2.1. Profile of the Study Area: The Lawachara National Park, with a total area of 1250 ha, is located at Kamalganj Upazila (sub-district) in Moulavibazar District and a part of the West Bhanugach Reserved Forest. Geographically, it lies between 24030’–24032’ N and 91037’–91047’ E0. The area is undulated with slopes and hillocks, locally called tilla, ranging from 10-50 m scattered in the forest. Numerous streams flow through the forest. Soil organic matter and fertility levels are generally low, and texture is generally sandy loam or silty loam. The vegetation of the area consists of mixed semi-evergreen old secondary forest with a 528.5 ha tree density. The canopy height varies from 10 m to 30 m. Almost all original forest cover has been removed or substantially altered and thus has turned into a secondary forest, which has developed a multistoried structure and dense forest, looking like virgin natural forest. Tea gardens, rubber gardens, short and long rotation plantations, agroforestry and paddy fields, etc. surround the park.
About 30 villages (approximately 4000 households) are situated in and around the LNP, where villagers are involved in different forest practices, labor intensive works, small businesses, eco-tour guide and other services. Of the forest practices, the Khasia (100%) and Garo (few households) indigenous communities practice betel leaf-based agroforestry system (totalling 130 ha of natural forest used for betel leaf cultivation, rotation is >8 years). Pineapple-based agroforestry system (rotation 4–5 years), lemon-based agroforestry system (>15 years rotation) and mixed culture agroforestry systems have been managed by the Tripura community. Six tea gardens are located at the border of southeast, on the south and east sides, and at one coffee plantation on the west side of the forest, which provides shelter to a large number of their laborers. These communities illegally enjoy different levels (from high to low) of access to forest outputs through cutting the forest plants in addition to hunting wildlife. Studies have found that the Garo community has a tendency to collect more tree branches, saplings and leaves, as their homestead garden is not rich in tree species. The Khasia community collects more non-timber forest products (NTFPs) and house building materials. Although they have rich homestead gardens, their tendency is to keep their garden untouched to protect it from wind and landslide. The Tripura community collects mainly bamboo and house building materials to make bamboo-made handicrafts for their own use and for selling for subsistence.
2.2. Survey Methods At the outset, a reconnaissance survey was carried out to get a rudimentary idea about the indigenous communities’ locality, their livelihood, and their farming system. Necessary permission for interviews was obtained from the FD, and the Montrias community, without the Montri’s consent, did not want to talk to outsiders. A list of all household heads was collected from the FD as well as from the Montri. Household surveys (HHs), key informant interviews (KIIs), focus group discussions (FGDs), and field observations were made to identify the climate-related risks faced by the communities, and their corresponding adaptation strategies. Some other tools, such as problem matrix and problem scoring, were also used to prioritize the risks after identification. 2.2.1. Selection of the Study Villages Out of the four indigenous communities, three communities (i.e., Khasia, Tripura and Garo) spread out over four villages were selected purposively to conduct the survey, keeping conformity with the objectives of the study. Two villages, namely, Lawachara Punji and Magurchara Punji (major forest-dependence and completely inscribed in the park) are allotted to the Khasia community; the Tripura community lives in the Dolubarivillage (major forest-dependence), and the Garo community in the Gilachara village (medium forest-dependence). However, the Monipuri community was kept out of this study due to their no or lesser dependence on the forest.