Forests and poverty alleviation

Abstract

This article specifies two types of poverty alleviation, applied at the household level, in association with forest resources. There are: i) Poverty avoidance or mitigation, that is, a situation where forests resources serve a safety net function, or as a gap filler, including as a source of petty cash; and ii) Poverty elimination, that is, a situation where forest resources help lift the household out of poverty by functioning as a source of saving, investment, accumulation, asset building, and permanent increases in income and welfare.