Residents of Dok Kham Tai district of Phayao protect a 100-year-old iron wood tree in their campaign to save the community forest. "This is a new approach to community management - villagers and officials must work together to protect the forest. Yet they only have secure legal rights to 10%, according to Washington D.C.-based advocacy group Rights and Resources Initiative. The Cabinet has passed a draft Community Forest Bill which also encourages public participation in managing forests. More than 3 million families could benefit from the programme, which will cover more than 2.5 million hectares (15.6 million rai) of land, officials said.

Source: Bangkok Post September 05, 2018 10:41 UTC