The existence of extreme poverty in several developing countries is a critical challenge that needs to be addressed urgently because of its adverse implications on human wellbeing. Its manifestations include lack of adequate food and nutrition, lack of access to adequate shelter, lack of access to safe drinking water, low literacy rates, high infant and maternal mortality, high rates of unemployment, and a feeling of vulnerability and disempowerement. Poverty reduction can be attained by stimulating economic growth to increase incomes and expand employment opportunities for the poor; undertaking economic and institutional reforms to enhance efficiency and improve the utilization of resources; prioritizing the basic needs of the poor in national development policies; promoting microfinance programs to remove constraints to innovation, entrepreneurship, and small scale business; developing and improving marketing systems to improve production; providing incentives to the private sector; and, implementing affirmative actions such as targeted cash transfers to ensure that the social and economic benefits of poverty reduction initiatives reach the demographics that might otherwise be excluded.

PurposeThe main purpose of this paper is to critically evaluate community‐based natural resource management as an alternative approach to government stewardship of natural resources. The paper discusses Kenya's experience with community‐based approaches, identifies some of the problems that have been experienced in implementing the approach, and suggests ways of strengthening these approaches to ensure that natural resources are managed more sustainably and efficiently and in ways that generate tangible economic benefits to local communities.Design/methodology/approachThe research reported in this paper was undertaken through an extensive review of existing literature, discussions with representatives of local communities and resource managers and personal observations.FindingsThe paper finds that the community‐based approach to the stewardship of natural resources is a viable alternative to state management and can, if properly implemented, result in more equitable distribution of power and economic benefits, reduced conflicts, increased consideration of traditional and modern environmental knowledge, protection of biological diversity, and sustainable utilization of natural resources. In many cases where the approach has been implemented it has not yielded substantial benefits mainly because of institutional, environmental and organizational factors. The successful implementation of CBNRM projects requires a legal and policy framework that empowers local communities and grants them responsibility and authority for natural resource management. It also requires that an acceptable formula be defined for the sharing of the benefits and responsibilities.Practical implicationsThis paper challenges the stewardship of natural resources by the state and presents arguments in support of a community based approach that prioritizes the livelihood needs of local communities and provides them with strong incentives to conserve and utilize natural resources sustainably.Originality/valueThis paper is original in applying the principles of community based natural resource management to specific local wildlife and forestry cases in Kenya.

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Purpose -The purpose of this paper is to describe and examine the problem of biodiversity loss and to explain its underlying causes and the possibilities of using economic instruments to conserve it. Design/methodology/approach -The research in this paper was undertaken through a review of the literature and an analysis of data on the trends of various measures of biodiversity worldwide. Findings -The loss of biodiversity is occurring worldwide at a rapid rate that has the potential to significantly undermine the prospects for sustainable development. Although the main proximate cause of biodiversity loss is land conversion, the fundamental causes are rooted in economic, institutional, and social factors and include market failures and the lack of property rights. Practical implications -This paper presents arguments in support of using economic instruments to conserve biodiversity and explains the conditions under which the use of these instruments is likely to be most successful. Originality/value -This paper illuminates the economic, social and institutional factors that underlie the rapid loss of biodiversity and outlines some ways in which economic instruments can be used to stem the loss of biodiversity.

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