ABSTRACT OF THE DISSERTATION 

Invisible Livelihoods: Non-Timber Forest Products 
In Michigan's Upper Peninsula 


by MARLA R. EMERY 

Dissertation Director: 
Professor James K. Mitchell 


This study examines the role that non-timber forest products (NTFP) play in the household livelihoods of gatherers in Michigan's Upper Peninsula (UP). Drawing on political ecology and resource management theory traditions in Geography, it looks at the effect of economic, regulatory, and ecological context on the viability of NTFP livelihood strategies. Findings are compared to the international literature. As an employee of USDA Forest Service Research and Development, I interpret the results in terms of that agency's Ecosystem Management policy and emerging challenges managing NTFP on national forest lands. 

Ethnographic fieldwork in the UP shows gatherers to be a diverse group including European and Native Americans, males and females of all ages. Their household livelihoods depend upon multiple strategies inside and outside the formal market. NTFP are often used to bridge regular income gaps or 

catastrophic downturns in household economies. However, gathering has both material and cultural values and may be simultaneously an activity of leisure and labor. Successful NTFP strategies depend upon ecological knowledge and observe norms that assure long-term product availability. NTFP buyers also have diverse livelihoods. Businesses display considerable longevity and satisficing behavior is characteristic of gatherers and buyers alike. 

Over 138 products are gathered in the UP. Their functional uses are categorized as ceremonial/cultural, edible, floral/nursery/craft, and medicinal. They contribute to household livelihoods through personal consumption, barter or gift giving, sale in a raw form and sale in a processed form, with nonmarket uses constituting over 60%. NTFP commodity chains are national and international in scope and profits increase geometrically from supplier to final market. Personal relationships are critical throughout the chain. 

I propose a conceptual model for analysis of NTFP livelihoods and management decisions. Key factors are gatherer knowledge, biological availability, access to products, and economic need or demand. Forest Service practice may affect these through physical management, regulatory policies, or rural development programs. The salient characteristics of NTFP livelihoods are most visible through alternative economic theories and dynamic ecological theory. I suggest caution in promoting NTFP as a rural development strategy and encourage involving gatherers in development of monitoring and regulations where needed. 

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