The study examines the fate of community forestry in the real-world context of pressures through the state and from the market, by using a combination of discourse analysis, actor analysis and net-work analysis.It deals with the views and interactions of a wide range of groups, including attention to important divisions of genders and class. It identifies and characterises eight relevant discourses, and examines, including from interviews, how these have been used by diverse users in diverse contexts; including how actors may manoeuvre within and between discourses. Overall the study shows the eight discourses at work, in alliance, in conflict and in evolution.