Ecosystem degradation

Human-induced ecosystem degradation has been going on for a long time. It does not only harm nature and wildlife, but also us humans, as our wellbeing is closely linked to ecosystem health. It is estimated that 40% of the world’s population is affected by ecosystem degradation in one form or another, with the greatest impact falling on poor and vulnerable people [2]. Ecosystem degradation takes on many forms, including land use change, pollution, and the introduction of invasive species [2]. The exploitation of natural resources and degradation of ecosystems is happening under ever-accelerating rates – and we are now at risk of reaching tipping points in some ecosystems [2]. Past these points, our ecosystems cannot recover to their natural state anymore. Degraded ecosystems cannot provide us with the same essential ecosystem services any longer and lose their biodiversity and integrity [2].

The degradation of ecosystems has gone so far that simply protecting what is left is not enough. As the UN puts it, “we need more nature” [2]. This can be achieved by restoring the ecosystems that we have destroyed. Ecosystem restoration is defined by the UN as “the process of halting and reversing degradation, resulting in improved ecosystem services and recovered biodiversity” [2]. Engaging with this process looks different around the world, as the action needed depends on local conditions [2].

What the UN does about it

To raise awareness of this issue and combat ecosystem degradation as well as biodiversity loss, the UN initiated the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration. This was decided on in a resolution by the UN General Assembly in March 2019 [2]. Its aim is to “prevent, halt and reverse the degradation of ecosystems worldwide” [3], while contributing to combat poverty, climate change, and the current mass extinction. The UN emphasizes that large-scale ecosystem restoration worldwide is needed to meet the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030 [3]. Ecosystem restoration can also have direct economic benefits. By the numbers: it is estimated that for every dollar spent on ecosystem restoration, between three and 75$ are returned in form of ecosystem goods and services [3]. Furthermore, ecosystem restoration can contribute immensely to climate change mitigation and future resilience against climate change, reduce the risk of future pandemics, increase food security, and halt biodiversity loss [2].

One of the main goals of this UN Decade is to enhance the understanding of these benefits of successful ecosystem restoration and to include this knowledge in education as well as public and private sector decision-making [3]. Besides this, a goal is to strengthen the commitments and actions on ecosystem restorations at various levels world-wide [3]. The vision of the UN Decade is “a world where – for the health and wellbeing of all life on Earth and that of future generations – the relationship between humans and nature has been restored, where the area of healthy ecosystems is increasing, and where ecosystem loss, fragmentation and degradation has been ended” [3].

Yet, there is currently too little political support and technical capacity to achieve the necessary large-scale changes worldwide. Therefore, the UN Decade works to support governments, NGOs and stakeholders to achieve the vision [3]. They do this, for example, by raising awareness, furthering research and monitoring of global restoration progress, building technical capacity, and creating a platform for actions to take place [3]. UN members are encouraged to integrate ecosystem restoration into national policies and plans, enhance implementation of ecosystem protection and restoration by mobilising resources, and enable scientific research on the impacts of restoration [3]. The UN Decade can also be seen as a catalyser for a decentralized global movement to protect and restore nature [3]. For this, we need people that participate and do the actual work of restoring ecosystems locally – not only during the UN Decade, but also well after 2030.

Taking action

Ecosystem restoration can take on many forms and depends on the ecosystem and its status. Approaches can include repairing the damage that was done to the ecosystem or removing the drivers of ecosystem degradation, thereby inducing the ecosystem to repair itself [2]. All these approaches require time and resources, enabling policies, and knowledge [2]. Ten principals are meant to guide the restoration actions of the UN Decade:

The UN has also published an “Ecosystem Restoration Playbook”, in which it outlines how you can get involved. Examples are creating, joining, or donating to a restoration project, cleaning up your local ecosystem, greening your home, or buying sustainable products. You can also spread the word and raise awareness about ecosystem degradation and restoration. If you take action and become part of the #GenerationRestoration movement, you can make a pledge online. On the UN Decade’s website you can also take an interactive journey through various ecosystems and find upcoming events. Some of them take place online and are free to join!

