Learning the Livelihoods Way: Understanding Rural Livelihood Sustainability in Northeastern Cambodia

In Cambodia, as in rural areas worldwide, serious problems of increasing poverty, declining traditional livelihood activities, decreasing access to resources, and growing ecological destruction are necessitating new approaches to socio-economic development and conservation. Community Based Natural Resource Management (CBNRM) stands to play an important role in enhancing rural livelihood sustainability; however such programs and strategies are presently facing many challenges. The Sustainable Livelihoods (SL) approach has been linked to the better overall planning and implementation of activities, projects, and programs. Proponents of SL claim that it can facilitate a deeper understanding of rural dynamics and realities and, in turn, yield a wider reach for reducing poverty and enhancing social and ecological well-being.

This paper explores: a) the use of a livelihoods approach as a way to increase understanding of rural livelihoods, and the factors that affect them, in less-known Mondulkiri province, northeastern Cambodia, and b) the implications of a livelihoods approach for CBNRM in Cambodia. It was found that the linking of CBNRM and SL has the potential to improve CBNRM practices, the deeper awareness and understanding brought by a livelihoods approach helping to ensure that CBNRM fits appropriately into the lives of people, as opposed to fitting people into CBNRM. And, although not a magic bullet, it does seem possible using a livelihoods approach to gain considerable insight into how to build sustainable rural livelihoods based on local people's meanings, experiences, and desires of livelihood, well-being, and sustainability.