The locals - living on the edge of one of the largest remaining forests in Madagascar - have relied for generations on the forest's seemingly endless bounty of natural resources: wood for building houses and carving canoes; firewood for cooking meals; leaves and tubers to supplement the daily diet of rice; and, of course, lemur and bat bushmeat.  However, with burgeoning villages and new single family settlements cropping up in remote regions, forest land is rapidly being converted to residential and agricultural uses.

The situation is exacerbated by certain cultural practices that encourage women to become pregnant when they are still young.  It is believed that a woman with a child is more desirable because she has already proved her fertility; therefore, it is not uncommon for a woman to have her first child early and with a different man than her subsequent children.  In addition, being a culture dependent on subsistence agriculture increases the desire for a large family to help in the fields, tend animals, care for younger children, and cook meals.

While many women do want large families, many others do not: a 2004 survey by the UN shows a 24% unmet need for family planning services in the country. In other words, about one in four women would like to delay their next pregnancy or stop having children altogether, but don't have access to the information and services that would enable them to do so.  Along with my environmental work, I began to focus on incorporating family planning and public health into my activities. Armed with a variety of educational tools provided by Peace Corps, I held several meetings with women in my village to introduce information on various family planning options.  Although initially drawn to the meetings out of curiosity about "the white girl", the women were eager to learn about and discuss family planning methods - albeit with plenty of giggling. 

Unlike many areas on the African continent, Malagasy women have rather significant standing in society (the 2008 Gender Equity Index - which looks at female involvement in economic activity, empowerment, and education - ranks Madagascar alongside Japan!).  This does not necessarily mean, however, that in rural villages such as mine, women have sufficient access to family planning information or supplies. The local community clinic, run by two male doctors, is understaffed, underfunded, and undersupplied.  As my female friends explained, if they wanted to plan their families, women would have to discuss the rather taboo subject with a man, risk the small community finding out (including her husband, who may or may not be supportive), and most likely would find a lack of supplies; the only other alternative would be a hike of at least five hours one-way to the regional town. 

While I arrived in Madagascar with the hope of protecting the island's famous biological diversity , it became clear that helping the stewards of the land - the local people - is the only effective way to protect the environment.  Without improving the health and welfare of communities, population growth rates will continue to soar, and the increased demands on forest resources will diminish any conservation effort.  Through health programs and voluntary family planning we can greatly improve our conservation outcomes.  For further information on family planning challenges faced in Madagascar and how those challenges relate to the nation's unique and vital natural resources, see Population Action International's documentary, Finding Balance- Forests and Family Planning in Madagascar.