Enchantment and disenchantment: the role of community in natural resource conservation

The concept of community is rarely defined or carefully examined by those concerned with community based approaches to resource use and management. This paper seeks to redress this omission by investigating "community" in work concerning resource conservation and management. It explores the conceptual origins of the community, and the ways the term has been deployed in writings on resource use.

The paper goes on to analyse those aspects of community most important to advocates for community's role in resource management - community as a small spatial unit, as a homogeneous social structure, and as shared norms - and indicate the weaknesses of these approaches. Finally, the authors suggest a more political approach: community must be examined in the context of development and conservation by focusing on the multiple interests and actors within communities, on how these actors influence decision-making, and on the internal and external institutions that shape the decision-making process. A focus on institutions rather than "community" is likely to be more fruitful for those interested in community-based natural resource management. [adapted from authors]

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