This essay describes the situation which is similar for many forests in the developing countries. Poverty, demographic changes and governmental management with very little support from the local communities, has lead to an enormous pressure on natural resources. In order to turn the negative trend away from a non-reversible loss of fauna and vegetation, people and governments in many tropical countries have realised that empowerment of local people is often a prerequisite for sustainable forest management and preservation. Consequently, several local forest management projects have been initiated in several places in South-east Asia and in Africa. This paper describes some of these projects and connects them with a specific forest in Tanzania, the Kazimzumbwi Forest reserve. The Kazimzumbwi forest is now seriously threatened as regard of loss of fauna, vegetation and the ability to function as a catchment area. The situation has reached the same acute level that was common for several areas in South-east Asia were local forest management has been initiated. The aim of this paper is to draw conclusions from the experiences of these on-going management projects and see to what extent they are applicable to the Kazimzumbwi Forest Reserve. Tanzanian law and land tenure and the long tradition of the Village Council as a basis for a strong local democracy, are key factors for good local forest management. In this paper, it is shown that the Kazimzumbwi forest has a good chance of finding a sustainable joint forest management path.