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Is it coincidence that of all the conflicts of the twentieth century at least half have been in forested areas? Some people have been asking if this is happenstance or whether there is something about forests that attracts discord. The phenomenon is not only widespread but very worrying, both from the perspective of the threat to the unique ecosystems affected as well as the communities involved. Given these circumstances, a better understanding of the linkages between tropical forests and extreme conflict could assist policymakers and practitioners alike in grappling with the major issues associated with conflict resolution and environmental conservation. Better informed decision makingwould contribute greatly to addressing security concerns, a key issue on the agenda of many governments and international agencies and organizations around the world today.

From the deadly raids launched upon Burundi’s capital by Hutu rebels hiding in the nearby Tenga forest, to the multimillion dollar exploitation of teak along the Thai- Burmese border by the Karen National Union, insurgents have repeatedly used forests as a refuge or a source of finance. Located near roads and towns that are of military importance, or along border areas offering political sanctuary, forests provide some of the safest terrain from which to prepare or launch guerrilla operations. Forest products are among the most conspicuous resources financingwars in a post-ColdWar erawhere business and predation have replaced foreign state support (Le Billon, 2001). As rebels take advantage of their location in forests to control or establish logging operations, underfunded or financially self-interested government military forces deployed for counterinsurgency purposes frequently join in. Logging companies also seem to accept a higher degree of risk than entrepreneurs in most other sectors, for instance to access increasingly rare and valuable old growth forests.

After the end of the Cold War and the improvement of relations between the super powers, violent conflicts continued to be part of Africa’s political reality. Between 1992 and 2001, the number of armed conflicts outside Africa dropped by half, yet in Africa the number stayed roughly the same (Ross, 2003). Richards (2001, p. 65, referring to Duffield, 1998) identified a new type of “forest war” on the rise in the western half of the continent, stretching from Zaire to Liberia. These wars, largely fought over and sustained by natural resources, signify a break with old conflicts which were largely rooted in positions created by ColdWar animosities. Apart from some exceptions such as Angola, such proxy conflicts (some of which continue until today) were located on the eastern side of the continent, from the Horn of Africa to Mozambique.

In the search for solutions to the increase of violent conflict worldwide, the examination of correlates and causes has become increasingly important. A nontraditional approach to the issue of security should interest political scientists, economists, environmentalists, and policy-makers alike. This volume examines the strong geographic correlation between forests and incidences of violent conflict, which has stirred significant interest in the international development community (e.g., Blom ., 2000). Recent research estimates that roughly three-quarters of Asia’s forests, two-thirds of Africa’s forests, and one-third of Latin America’s forests are located in countries that have experienced violent conflict in the past 20 years (Kaimowitz & Fauné, 2003). This geographic correlation suggests a relationship between violent conflicts and forests, although whether forests give rise to conflict or conflict decreases deforestation is unclear.

Forests in mainland Southeast Asia have throughout history been affected by regional conflict, but perhaps more so in the modern era (see Chapters 2 and 9). In the Indochina War, which engulfed this area for several decades during the middle of the twentieth century, forests became variously not only a buffer between hostile groups and a refuge for both civilian populations and combatants, but also a battlefield. The war between Vietnamese and American forces has had both direct and indirect impacts on forests in Lao PDR. Because forests provided for some the cover and resources critical for survival and for others marketable goods, the forest became a target of military attack. Extreme conflict in this region thus resulted in fragmented forests in some areas and impeded forest management in almost all areas, leaving vast tracts of forest as virtually an open access resource. The government’s lack of a coherent forest management plan and the difficulty of exercising control over forest resources resulted in widespread, unregulated timber harvesting. Consequently, tackling forest management problems became a primary concern for the postwar government.

Much of the world’s remaining undisturbed moist tropical rainforest is in Africa. It is home to complex, interlinked human and nonhuman forest communities, a great carbon store, and a site of enormous biodiversity. It is also threatened—by population pressure, rapacious logging companies in league with corrupt governments and other groups, and widespread violent conflict. In defense of the forest, various NGOs have demonstrated the relationship between violent conflict and deforestation. For example, Liberia’s Charles Taylor used revenue from the sale of timber to directly support the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) rebel movement in Sierra Leone (see Chapters 3 and 7 by de Koning and Price .). Others have followed the causal pathway in the opposite direction, suggesting that deforestation and other forms of environmental degradation lead to violent conflict (Homer-Dixon, 1999; Homer-Dixon & Blitt, 1998).

“Conflict timber” is a term that has only come into use recently, yet the broader phenomenon—the financing of violent conflict through the exploitation of natural resources—has a long history. For the purposes of this study, conflict timber is de- fined as wood that has been traded or taxed at some point in the chain of custody by armed groups, be they rebel factions or state militaries, or by a civilian administration involved in armed conflict to finance hostilities or otherwise perpetuate conflict. The connection between the timber trade and the finance of war has garnered international attention recently because of its role in several prolonged and destructive conflicts in Asia and Africa. Timber has most prominently figured in conflicts that have affected Liberia, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), and Cambodia, as described in the chapter by Le Billon (Chapter 2), but it has also played a role in conflicts in Myanmar (Burma), Guinea, and Sierra Leone. Here we examine the basic characteristics of the conflict timber phenomenon and reviewoptions available for preventing and controlling its occurrence.

The natural habitats of Colombia, its forests, rivers, and grasslands, are global conservation priorities because of the richness and endemism of their fauna and flora (McNeely ., 1990; Myers ., 2000; Olson & Dinerstein, 1998; Stattersfield ., 1998). The ecosystem function of these natural habitats benefits millions of Colombians who depend on their water, wood, bushmeat, and medicinal plants (Rodríguez & Ponce, 1999). Over several centuries, the advance of the agricultural frontier has fragmented these ecosystems resulting in the extirpation of endemic species, natural disasters, and a general decline in environmental quality, particularly in the Andes and the Caribbean region (Cavelier & Etter, 1995; Cavelier ., 1998; Etter & van Wyngarden, 2000). Over the last decade, however, incentives for agricultural production in Colombia have decreased. The output of annual crops fell at an average annual rate of 3.2%, agricultural production lost 4% of its relative importance in the GDP, and agricultural imports have increased almost 10-fold (Jaramillo, 2001; Robledo, 1999; Vásquez, 1997). Nonetheless, the fragmentation of natural ecosystems persists partly because of the expansion of other legal economic activities—perennial crops, cattle ranching, mining, and timber exploitation—as well as that of illicit crops whose exponential growth has paralleled the escalation of armed conflict (Álvarez, 2001, 2003).

The rain forests of Vietnam are deep and dark. The dense foliage overhead blocks out the sun. At the base of gigantic tropical trees are colonies of ferns and vines. There is no breeze and the stagnant air is sweltering. The forests become infested with leeches during the monsoon: leaves harbor insidious green leeches while on the laterite earth are ones of limpid amber. In swamps these bloodsuckers are often black.

The end the Cold War has not brought violent conflict to an end. Thewar in Afghanistan, the war in Iraq, as well as recent events in New York, London, Madrid and Bali suggest that the danger of potential destructive wars remains high. Civil wars or other smaller scale conflicts continue in many African countries, killing and displacing vast amounts of people from the Sudan to the Congo. Drug cartels continue to wreak havoc in countries in South America. Similar examples can be given from Cambodia, Myanmar, Philippines, Indonesia, Nepal and Sri Lanka. These are examples of conflict that affect societies at large in many tropical forest countries. Because of modern means of communication, increasing demand on resources driven by higher consumption levels and larger number of people, and the spread of modern instruments of war, future wars are likely to be extremely destructive for both people and nature.