References:

[1] https://www.un.org/en/observances/international-decades , last accessed 10.10.2021

[2] UNEP (2021). Becoming #GenerationRestoration: Ecosystem restoration for people, nature and climate. Nairobi. Available online: https://www.decadeonrestoration.org/publications/becoming-generationrestoration-ecosystem-restoration-people-nature-and-climate  

[3] UNEP and FAO (2020). Strategy for the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration. Available online: https://www.decadeonrestoration.org/strategy  

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The Wadden Sea is the largest tidal flat system in the world, ranging from the Netherlands via Germany to Denmark. Due to its Outstanding Universal Value, as well as the progress that has been made in protecting and managing the Wadden Sea, it was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2009. The World Heritage Site area comprises most of the Wadden Sea and spans almost 11.500 km² across a coastline of about 500 km.

There are many factors that make the Wadden Sea an outstanding and valuable ecosystem. The geology and geological processes are very unique, as the coastline is extremely dynamic and constantly shaped by tides and wind. Through these processes, a diverse range of habitats have been created over time, such as large mud flats, saltmarshes, and sand dunes. However, not only long-term dynamics play a role. On a daily basis, the large tides move about 15 km³ of water in and out of the tidal area twice a day. These dynamics make the Wadden Sea a challenging place to live in, forcing its inhabitants – animals and plants alike – to adapt to the changing environment. Nevertheless, it is a major hotspot for biodiversity and the biomass productivity is one of the highest worldwide. Over 10.000 species can be found here and in the course of a year up to 12 million migratory birds stop over. The Wadden Sea is not only of great importance to migratory birds but also to coastal birds in general. It is an ideal habitat for them due to the immense availability of food, lack of mammalian predators, and undisturbed nature of some of the islands. The tidal flats harbor the largest population of lungworms worldwide with about 1 billion individuals. They play an important role for the ecosystem, as they recycle the upper sediment layer several times a year and thus keep the flats sandy.

The Wadden Sea and the immense biodiversity it harbors are nowadays threatened by anthropogenic influences like tourism. Being one of the most popular tourist destinations in Northern Europe, the Wadden Sea area saw over 53 million overnight stays in 2013 [1]. This is not even counting the number of day trippers, which are also in the millions each year [1]. Besides this, climate change and the associated sea level rise is expected to have a great effect on the Wadden Sea ecosystem. An increase in temperature and precipitation is already visible, which has led to an influx of southern warm-water species, northern migration of some cold-water species, as well as changes in the timing of life cycle events [2]. These changes, in turn, affect the food web in the Wadden Sea and might cause an imbalance in the trophic network [2]. Tidal flats and salt marshes might be able to keep up with the sea level rise to some extent, but other habitats might disappear [2]. Besides changes in temperature and sea level, changes in wind patterns and associated storm surges will also affect the Wadden Sea area. An increased flooding risk of salt marshes could, for example, limit the breeding success of birds [2]. Changes in precipitation patterns can also affect the Wadden Sea ecosystems via changes in riverine runoff and estuarian circulation [2].

In recognition of its uniqueness and important value, the Netherlands, Germany, and Denmark have joined forces to protect and manage the Wadden Sea through the Trilateral Wadden Sea Cooperation (TWSC) since 1978, which in turn is coordinated by the Common Wadden Sea Secretariat. The guiding principle of this cooperation is to “achieve, as far as possible, a natural and sustainable ecosystem in which natural processes proceed in an undisturbed way” [3]. Nowadays, most of the Wadden Sea is protected in form of national parks and nature reserves.

The three main areas of work of the TWSC are conservation, sustainable development, and environmental education. They continuously monitor the Wadden Sea in different aspects like wildlife, human activities, and ecological processes and regularly publish their findings in the Wadden Sea Quality Status Report. Additionally, they have conservation projects on various topics. Regarding climate change, they aim to enhance the ecosystems resilience through nature-based solutions. Coastal protection against sea level rise plays an especially important role here. For the protection of migratory birds and their habitat, the Wadden Sea Flyway Initiative has been established. To limit human interference with the ecosystem, a framework for sustainable fisheries has been developed and major parts of the Wadden Sea are designated Particularly Sensitive Sea Areas where marine activities are controlled. The TWSC also aims at creating sustainable tourism while enhancing people’s awareness on the value and importance of the Wadden Sea. The latter is also being done through environmental education programs.

