Climate change and poverty in Africa

Africa is most vulnerable to climate change, although it makes the least contribution to factors that result in global and regional climatic changes. High levels of vulnerability and low adaptive capacity across the continent have been linked to, among other things, poverty. This paper discusses and analyses the relationship between climate change and poverty in Africa. It investigates the relationship between climate change and poverty patterns in Africa, analyses the resultant impact, and discusses potential adaptation policies for moderating the consequences of climatic changes on poverty in the region. The record shows that climate change is happening. What is not discussed or is little researched is the potential devastating impact of climate change on socio-economic development in Africa and the policy measures available to the continent for adaptation.     

Temporal changes in giant panda habitat connectivity across boundaries of Wolong Nature Reserve, China.

Global biodiversity loss is largely driven by human activities such as the conversion of natural to human-dominated landscapes. A popular approach to mitigating land cover change is the designation of protected areas (e.g., nature reserves). Nature reserves are traditionally perceived as strongholds of biodiversity conservation. However, many reserves are affected by land cover changes not only within their boundaries, but also in their surrounding areas. This study analyzed the changes in habitat for the giant panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) inside Wolong Nature Reserve, Sichuan, China, and in a 3-km buffer area outside its boundaries, through a time series of classified satellite imagery and field observations. Habitat connectivity between the inside and the outside of the reserve diminished between 1965 and 2001 because panda habitat was steadily lost both inside and outside the reserve. However, habitat connectivity slightly increased between 1997 and 2001 due to the stabilization of some panda habitat inside and outside the reserve. This stabilization most likely occurred as a response to changes in socioeconomic activities (e.g., shifts from agricultural to nonagricultural economies). Recently implemented government policies could further mitigate the impacts of land cover change on panda habitat. The results suggest that Wolong Nature Reserve, and perhaps other nature reserves in other parts of the world, cannot be managed as an isolated entity because habitat connectivity declines with land cover changes outside the reserve even if the area inside the reserve is well protected. The findings and approaches presented in this paper may also have important implications for the management of other nature reserves across the world.     

Modeling the spatio-temporal dynamics and interactions of households,landscapes, and giant panda habitat

Human modification of land-cover has been a leading cause of floral and faunal species extirpation and loss of local and global biodiversity. As natural areas are impacted, habitat and populations can become fragmented and isolated. This is particularly evident in the mountainous areas of southwestern China that support the remaining populations of giant pandas (Ailuropoda melanoleuca). Giant panda populations have been restricted to remnants of habitat from extensive past land use and land-cover change. Households are a basic socio-economic unit that continues to impact the remaining habitat through activities such as fuelwood consumption and new household creation. Therefore, we developed a spatio-temporal model of human activities and their impacts by directly integrating households into the landscape. The integrated model allows us to examine the landscape factors influencing the spatial distribution of household activities and household impacts on habitat. As an example application, we modeled household activities in a giant panda reserve in China and examined the spatio-temporal dynamics of households, the landscape, and their mutual interactions. Human impacts are projected to result in the loss of up to 16% of all existing habitat within the reserve over the next 30 years. In addition, we found that accessibility largely controls the spatial distribution of household activities and considerable changes in management and household activities will be required to maintain the current level of habitat within the reserve.     

A policy alternative for lagoon management: case study of Sre Ambel coastal marine fisheries,Cambodia

Sre Ambel is the most productive coastal area for marine fisheries in Cambodia. This paper explores the management concept of extractive reserve instruments to find the most effective application in the coastal areas of Cambodia. Since there are various extractive models in the world, the most important objective is to determine which extractive reserve model is best suited to real practices where the ability of the fisheries’ residents to apply laws and guidelines vary from one place to another. To reflect these objectives, this paper looks at various examples around the world, especially from various Latin American countries. The level of local ability to apply laws and regulations is determined by the weight average index method. These results shows that fishers’ education levels are sufficient to apply laws and regulations, but their understanding of existing fisheries guidelines is still below average. Although the level to which they satisfy the guidelines is poor, local people are willing to establish new appropriate guidelines for future effective application. Therefore, local fishers have the ability to apply laws and regulations under new extractive reserve aspects. An extractive reserve policy combines all available instruments to manage the lagoon. The best alternative is to develop strong collaboration among the various stakeholders in the area. This converts an open-access to common property resource use regime. All instruments of extractive reserve were satisfied by the local fishers. However, extractive reserve seems to be similar with fish refuge concept which currently proposed by Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Centre (SEAFDEC).     

