Accelerating forest destruction in the Philippines led, in the post-Marcos era, to some major reforms in forest governance and management. A participatory approach to forest monitoring was adopted, involving the establishment of ‘Multi-Sectoral Forest Protection Committees’ (MFPCs). These provided a means to involve civil society and other concerned parties in a programme that aimed both to conserve and protect the forests and improve the livelihoods of the people. This paper discusses how this new governance strategy responded to the pressing problems in forestry and, in so doing, provides lessons which may be applied to other forest settings.