Co-Designing the Future of the Embobut Forest

The Embobut Forest faces complex intersecting challenges. Degraded ecosystems, land disputes, population growth and climate change have contributed to a sense of regional crisis and failed prosperity. Despite decades of conservation interventions, disagreements persist over how the forest should be managed. Conservation actors often attribute forest loss to local populations, while former forest residents emphasise how evictions have undermined livelihood security and reduced their capacity to responsibly manage forests. These competing views have fuelled polarised debates and limited progress toward workable solutions. This brief draws on a decade of research to outline Embobut’s longer history of forest use, the major challenges facing the forest today and practical ways this evidence can support more effective forms of inclusive governance.