Designing the Masoala National Park in Madagascar Based on Biological and Socioeconomic Data

Abstract: Conservation biologists have developed powerful tools for reserve selection and design over the past two decades, yet seldom are protected areas actually designed on scientific grounds. Using fundamental biological and socioeconomic principles of conservation science, we designed a new protected area and its multiple-use zone on the Masoala Peninsula in the humid forest zone of Madagascar. The explicit design criteria determined the data gathered for the work, which included (1) spatial distribution and quality of habitat, (2) the areas and species at greatest risk, (3) the relationship between environmental gradients and species distributions, (4) current and predicted human settlement and land and resource use, and (5) the economic potential of natural forest management as an alternative to deforestation. We used a geographic information system to integrate these data layers and applied the design criteria to develop a park proposal that balanced human and wildlife needs. The proposal won the approval of local residents, and a national decree in 1997 designated 2100 km² of rainforest and three satellite marine reserves as the Masoala National Park, with a surrounding multiple-use zone of approximately 1000 km². The new park is Madagascar's largest protected area and protects more lowland (<400 m) humid forest habitat than the entire reserve system combined, a significant step forward in conserving a globally important ecoregion. Consideration of local needs and the national economy was a key element in gaining approval for the Masoala Park. Such an approach toward reserve design could be applied elsewhere to improve chances of establishing and maintaining protected areas over the long term.     

武夷山自然保护区资源管理中社区参与机制的探讨

武夷山自然保护区在处理自然保护与社区发展之间的关系以及推动社区参与保护区管理方面已取得了一些成功的经验。但是,从当地现有的社区参与管理的模式来看,不仅社区参与程度较低,而且在某种程度上处于被动参与状态,保护区缺少一种激励机制来引导群众自觉参与保护。作者提出了在保护区建立旅游股份合作制公司的构想,并阐述了其运行机制。     

Coastal zone management challenges in Ghana: issues associated with coastal sediment mining

Coastal erosion is a serious environmental problem that has caused the loss of private infrastructure and national assets along Ghana’s coast. Several hard engineering measures have thus been used to protect some communities and vital state assets when they became threatened. Regardless of this problem, sediment mining activities are increasingly practiced along most of Ghana’s coast, further exacerbating coastal erosion intensity and degrading coastal ecosystems. This paper provides an overview of the activities of coastal sediment miners along four administrative Districts in the Central Region of Ghana and identifies how issues arising from the practice are managed at the local community level as well as by state environmental regulators. The study uses a mixed-method approach, involving individual and group interviews, administration of a set of structured questionnaire and field observations, to identify coastal sediment mining and emerging management issues. Overall, three main categories of coastal sediment mining activities were identified in the area. Results indicate that coastal sediment mining is widely practiced by both commercial contractors and community members, giving rise to the high perception among residents that it is the reason for the degradation of the coastline in the studied areas. The study also established that state environmental regulators have weak inter-agency cooperation leading to poor enforcement of environmental laws and non-prosecution of offending individuals. The paper suggests that since each identified sediment mining activity has its own peculiar issues and mode of operation, coastal managers should address each category independently in order to derive lasting impacts in curtailing the practice.     

Ecology,ecological poverty and sustainable development in Central Himalayan region of India

The people inhabiting the mountains of the Central Himalayan region of India are heavily dependent on their immediate natural resources for their survival. However, this resource-poor mountain ecosystem is gradually becoming unable to provide a minimum standard of living to its continually growing population. In this ecosystem, human population is doubling every 27–30 years, against the declining resource base, particularly forests. Forest are disappearing both quantitatively and qualitatively. Against the requirement of 18 ha of forest land to maintain production in 1 ha of cultivated land, the ratio of forests to cultivated land is only 1.33: 1. The present production from grasslands supports 8 units of livestock, against the ideal 2 units, and the gap between the demand and deficit of fodder is more than 5-fold. Loss of vegetative cover is resulting in drying up of water resources, compelling the women to walk longer distances to collect water. This ecological deterioration, apart from human growth and interference, is compounded by mountain specificities such as inaccessibility, fragility, marginality, diversity, niche and adaptability. The specificities manifest in isolation, distance, poor communication, limited mobility, etc., resulting in limited external linkages and replication of external experiences, and slow pace of development. They, therefore, restrict options for economic growth, effecting poverty and affecting the quality of life of the people of the region. Poverty, in this mountain ecosystem cannot be understood and assessed independent of ecological wealth and would better be termed as ecological poverty. The development efforts to be effective in alleviating poverty here, should take into account mountain specificities and incorporate options which have larger human dimensions, such as mechanisms for population control, socio-economic and cultural conditioning, indigenous knowledge systems of the local people and simple technologies that are already in practice or have potential and are based on least external inputs.     

