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Unintended Impacts from Forest Certification: Evidence from Indigenous Aka Households in Congo

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  • Jacqueline Doremus

    (Department of Economics, California Polytechnic State University)

Abstract

Does Forest Stewardship Council certification of \responsible" commercial forestrychange nutrition, health and wealth for indigenous peoples, like the Aka of the Congo Basin? Using hand-collected data from the boundary of a certified and an uncertified forest in the Republic of Congo five years after certification, I compare nutrition, health, and wealth using questions that are locally salient and survey timing designed to reach semi-nomadic hunter-gatherers. Though I only observe outcomes after certification, I find suggestive evidence that forest certification may cause increased food insecurity and illness frequency for Aka households. I find no evidence of increased material wealth; instead, the poorest 15th percentile is poorer. Forest certification includes a bundle of activities, including participatory mapping, greater market integration and hunting restrictions, making it difficult to pinpoint the mechanisms driving these results.

Suggested Citation

  • Jacqueline Doremus, 2018. "Unintended Impacts from Forest Certification: Evidence from Indigenous Aka Households in Congo," Working Papers 1804, California Polytechnic State University, Department of Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:cpl:wpaper:1804
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    Cited by:

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    2. Zapata, Oscar, 2024. "Renewable energy and well-being in remote Indigenous communities of Canada: A panel analysis," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 222(C).
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    4. Nakaishi, Tomoaki & Chapman, Andrew, 2024. "Eco-labels as a communication and policy tool: A comprehensive review of academic literature and global label initiatives," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 202(C).
    5. Degnet, Mohammed B. & van der Werf, Edwin & Ingram, Verina & Wesseler, Justus, 2022. "Community perceptions: A comparative analysis of community participation in forest management: FSC-certified and non-certified plantations in Mozambique," Forest Policy and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 143(C).
    6. Yuan Huang & Yali Wen, 2025. "Perception over Possession: How Farmers’ Subjective Tenure Security and Forest Certification Drive Sustainable Bamboo Management," Land, MDPI, vol. 14(10), pages 1-18, October.
    7. Xia Li & Timothy Simcoe, 2021. "Competing or complementary labels? Estimating spillovers in Chinese green building certification," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 42(13), pages 2451-2476, December.
    8. Halalisan, Florin & Romero, Claudia & Popa, Bogdan & Arana Landin, German & Talpa, Nicolae & ABRUDAN, Ioan Vasile, 2023. "Global assessment of FSC forest management certification auditing through analysis of accreditation reports," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 131(C).
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    JEL classification:

    • O13 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Agriculture; Natural Resources; Environment; Other Primary Products
    • O18 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Urban, Rural, Regional, and Transportation Analysis; Housing; Infrastructure
    • Q56 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Environment and Development; Environment and Trade; Sustainability; Environmental Accounts and Accounting; Environmental Equity; Population Growth

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