The purpose of this manual is to provide practical guidance and examples of how to apply Adaptive Collaborative Management (ACM) methods in communities and how to teach those methods to others. ACM is a collective problem-solving and management approach. With ACM everybody can participate, contribute their knowledge and learn together how to solve important problems. ACM focuses on learning — from our mistakes and our successes. Specifically, ACM uses social learning, a process through which individuals work with others to observe, evaluate and decide upon actions together so that decisions about natural resource management can be more adaptive and collaborative. Community members around the world have used ACM approaches in a range of ways to help them manage their natural resources better, more fairly and more inclusively. Most importantly, ACM has helped people learn together to plan and prepare for the future.

This manual specifically addresses how to encourage the broader participation of women in decision making through ACM. Women are often marginalized when it comes to decision making over forest resource management. During a project on gender and tenure in Nicaragua and Uganda, we used ACM to create new spaces for women to participate and to build understanding between women and men about the benefits of getting women involved in forest management.