write up on Traditional natural resource management practice in PNG.
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Food security, environment management and poverty alleviation are main factors contributing the complexity of natural resource management. This chapter intends to show the scope of these challenges in the worldwide and to propose some strategies for managing these challenges or complexities. In definition, food security exists when all people, at all times, have access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food to meet their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life (FAO, 2011a). The world must feed 9.8 billions people by 2050. The challenge of food security is not a new story, but it is still one of the main crises of the world. The food crisis and famine in the Horn of Africa, especially Somalia, has just happened in 2011. Millions of people in Africa and Asia are under threat of famine. This may not be because of only food shortage, but due to lack of capability of some areas to provide food to their people. The President of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) in the World Food Day 2011 pointed out that "As long as there is even one person dying of hunger we must do everything within our power to prevent it. The latest crisis in the Horn of Africa shows the terrible human cost of neglect, both of agriculture and rural areas. Droughts are not preventable but famines are” (FAO, 2011b). Agriculture and natural resources are viewed to be not only the context of food production, but they are the main resources of small-scale rural livelihoods. National resources are viewed as natural capitals of rural households and communities’ livelihoods in the framework of Sustainable Rural Livelihood (Fabricius, Koch, Magome, & Rurner, 2004). Despite the importance, the interaction of several factors has limited the capability of agriculture and has threatened natural resources. Urban population and consumers are growing, the pressure on natural resources is increasing and limited public support is available to natural resource management. Factors such as deforestation, land degradation and water scarcity, especially as the result of human activities have adversely affected the productivity of all agricultural and natural ecosystems. The year 2011 was named as the International Year of Forests by the UN, which stresses the crucial importance of sustainable management of forests worldwide. The FAO (2010) has estimated that approximately 13 million ha forest is lost or converted to other land uses a year. This organization has indicated that deforestation accounts for nearly 20 percent of Sustainable Natural Resources Management 106 global greenhouse gas emissions. It also costs the world economy up to five billion dollars every year. According to the the Centre for International Forestry Research (CIFOR), the main causes of deforestation are infrastructure development, agricultural development, and human settlement, for example mining, charcoal production, fire, road building and pasture ranching. These are directly or indirectly related to governments’ policies and interventions