Effects of payments for ecosystem services on wildlife habitat recovery

Conflicts between local people's livelihoods and conservation have led to many unsuccessful conservation efforts and have stimulated debates on policies that might simultaneously promote sustainable management of protected areas and improve the living conditions of local people. Many government‐sponsored payments‐for‐ecosystem‐services (PES) schemes have been implemented around the world. However, few empirical assessments of their effectiveness have been conducted, and even fewer assessments have directly measured their effects on ecosystem services. We conducted an empirical and spatially explicit assessment of the conservation effectiveness of one of the world's largest PES programs through the use of a long‐term empirical data set, a satellite‐based habitat model, and spatial autoregressive analyses on direct measures of change in an ecosystem service (i.e., the provision of wildlife species habitat). Giant panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) habitat improved in Wolong Nature Reserve of China after the implementation of the Natural Forest Conservation Program. The improvement was more pronounced in areas monitored by local residents than those monitored by the local government, but only when a higher payment was provided. Our results suggest that the effectiveness of a PES program depends on who receives the payment and on whether the payment provides sufficient incentives. As engagement of local residents has not been incorporated in many conservation strategies elsewhere in China or around the world, our results also suggest that using an incentive‐based strategy as a complement to command‐and‐control, community‐ and norm‐based strategies may help achieve greater conservation effectiveness and provide a potential solution for the park versus people conflict.     

Conservation,development and stakeholder relations in Bhutanese protected area management

Conservation and development initiatives have been widely promoted in protected areas (PAs) in developing countries despite ongoing challenges inherent in their capacity to protected biodiversity and alleviate poverty. Bhutan’s vast PA network is becoming increasingly affected by the rapid expansion of conservation and development activities. This paper examines important challenges that PA stakeholders face during socio-political change, and assess how these challenges might impact stakeholder relations in a remote Asian PA. Multiple methods were used to explore the gap between expectations and delivery of two development projects and provide insights through issues of local capacity, indigenous culture and incompatible priorities. Perceived impacts indicated flaws in project design, strong local cultural norms yet weak local ownership, trust and accountability concerns, tensions between modernization and traditional lifestyles, and prospective trade-offs. Suggestions for stronger projects and PA management include having greater internal leadership, adopting realistic timelines, and openly negotiating trade-offs and hard choices.     

Financial Considerations of Reserve Design in Countries with High Primate Diversity

Abstract. Many developing countries with high primate diversity are still forming wildlife reserves. However, financial resources for conservation in these countries are often limited. In this paper we show that the biology of reserve design in terms of island biogeography and minimum viable populations can be compatible with measures that minimize maintenance costs, namely perimeter surveillance. Large protected areas have substantially less perimeter to patrol than many small reserves of the same total area. Likewise, circular reserves have less perimeter than square or rectangular ones. Generally, countries with high primate diversity are using desirable strategies in design of nature reserves in terms of both finances and conservation; they have relatively large reserves and large amounts of area protected in relation to country size. However, some key primate-containing countries, such as Madagascar, Indonesia, and southeastern Brazil, require many small reserves to insure preservation of endemic taxa.     

