Ecosystem services from mountain forests: Local communities' views in Kibira National Park, Burundi

In the tropics, mountain forests provide numerous benefits to surrounding communities. Our participatory research investigates how different ethnic groups including Twa hunter gatherers and farmers of Bantu origin use and value mountain forests in Kibira National Park, Burundi. We carried out an ecosystem service (ES) assessment through 25 focus-group discussions, including Twa (n = 10) and farmers (n = 15). The Twa identify a greater number of forest ES than farmers, and rank wild vegetables as most important forest ES. They also show strong place dependence and identity to the forest, which they call 'home'. Farmers rank microclimate regulation as most important forest ES, and also show place dependence to the forest. Both groups identified numerous plants for provisioning services, but the Twa identified more food-provisioning plants and medicinal plants for humans. Our findings help understand why the Twa continue to enter this park daily. Our results also help suggest some livelihood strategies for the Twa which consider their strengths rather than their weaknesses. Protected areas are the most important tool we have for species' and habitats' conservation, but to ensure their effectiveness -and sustainability- surrounding communities' needs and cultures should be considered.