Tropical dry forests help to buffer against soil erosion and aridification. They can be vital for reducing economic and food insecurity. They sustain the lives of the communities that live in and around dry forests. And yet, national policies and international organizations often ignore their importance because they are often considered resource poor.

Because the products and ecosystem services that tropical dry forests provide to local communities can be substantially different than the ones provided by humid forests, it is important to understand the unique roles that they play in the lives of the people that rely on them. AID Forests works to improve the lives of the plants and animals inhabiting dry forests as well as the people living in and around them. For example, this study takes a nuanced approach to understanding bushmeat hunting in a dry forest in Madagascar and builds on this study showing that the people and the animals living in and around the dry forests of western Madagascar are in crisis.

Conservation efforts are effective when they focus on improving the lives of local communities. Here is a great study on poverty, income, and dry forest bushmeat consumption. AID Forests seeks to improve the lives of all who rely on tropical dry forests. We aim to reduce poverty, improve education, and facilitate overall human well-being. However, communities should be able to define for themselves what makes a ‘good life’. Thus, AID Forests works with communities on projects that they decide are important to them.