000 hectares of diverse tropical
rain forest, including lowland evergreen forest, lower-mountain
and mossy forest, limestone forest and ultra basic forest
in the inland parts; and beach forest and mangrove forest
along the coast.
The
area is considered as one of the most biologically rich
in the Philippines. Nine municipalities are situated within
the park boundaries, the total population of the park numbering
around 23,000. The majority of this population consists
of immigrants, who entered the area in the 1960s and 1970s
when the logging industry was at its height. They presently
dominate the area, both in number and culture. Next to these
immigrants, the indigenous Agta population only comprises
a relatively small group. They are estimated to number 2,000
in total, divided over around 400 households.
The
Agta are a forest dwelling people whose
main livelihood consists of a combination of hunting, fishing,
gathering, and shifting cultivation. However, the Agta are
not autarkic: they have since long maintained trade and
exchange relationships with lowland farming communities.
Yet, the Agta are also widely considered to belong to the
poorest of the poor, suffering from a long history of oppression,
discrimination and marginalization by dominant groups.
To
compensate for the disadvantaged position of these and other
indigenous communities in the Philippines, the Indigenous
Peoples Rights Act (IPRA) was enacted in 1997.
This law grants a wide array of rights to indigenous peoples
throughout the country, one of which is the right to formal
recognition of indigenous communities' ancestral domains.
Once a so-called Certificate of Ancestral Domain
Claim (CADC) has been granted, the communities
involved enjoy a certain extent of autonomy in the area.
From
a policy point of view, the assumptions underlying this
system are two-fold. On the one hand, it is assumed that
the recognition of indigenous communities’ ancestral
domains contributes to the empowerment of the communities
involved. On the other hand, it is assumed that it will
be beneficial to sustainable resource management as indigenous
communities are considered to be the best guardians of the
forest.
This
research project examines the validity of these assumptions
for the ancestral domains granted to the Agta communities
living in the Northern Sierra Madre Natural Park.
Its main research objectives are to investigate:
(1)
What are the impacts of the recognition of ancestral domains
to Agta
communities on their level of empowerment?
(2) What are the impacts of the recognition
of ancestral domains to Agta
communities on their natural resource management practices?
(3) How are social justice and environmental
conservation agendas interacting in the day-to-day realities
of the Northern Sierra Madre Natural Park?
The
research project combines quantitative data gathering in
all Agta communities throughout the park, with in-depth
qualitative research in selected research sites. Along the
way, it aims to support the work of the Department
of Environment and Natural Resources, the National
Commission on Indigenous Peoples and WWF-Philippines.
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Tessa Minter
Research
1 - Farmers perception and adaptation of agroforestry. >>