If you would like to get involved in the conservation of the Wadden Sea yourself or are interested in marine/wetland ecology or ornithology, there are internship and job opportunities in this area. Some helpful links are listed below:  

https://www.waddensea-worldheritage.org/job-vacancies

https://multimar-wattforum.de/nationalpark-zentrum/jobs.html

https://www.nationalpark-wattenmeer.de/mitmachen/mitarbeiten/stellenangebote/

https://www.nationalpark-wattenmeer.de/wissensbeitrag/cb-praktikum-auf-scharhoern/

Where not indicated otherwise, the source for this blog entry is the official Wadden Sea World Heritage website: https://www.waddensea-worldheritage.org/

If this post has sparked your interest in the Wadden Sea, you can find much more information on the official website. Don’t forget to follow the Wadden Sea World Heritage on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for the most-up-to-date news about this special place!

Other References:

[1] Bjarnason J.-B., Günther W. & Revier H. (2017) Tourism. In: Wadden Sea Quality Status Report 2017. Eds.: Kloepper S. et al., Common Wadden Sea Secretariat, Wilhelmshaven, Germany. Last updated 21.12.2017. Downloaded 30.08.2021. https://qsr.waddensea-worldheritage.org/reports/tourism

[2] Philippart C.H.M, Mekkes L., Buschbaum C., Wegner K.M. & Laursen K. (2017) Climate ecosystems. In: Wadden Sea Quality Status Report 2017. Eds.: Kloepper S. et al., Common Wadden Sea Secretariat, Wilhelmshaven, Germany. Last updated 21.12.2017. Downloaded 30.08.2021. https://qsr.waddensea-worldheritage.org/reports/climate-ecosystems

[3] CWSS (2017) Introduction. In: Wadden Sea Quality Status Report 2017. Eds.: Kloepper S. et al., Common Wadden Sea Secretariat, Wilhelmshaven, Germany. Last updated 01.03.2018. Downloaded 30.08.2021. https://qsr.waddensea-worldheritage.org/reports/introduction

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Trophy hunting is a quite common practice in Namibia. The Wuparo Conservancy is no exception. “We have two different types of tourism here in the conservancy: photography and safari tourism on the one side and trophy hunting on the other side”, Shine Limbo, manager of the conservancy, says. “Today, trophy hunting brings more money than tourism. But I hope this will change.” In a long-term perspective, he believes that photography and safari tourism will be more sustainable than trophy hunting because the latter “could stop at any time, tourism won’t”.

Trophy hunting is a very controversial topic – it can get quite emotional. Trophy hunting can be defined as killing wild animals for their body parts, such as head and hide, for display but not primarily for food or sustenance. The controversy about trophy hunting is whether it supports biodiversity and wildlife conservation or if it is a threat to the species. Some in favour of trophy hunting argue that by targeting only old bull elephants, it is a sustainable way to protect the animals and their habitat. On the other hand, there are arguments that the practice leads to decreasing numbers of wildlife – especially when it comes to already endangered species.

One other point of supporters of trophy hunting is that it brings huge financial benefits to the communities in Namibia – which is in fact a solid argument: In 2017, the Namibian Ministry of Environment and Tourism said that conservancies are generating about 100 million Namibian dollars (around 61.500 Dollar) on average per year with trophy hunting. Besides the financial benefits on a national scale, also the local population of conservancies receives monetary support from hunting: The hunter pays a fee for the animal and this fee goes back to the conservancy. The rates for hunting are nothing for people with a small purse: To go for a 14 days elephant trophy hunt in the Zambezi region, one has to calculate about 72.000 US dollars. Hunting a buffalo costs up to 22000 US dollars including the trophy. The hunting organizations also offer packages for hunting: 7 days of trophy hunting including 7 trophies cost up to 6450 US dollars – the 7 species to be hunted are springbok, blesbok, gemsbok, blue wildebeest, red hartebeest, warthog and zebra.