Implications of Intratropical Migration on Reserve Design: A Case Study Using Pharomachrus mocinno

As habitat loss continues, natural protected areas will become islands in human-modified landscapes; maintenance of functional communities and ecosystems will depend on properly designed protected areas. We demonstrate that incorporating regional habitat linkages that allow for seasonal migrations of intratropical resident species must be a major design criterion for establishing protected areas. Using radiotelemetry, we monitored the seasonal movements of one such migrant, the Resplendent Quetzal ( Pharomachrus mocinno ), a large, frugivorous bird, one of many tropical residents known to migrate altitudinally within Mesoamerica. Based on three years of data we determined that quetzals followed a complicated local migration that linked four montane life zones. Using this species as an indicator revealed that the configuration of the Monteverde reserve complex in the Tilaran Mountains in west-central Costa Rica lacked sufficient habitat distribution to conserve montane biodiversity. On the basis of these results, we propose that the three-step process proposed by Soulé and Simberloff (1986) for estimating minimum sizes of reserves be amended to include a fourth step: The critical habitats used throughout the annual cycles of target or keystone species must be identified and adequately protected. Natural protected areas can be considered adequately designed only when sufficient area with a full complement of ecologically linked habitats is included.     

The Evolution of the U.S. National Wildlife Refuge System and the Doctrine of Compatibility

This paper reviews the history and evolution of the United States National Wildlife Refuge System, perhaps the largest and oldest wildlife conservation system in the world. The refuge system is guided by the doctrine of compatibility, which permits only those uses on a refuge which are "compatible with the purposes for which the refuge was established." Memoranda and documents spanning the last 100 years were examined, and key refuge personnel interviewed, to understand the historical basis for current refuge policies. Topics of particular importance were the origins of the compatibility doctrine, the origin and meaning of the sanctuary concept, and the means by which refuges were established.
Through time, the refuge system has shifted from a policy of strict protection of wildlife to a policy of integrating public uses of refuges. The doctrine of compatibility has evolved to facilitate public use of wildlife refuges. Increasingly, the needs for recreation and resource use have interfered with the purposes far which refuges were established. A legislative solution may be needed to ensure that these areas are protected and remain viable reserves for wildlife and natural communities.
The sustained conservation of reserve areas often represents a delicate balance between political constraints and biological realities. The examination of the National Wildlife Refuge System not only has ramifications for North American conservation, but illustrates many of the problems and pitfalls facing conservation and land management worldwide.     

Integrated ecological assessment as the basis for management of a coastal urban protected area: A case study of Xiamen,China

In the process of rapid urbanisation in China, environmental problems have increased, from sewage discharge to climate change. Marine protected areas (MPAs) are widely advocated as a means to comprehensively manage human activities and resources in ocean and coastal areas. However, MPAs only safeguard populations or assemblages within their boundaries and fail to offer any protection from many major threats to marine environments. An increase in environmental threats implies an increase in environmental management and assessment. We propose a methodological framework for integrated ecological assessment using the Xiamen marine protected area as a case study. The integrated ecological assessment framework can be generalised from the dimensions of environment, economy, society and institution. Surveys were undertaken to assess the state of the Xiamen coastal environment, the resources of the reserve, and issues associated with human activities. Stakeholders were interviewed about their attitudes towards issues regarding the management of the reserve. The constraints of the reserve management were identified. The methodological framework is presented as a tool to help identify relative ecological security in order to prioritise actions and assess the ecological implications of management and policy decisions.     

Effects of Economic Downturns on Mortality of Wild African Elephants

Abstract: Declines in economic activity and associated changes in human livelihood strategies can increase threats of species overexploitation. This is exemplified by the effects of economic crises, which often drive intensification of subsistence poaching and greater reliance on natural resources. Whereas development theory links natural resource use to social‐economic conditions, few empirical studies of the effect of economic downturns on wild animal species have been conducted. I assessed the relations between African elephant (Loxodonta africana) mortality and human‐caused wounds in Samburu, Kenya and (1) livestock and maize prices (measures of local economic conditions), (2) change in national and regional gross domestic product (GDP) (measures of macroeconomic conditions), and (3) the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) (a correlate of primary productivity). In addition, I analyzed household survey data to determine the attitudes of local people toward protected areas and wild animals in the area. When cattle prices in the pastoralist study region were low, human‐caused wounds to and adult mortality of elephants increased. The NDVI was negatively correlated with juvenile mortality, but not correlated with adult mortality. Changes in Kenyan and East Asian (primary market for ivory) GDP did not explain significant variation in mortality. Increased human wounding of elephants and elephant mortality during periods of low livestock prices (local economic downturns) likely reflect an economically driven increase in ivory poaching. Local but not macroeconomic indices explained significant variation in mortality, likely due to the dominance of the subsistence economy in the study area and its political and economic isolation. My results suggest economic metrics can serve as effective indicators of changes in human use of and resulting effects on natural resources. Such information can help focus management approaches (e.g., antipoaching effort or proffering of alternative occupational opportunities) that address variation in local activities that threaten plant and animal populations.     

