This thesis deals with two related topics: core development objectives in community forestry in the Philippines, and the 'instruments' of development practice which have been used to address these objectives. The two topics have currency beyond forestry development and are at the centre of a debate about sustainable development. Community forestry aims to democratise resource access, alleviate poverty, and ensure the sustainability of forest resources. Development practice, however, has often led to contradictory outcomes. This paradox is examined from three perspectives: that of political economy, characteristics of practice, and the theory of rationalisation. ¶Four government-initiated community forestry projects in the Philippines are analysed. These projects provide an historical trend on the development and refinements of the different techniques from the early 1980s to the present. The relationship between the use of these techniques and improved outcomes in terms of the three core concerns is established. Empirical findings from the cases suggest that there is no necessary relationship between the employment of these instruments and better development outcomes. The attempt to democratise forest resource access through the use of access instruments has benefited the local elite and reinforced the government's jurisdiction over these resources. Similarly, the use of appraisal and participatory planning techniques has homogenised views of the local community and advanced a centrally determined agenda in forest management that has worked against the alleviation of poverty. Forest degradation is likely to continue, even with the incorporation of social factors into the concept of sustained-yield forest management. ¶The political economy perspective suggests that contradictory effects can be explained by the country's historical and political structure which has been shaped by an economically-driven development model and dominated by a more privileged sector. Despite genuine efforts for reform, this perspective contends that community forestry projects and related development interventions will always be influenced by political forces, and their benefits will be captured by the privileged sector. On the other hand, a focus on the characteristics of practice leads to the conclusion that contradictory effects are results of the limitations of these techniques, including their poor application. This implies that the adverse effects may be addressed through the refinement of these techniques and improvements in their application. Finally, the rationalisation thesis reveals that paradoxical effects are inherent in the use of these techniques. This perspective posits that even with the apparent shift from a state-controlled to a more participatory and decentralised approach in forest management, such as community forestry, the instrumentalist nature associated with the application of these techniques reinforces the characteristics of homogeneity, technocracy, and centralism which are inclined to produced paradoxical outcomes. ¶Both the political economy and the rationalisation perspectives provide a gloomy prognosis for community forestry. However, the recognition of the dual problems of poverty and environmental degradation in the Philippine uplands, suggests that community forestry should not be abandoned. Through a responsive mode of practice, there is room to move to improve the outcomes of the three central objectives. But responsive practice is not a panacea for all development ills. The process is bound to be slow, strategies will vary from one place to another, and success will be patchy. But because responsive community forestry practice is not amenable to central programming and control, it is more likely to result in sustainable outcomes than the present approaches.