If groups from diverse cultural backgrounds share access to a forest, the key question affecting the likelihood of self-organised solutions is whether the views of the multiple groups concerning the structure of the forest, authority, interpretation of rules, trust and reciprocity differ or are similar. In other words, do they share a common understanding (A2) of their situation? New settlers to a region may simply learn and accept the rules of the established group, and their cultural differences on other fronts do not affect their participation in governing a forest. On the other hand, new settlers are frequently highly disruptive to the sustenance of a self-governing enterprise when they generate higher levels of conflict over the interpretation and application of rules and increase enforcement costs substantially. When the interests of users differ, achieving a self-governing solution is particularly challenging. This problem characterises some fisheries where local subsistence fishermen have strong interests in the sustenance of an inshore fishery, while industrial fishing firms have many other options and may be more interested in the profitability of fishing in a particular location than its sustained yield. The conflict between absentee livestock owners and local pastoralists has also proved difficult to solve in many parts of the world.