The changing status of water as a natural resource

This paper considers the way freshwater resources are perceived in an era of climate change. It is suggested that in many parts of the world water is moving from being a renewable resource (or continuous natural resource) to a potentially renewable resource (PRR). In some areas water is moving from being a PRR to a nonrenewable resource. Selected water problems from three continents are investigated in the context of this theoretical construct. Recent experience in the United Kingdom is then also investigated as a case study of these changes before brief conclusions are drawn.     

Evaluating poverty–environment dynamics

Developing indicators to more effectively evaluate poverty–environment dynamics and inform policy is an urgent research priority. It is critical that these indicators are used in ways that accurately represent the relationship they are meant to inform. This article evaluates the theory and use of poverty–environment indicators, a relatively new tool developed to aid in the design and evaluation of poverty reduction strategies in the context of environmental change. We argue that while they have great potential, in their current form and use, poverty–environment indicators may contribute to critical misunderstandings of processes on the ground. These issues stem from a problematic and largely unacknowledged process of simplifying particular poverty–environment relationships. This article lays out the problematic character of this simplification process, and suggests how we might address these problems to create more useful understandings of poverty–environment dynamics to inform policy.     

Sustainable poverty alleviation through a forestry project in Tamilnadu State of India

The World Development Report 2000–2001 recommends action on three complementary and synergistic fronts for poverty alleviation – promoting opportunity, facilitating empowerment and enhancing security. This paper analyses the Tamilnadu Forestry Project, funded by US$100 million from the Japan Bank for International Cooperation, for community forestry. The project was launched in 1997–1998 in this southern state of India and has evolved into a comprehensive poverty alleviation programme for the forest abutting villages where the proportion of poor people is largest. It endeavours to explain how the project provides the above three elements at the local level for sustainable poverty alleviation. Regeneration of forests, improvement of basic infrastructure through integration of line departments and promotion of alternate livelihoods provide ample economic opportunities. Establishment of Village Forest Councils, and delegation of sufficient powers to these Councils, has empowered the poorest of the poor. Tree assets, promotion of alternate income generation activities and water harvesting structures have provided security by reducing vulnerability to natural vagaries, particularly drought. In this project, the restoration of biodiversity and people development go hand in hand in a synergistic way that makes the project worth replicating elsewhere in the country and other parts of the world, with suitable modifications.     

Environmental Perceptions and Social Relations in the Mapimí Biosphere Reserve

Biosphere reserves were developed in part to integrate conservation with regional development objectives and thereby to include protected areas within the resource management of inhabited areas. The Mapimí Biosphere Reserve of Durango, Mexico, provides an example of the difficulties confronted by protected-area managers in implementing the biosphere reserve concept, especially when groups with vested interests in the site perceive the same environment differently. The reserve supports a long-term research program on the ecology of the Chihuahuan Desert and has succeeded in protecting an endangered species of tortoise with the cooperation of the local residents. However, coexisting forms of land tenure and resource management, including extensive cattle grazing prevent complete protection of the core zone, and the gap between basic and applied research has hindered the reserve's managers and researchers from developing their good public relations into a plan for regional conservation.     

Indigenous practices for harvesting water from streams in the semi-arid environment of Nepal

Techniques for water harvesting from streams for irrigation and waterpower utilities, particularly in the semi-arid middle mountain region of Nepal, were developed many centuries ago. Water harvesting techniques have traditionally evolved to fit the local environment and living conditions of the people. In terms of community participation, the sustainability of community-based local water resources management in Nepal should promote traditional streamwater harvesting technologies that will potentially benefit local communities and also should be recognized by environmentalists and water experts. This paper investigates some traditional forms of water delivery technologies adopted by local farmers in three catchment areas from the middle mountain region of Nepal. Each form of indigenous practice is considered from the objective of scientific validation.