The project was developed in order to investigate how people are reacting to environmental stress, how their activities can contribute to an alleviation of environmental problems, and what can be done to support their efforts.
Studies included: local farmer management systems in Ghana; structural factors affecting people's participation in conservation projects in the Sahel; traditional fisheries management in Marovo Lagoon, Solomon Islands; pastoral land tenure in seven African countries; collective environmental actions to protect or rehabilitate the natural resource base; the Indian environment and environmental movement; and NGOs and sustainable development activities in Zimbabwe.
The results of the studies point to the importance of local efforts and highlight the range of situations in which local input is crucial to sustainable development. The studies also demonstrate that a number of external factors can work to limit the options which are available to local people as they respond to environmental pressure, reducing their ability to cope with situations of environmental decline.
Field work was carried out in a large number of African, Asian and Latin American countries.