Abstract — Community-based resource management (CBRM) where traditional and indigenous knowledge is combined with science to maintain resources has been widely used for inshore fisheries in the Pacific region. In Solomon Islands, CBRM is recognized as a strategy to enhance food security, adapt to climate change and conserve threatened species. However, even with its national recognition, rural communities are still faced with economic and social challenges while trying to manage their resources. Per se, it is vital that while communities are engaging in resource management, they should also be involved in sustainable supplementary livelihood activities that will sustain their living. With that notion, a study was conducted with the Sirubai Voko Tribal Association (SVTA) members at Pusiju village in South East Vella La Vella in Western Solomon Islands to assess what is working well for them and what is not so as to identify livelihood options that would be more appropriate to support their forest conservation initiative. The SWOT analysis protocol, pairwise ranking and the SLOPIC tools were used and six out of 11 livelihood
options were considered as the most suitable for SVTA communities. From the study, we recommend that selection of livelihood options must be realistic based on what is available in the community in lieu of external sources. Thus, although the resources required for successful implementation of livelihood options may vary, the major goal is for the livelihood options considered to constantly support conservation into the future without failing.
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