The conservancies receive parts of this money and use it in various ways to support the local communities. In the Wuparo Conservancy, most of the money is used for social projects like the installation of electricity or providing access to clean water by drilling wells. The big aim of this kind of hunting tourism is to stop people from poaching. If some individual animals are killed and bring benefits to the whole community, the rest of the species is protected and the ecosystem remains in a sound state. At least, this is the theory. Also, the hunter is taking the trophy of his hunt – like horns, tusks or skin – with him, but the meat goes to the local population. During our research in Wuparo, the majority of the local respondents of the interviews rated trophy hunting as “good” because it brings them meat and money. Tourists on the other hand mostly disliked trophy hunting, arguing that it was a cruel and unnecessary practice.

Every year, the rangers of the Wuparo Conservancy monitor animals, record the numbers of wildlife and write them down. Based on these records of the monitoring, the Namibian state gives out so called “hunting quotas” for every year. These quotas define how many animals are free for shooting. “We have quotas for our own use, for traditional use and for trophy hunting”, Shine says. If a certain species has not been registered a lot of times and therefore seems to be not very abundant, the quota is low. On the other hand, if a species has been recorded frequently, the quota is higher. For the last year, in Wuparo, there have been quotas on buffalos and elephants for example. “This year, we had 16 quotas on buffalos, two for our own use, two for traditional use and twelve for trophy hunting”, Shine says. “Quotas for elephants were much lower: one for own use, one for traditional use and three for trophy hunting.”

Roggero Michelletti sits on one of the comfortable chairs in the Nkasa Lupala Lodge in the Wuparo Conservancy when we meet him. The rolling R’s and his singing way of speaking reveal the Italian roots of the lodge owner. “I don’t consider trophy hunting as tourism”, he says. In his eyes, it isn’t sustainable in the long term – even though at the moment it brings more money than safari and photography tourism. He lets his glance wander over the dry, yellowish savannah. A huge male hippo is taking a bath in the cool water of the river in front of the lodge. “I would stop hunting elephants and lions. By killing all the big bulls, you destroy the genetic pool.” He is happy though that in the Wuparo Conservancy there is a zonation defining areas for different usages. “It is not like in other conservancies, where safari tourists are marvelling an elephant from the car – and the next moment it falls over, dead, shot by a hunting tourist.”

Brutus Liwate Mosutela, a tall and robust man, sees this differently. “As they (editor’s note: the elephants) migrate and mix with others, there is still an exchange of genes”, he says. Being the hunting guide and the head of the rangers in the Wuparo Conservancy, he has a lot of experience with the fragile topic of hunting tourism. Growing up in the area, poaching was a daily companion, he says. “I have been poaching game like buffalos and hippos before as well, to feed my kids. We just hunted for the meat. If we stopped trophy hunting now, people would go back to poaching again. Before this became a conservancy, I had no work and no money – now I do have both and can feed my kids”, he says, gesticulating with his large hands. When we ask him if he thinks the Wuparo Conservancy could survive without trophy hunting, he tends his head back and forth, thinking for some moments. “For some time, it might survive”, he then says, “but not for long.”

The topic of trophy hunting is indeed controversial. When only looking at the local population of the Wuparo Conservancy, it might seem like it totally makes sense because people need to eat, and they want their lives to change to the better. Free meat from the hunter plus money for the conservancy – there is an undeniable benefit for the people. When looking at biodiversity and animal numbers, different statistics exist, different results of research indicate either decreases in wildlife numbers due to trophy hunting or they suggest that trophy hunting leads to less poaching. So at the end of the day it is a very personal decision if you want to shoot an elephant or let it roam in the wilderness of the Namibian bush.

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“It gets harder and harder to achieve a consensus on how the forest of the future will – and should – look like”, Gregor Aas, head of the ÖBG, says when opening the forum. The forum is split up into two parts: Part one is about adaption of the forests to climatic changes, part two is dealing with the climate protection function of the forests and how this could be used when dealing with a changing climate.

