For the past 10 years, thousands of refugees from Central African Republic (CAR) have crossed into Cameroon and settled in villages along the border.  Refugee influxes can produce ecological and social challenges to host communities.  While conflict is often a result, there is also an opportunity for collaboration and successful integration.  Agroforestry, the intentional incorporation and management of trees in agricultural systems, provides a tool that can respond to both social and ecological challenges by providing conservation farming techniques and increasing diversified home production of many needed products.  This research sought to understand the needs of community members for specific practices as well as preferences for social implementation of practices, using a frame of identity to help inform on integration and collaboration potential in agricultural projects.

The participatory research collected demographic data, employed a 20 point oral questionnaire, and utilized illustrated visual ranking and storytelling tools to gather information on 8 agroforestry practice and implementation preferences, identity, and social arrangement preferences among community members.  Agroforestry practices were divided between product-oriented and service-oriented practices.  We collected data from 122 individual interviews evenly divided between men and women, and CAR refugees and host community Cameroonians.

Results show that there are significant differences in agroforestry practice and implementation preferences across the sample, and between refugees and Cameroonians.  Most people felt that refugees and Cameroonians had similar traditions and needs, and that most areas of life should be integrated, however agriculture was an area that the people were more hesitant about mixing, demonstrating that arrangements and implementation of agricultural projects should be carefully designed and executed.  Those who preferred mixing of refugees and Cameroonians in fieldwork included members of all demographic groups, signifying the potential for integrated collaboration on community agricultural projects.  Results demonstrate that agroforestry projects have the potential to provide important valued resources to communities, create an opportunity for knowledge transfer and improved agricultural systems, and be the scene for positive contact between refugees and Cameroonians, leading to successful integration.