In countries in which forests are seriously threatened by encroachment and destruction, special efforts are required to support economic development in poor, densely populated areas around the forests or in the origin areas of forest encroachers.
Traditional forest communities are increasingly encountering large numbers of transmigrant populations who have abandoned urban areas because of lack of economic opportunities in favor of homesteading on logged over lands. As a result, in developing countries, foresters are increasingly serving as policing agents, attempting to halt the conversion of the forest by traditional and migrant populations.