Chapter 7 addresses the environmental impacts of the hydropower nation. Rising water levels in the dam’s reservoir area brought about unforeseen ecological consequences. Alongside the tragic human displacement, various species of fish and waterfowl have experienced a variety of changes in the transformed river landscape. In recent decades, environmental hazards – such as riverbank collapse – have persisted in the reservoir area. On the other hand, the creation of a wetland preserve and the emergence of a thriving population of Whooper Swans in the area offer evidence of the development of a nuanced relationship between humanity and nature in the Chinese state’s pursuit of what it calls an ecological civilization. These developments complicate the overwhelmingly dominant narrative of environmental decline in the field of environmental history.

This chapter assesses the potential impact of SDG 8 on forests and forest-dependent people. The conceptual framework puts decent work and economic growth in the context of predominant development theories and paradigms (modernisation, growth, basic needs, sustainable development) shaping the agendas of governments, the private sector, civil society and investors. These stakeholders pursue different goals and interests, with uneven prioritisation of SDG 8 targets and mixed impacts on forests and livelihoods. At the country level, significant trade-offs are expected where growth policies and strategies focus on sectors competing with forestry for space and resources, such as agriculture, energy and mining. In these cases, decoupling economic growth from environmental degradation will be a major challenge. Combined, such policies and strategies lead to global trade-offs by exacerbating climate change. Synergies between SDG 8 and forests exist where growth is explicitly sought in the forest sector, focusing on tree plantations, timber and NTFPs from natural forests, eco-tourism and environmental services. Enhanced enabling environments help minimise trade-offs and maximise synergies by reconciling government policies and private sustainability standards, formalising community stewardship of tropical forests, addressing informality in forest product value chains and providing incentives for youth to become involved in forest-based economic activities.

The Wild Chimpanzee Foundation (WCF) is a spin-off from the Taï Chimpanzee Project (TCP), created after TCP researchers witnessed wild chimpanzee populations in and around Taï National Park diminish due to wildlife poaching and massive deforestation of the tropical forest. Prof. Christophe Boesch initiated conservation efforts with help from his PhD students, who know the region and problematics. The first conservation efforts the WCF initiated were interactive theatre campaigns and biomonitoring programmes. The theatre campaigns were based on previous sociological studies and included collaboration with sociologists from the national universities. The biomonitoring programme started in 2004 in collaboration with Ivorian students, quickly scaling up to the national level and including other protected areas. From 2007 onwards, the collaboration of TCP/WCF initiated a law enforcement and biomonitoring programme in the research area. Between 2009 and 2016, this project helped secure the research area and allowed the most important animal species to repopulate. WCF now undertakes pilot studies for innovative and new methodologies to further improve the park and chimpanzee protection.