The faulty perception of the natural environment and cultural practices of the Sahel have led to inappropriate responses to the problems of providing firewood and of deforestation. The public rapidly became aware of damage caused by deforestation of the Sahel, but the tendency to attribute the damage to collection of firewood was overly simplistic. When desertification began to attract notice, there was little scientific, technical, or statistical knowledge of the dry zone forest. Research efforts were concentrated on the humid zone forests which were perceived to be potentially more lucrative. No systematic inventories of the dry zone forests or studies of their regeneration were available. In fact, under traditional cultivation techniques the clearing of the land did not cause destruction of the ecosystem because of its capacity for regeneration so long as the land was allowed to lie fallow. Most of the tree plantations installed by governments and nongovernmental organizations have failed because they were planted in overly dry zones, the species chosen where not appropriate for the climate, or the local populations were unable to care for them at times when their own time requirements for agriculture were greatest. In addition, the tree plantings did not provide the other foods and forest products utilized in cooking, curing, and trade. In traditional agriculture, a family plot of hectare or more is cleared, cultivated for 2-3 years, allowed to lie fallow for 8-9 years, and cultivated again for 2-3 years before being abandoned to a longterm fallow when the family moves on. Demographic growth in the region has led to a general shortening of fallow periods and cultivation of increasingly fragile and marginal zones. This factor, and pasturing of excessive numbers of animals, have been the main causes of desertification. New cultivation patterns and more appropriate tree plantings are urgently needed. Field studies should be conducted to help identify ecologically appropriate and socially accepted measures. If the current system is allowed to continue, catastrophic deforestation will ensue.