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Artisanal Non-Timber Forest Products in Darien Province, Panam·: The Importance of Context
J. Velasquez Runk, Pinel Mepaquito and Floriselda Pena

Non-timber forest products (NTFP) have been frequently studied as a means to conserve forests and provide income to user communities. Studies on NTFP have often been restricted to a single species, year and human user community. However, a number of recent studies are challenging these simplifications. Here, we examine a suite of artisanal NTFP that are of increasing economic importance to Wounaan and Ember· households in Panam·. Artisans make carvings from seeds of a tagua palm (Phytelephas seemannii) and the wood of cocobolo (Dalbergia retusa), and weave baskets from the fibres of the chunga palm (Astrocaryum standleyanum). We studied the ecology and socio-economics of these resources between 1997.