Research indicates that forests can help alleviate hunger in rural communities, while also playing a key role in carbon capture and promoting sustainability objectives in developing nations.
Research shows that forests can help alleviate hunger in rural communities, while also promoting carbon capture and sustainability in low- and middle-income countries, according to experts from the University of Notre Dame.
A study published in the journal Food Security found that households in Liberia involved in forest-related activities—such as timber collection, bushmeat hunting, or gathering wild edible plants—experienced an 84 percent reduction in food scarcity. This research was conducted by Daniel C. Miller, an associate professor of environmental policy at Notre Dame’s Keough School of Global Affairs, alongside co-author Festus Amadu, a former postdoctoral researcher at Notre Dame who now serves as an assistant professor of climate policy at Florida Gulf Coast University.
“While prior research has demonstrated the benefits of forests to people, we now have countrywide evidence,” Miller stated. “Forests are crucial for food security among households located near them, especially in Liberia, which is the most forest-rich nation in West Africa.”
Using data from a 2019 survey undertaken by the Liberian government and the World Bank, Miller and Amadu analyzed information from nearly 3,000 households living adjacent to forests across all 15 counties of Liberia. They discovered that households engaged in forest activities reported experiencing food insecurity for nearly three months less each year.
Food insecurity remains a pressing issue in various sub-Saharan African nations, including Liberia, where many rural families struggle to secure enough food for their daily caloric needs year-round, according to Miller. Contributing factors to this food scarcity include severe weather patterns, political turmoil, and low agricultural productivity linked to the depletion of natural resources. Existing literature suggests that forests might be more resilient against some of these challenges, highlighting their importance in mitigating food insecurity in countries like Liberia, where forests cover 69 percent of the land.
“Forests provide numerous benefits to human beings, yet their diverse contributions are not extensively studied or documented,” Miller remarked. “Although forests cannot replace agriculture on a large scale, they can be critical food sources during challenging times.”
Miller suggested that the techniques used in this study—which employs forest-specific, nationally gathered data—could be applied to other economically underprivileged, forest-rich nations in West Africa and elsewhere to better understand forests’ role in alleviating food insecurity.
“National governments in other regions should consider forests not just for their environmental and climate advantages, but also for their potential to enhance human development and well-being,” he stated.
This research was supported by the Forests & Livelihoods: Assessment, Research and Engagement (FLARE) network led by Miller, with funding provided by Notre Dame Research, the Notre Dame Environmental Change Initiative, and the Keough School.
Looking ahead, Miller and Amadu plan to explore how governance of forests—particularly at the community level—affects the advantages that local populations can derive from them. Miller mentioned that the results of this study have significant policy ramifications, which could inform policymakers working in forest management and conservation.
“The advantages that forests provide to a nation’s citizens further justify the need for effective management and conservation efforts,” Miller concluded. “When empirical evidence exists at the national level, it becomes applicable not only in academic discussions but also in shaping policy.”
