Minimizing the Livelihood Trade-Offs of Natural Resource Management in the Eastern African Highlands: Policy Implications of a Project in “Creative Governance” Laura German & Waga Mazengia & Hailemichael Taye & Mesfin Tsegaye & Shenkut Ayele & Sarah Charamila & Juma Wickama Published online: 11 November 2009 # Springer Science + Business Media, LLC 2009 Abstract The highlands of Eastern Africa are characterized by high population densities and tightly coupled interac- tions between adjacent landscape units and users. Effective formal or informal natural resource governance is necessary to mitigate the potential negative social and environmental effects of individuals’ behavior. Yet many natural resource management and development problems that require or benefit from collective solutions remain unresolved (German et al. Environ Dev Sustain 8: 535–552, 2006a; German et al. 2006b; German et al. Q J Int Agr 47(3): 191–216, 2008). We argue that many of the more intractable problems in improving governance stem from the trade- offs that underlie them, which may include a loss of livelihood options for at least some households, leading to governance break down. Following a brief introduction to natural resource management and governance in Eastern Africa, we analyze the results of participatory by-law deliberations by distilling the restrictions proposed gover- nance reforms pose to certain local stakeholders. We recommend that future policy for improved landscape governance couple institutional reforms with livelihood alternatives that reduce the burden of good governance on households. Keywords East African Highlands . Governance . Natural resource governance . By-laws . Community-based natural resource management . Ethiopia . Tanzania Introduction It is necessary to look at the history of governance in Eastern Africa in order to understand contemporary land use by-laws. During the colonial and post-colonial periods, two factors jointly contributed to shaping modern institu- tions of governance. The first was the role of the state in penetrating local spheres of governance. Countries such as Tanzania and Ethiopia, passing through periods of socialist rule, also share a particular set of experiences which sets them apart in the degree of state control of rural affairs (Scott 1998; Sheridan 2004). The second factor was the ideological erosion of traditional practices and beliefs L. German (*) Center for International Forestry Research, Bogor, Indonesia e-mail: L.German@cgiar.org W. Mazengia Southern Agricultural Research Institute, Awassa, Ethiopia H. Taye Agriculture Sector Support Project, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia M. Tsegaye International Center for Physical Land Resources, Gent, Belgium S. Ayele Ethiopian Institute for Agricultural Research/Holetta Agricultural Research Centre, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia S. Charamila Independent Consultant, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania J. Wickama Agricultural Research Institute - Mlingano, Tanga, Tanzania Hum Ecol (2010) 38:31–47 DOI 10.1007/s10745-009-9291-9