The Forest and Landscape Restoration movement has emerged as an approach to reconcile biodiversity conservation, ecosystem services provisioning and human well-being in degraded landscapes, but little is known so far about the potential of different reforestation methods to achieve these objectives. Based on this gap, we assessed the ecological outcomes and local livelihood benefits of community-managed agroforests and second growth forests to assist natural regeneration in the coastal Atlantic Forest of Brazil. We investigated and compared agroforests and secondary forests according to their structure and floristic composition in 51 circular plots of 314 m², their role in supporting local livelihoods (45 semi-structured interviews) and the use and cultural importance of plant species (61 interviews). Agroforests and, more remarkably, managed secondary forests (1) re-established a well-developed forest structure, with a higher density of tree-sized individuals and similar basal area compared to nearby old growth forests; (2) were composed by a rich array of native species, including five threatened species, but had lower species richness than old growth remnants; and (3) improved local livelihoods by supplying market valuable and culturally important plants, including 231 native ethnospecies. Overall, local production systems showed remarkable potential to engage smallholders of developing tropical countries in Forest and Landscape Restoration and contribute to achieve its overall goals. We advocate the promotion of these systems as effective Forest and Landscape Restoration approaches in multi-scale programs and policies.Abstract in Portuguese is available with online material.

Recent global commitments to forest and landscape restoration in the tropics call for new management approaches that benefit both biodiversity and livelihoods of forest‐dependent people. The sustainable use of wild forest products is a promising pathway, but requires clarity about harvested species' demography and harvesters' rights. Here, we explored how the exploitation of fruits of the threatened palm Euterpe edulis, a key fruit source for wildlife in Brazil's globally important Atlantic Forest biodiversity hotspot, could trigger local community involvement in restoration. This palm has both non‐destructive (fruit) and destructive (palm heart) culinary uses, each with unique biological and resource‐use conditions. We quantified all demographic stages of this species in multiple agroforests, secondary forests, and protected areas to parameterize demographic projections of palm populations, harvest profitability, and fruit provisioning to wildlife under different management scenarios. Field observations showed a clear depression of adult palm populations in protected areas, likely due to palm heart poaching, and of intermediate size classes in agroforests, probably from weeding by farmers. Field data and demographic models reveal that in this region, agroforests and secondary forests can successfully conserve this species while providing lasting profits for farmers under most scenarios. These findings demonstrate a clear case where local stakeholders both contribute to and benefit from restoration through harvest of wild products and also highlight a potential source of income from regenerating tropical forests.

Manejo florestal comunitário de frutos como estratégia de conservação da palmeira juçara (Euterpe edulis Mart.) Germano de Freitas Chagas Dissertação apresentada para obtenção do título de Mestre em Ciências. Área de concentração: Ecologia Aplicada