Forests in common and their contribution to local development

In this chapter, we look at the role that a forest held in common can play in supporting local development and promoting the livelihood of the local community. Four dissimilar cases in Italy, Slovenia, Sweden and UK are described and analysed by applying the Sustainable Livelihood Framework. Despite very different pre-requisites and local conditions, our results show that all cases contain rules to maintain the extent and function of natural assets, and they contributed to the mobilisation of different types of capital. In each case there is evidence of interaction with higher governance levels, which protects the group’s room for action. The provision of access to natural and physical resources for rural people in a broader sense illustrates the cases’ orientation towards public good.