“How is the climate changing in Germany and how accurate are the forecasts?” is the title of the first talk. It is held by Johannes Luers (substituting Christoph Thomas who has been sick on the day of the conference). Some of the prognosis shown on his slides state that there is a climate change of +1°C already on a global level, others state that it’s already +1.3°C. “Over land, the temperature increase is already more than the +1.5°C which are the goal of the Paris Agreement”, Lüers says. The oceans need longer to warm up than the land – and 70% of the planet are covered by water. “Soon, it will be more, due to the rising sea levels”, Lüers says. The culprit for the rising temperatures is – as widely known – the greenhouse effect which is caused by different climate gases, such as CO2 or methane. “The human made climate change might not seem dramatic – but the consequences will be dramatic.” Time series of temperature measurements at the ÖBG show that there is a significant change in extreme values. The records indicate that between 1997 and 2016, 7 of the 10 hottest months and years ever measured took place – and only 1 of the 10 coldest months and 0 of the 10 coldest years. “The cold stimulus is missing – this affects the plants”, Lüers says. Forests have to deal with extreme years – wetness, drought and storms are making the forests’ life hard. “We don’t know what will happen in the future, there is always the human error.”

Next, Christian Ammer from the University of Göttingen talks about “How climate change affects the ecosystem of the forests and how silviculture can react to that”. He first lists some of the challenges and obstacles, the forest has to deal with today: deficits in precipitation, rising temperatures, more insect infestations and also the long lifespan of forests which makes them more vulnerable. “There are two scenarios: either the forests can adapt – or they can’t”, Ammer says. No matter which scenario will occur, there will be reductions in growth and altered mortalities. “I will present you a typical lumberjack – my former neighbour Sepp”, Ammer says, showing a picture of a middle-aged man in green overalls, standing in the middle of a forest. People like Sepp are now dealing with the questions how to treat their forests. Ammer talks about adaption: Mixed forests are more flexible, they recover faster from dry years than pure stands. Not only from an ecological but also from an economic point of view, mixed stands show positive effects to climate change. Indigenous species that are adapting well to climate change are the grand fir and the European black pine. “I totally failed in trying to persuade Sepp to plant some of them”, he says, causing quite some laughter in the audience. “His grandfather didn’t do that, his father neither – so why should he? You see, it isn’t always easy to change something.” But Sepp’s daughter listened to Ammer’s words and started planting some of the adapting species. Also, the thinning of the forest could reduce the risk of drought stress in young spruces, he says. Ammer concludes that the choice of tree species and crop treatment can help with the adaptation to climate change. But he also mentions that these actions are just to reduce the symptoms of a bigger problem: the human influence. “How many of you did come here by car today?”, he asks in the end of his talk. An embarrassed silence fills the room.

After a short break, Ralf Petercord from the Bavarian office for Forests and Forestry gives the probably most emotional talk of the conference: “Which new pests and tree diseases are brought by climate change?” Petercord uses a lot of empathy and irony while talking about different insect and fungus calamities. “The bark beetle is definitely not interested in how the weather is behaving tomorrow or in 10 years – it is interested in the weather today”, he says. As the previous speakers, also he mentions the unusually warm winters and extremely hot summers which occur in ever shorter intervals. The reactions of insects and fungi to climate change are various: They show different distribution patterns, a decreased generation time and a broader host range which means that they can attack more different species. With figures on various slides, he shows how the bark beetle population and also their effects on trees have increased after very warm years – the heat summer of 2003 is a very indicative marker – but there is a general increase visible since 2015. Also, the Oak Processionary Moth has changed its distribution dramatically: “In 2007, this moth was listed as an endangered species in Upper Franconia – today you can find it almost all over Bavaria!”, Petercord says, gesticulating on the stage. The Gypsy Moth causes huge damages in forests as well: Their complete defoliation leads to a thin canopy – due to the missing shade many young birds die in their nests. “Our forests are dying! We have to do something so that they can recover”, Petercord says, putting quite a lot of emotion in his words. As one of the strategies to handle pests he names that we all have to reduce our consumption of wood: According to Petercord, every German person uses about 600 Gramms of wood every day. Also, using pesticides in forests should be an option for him. When a member of the audience asks what he thinks about the insects’ demise, he answers: “I think, the insects’ demise is not only caused by pesticides but by the fact that we are driving around in SUVs in the city and want cheaper food all the time. First, I talk about the poor insects – and then I want to have my 500 gramms of meat from Aldi for 2,63 Euro!?” These words are greeted with tumultuous applause by the audience.

“Nature conservation, climate protection and climate adaption – how does that fit?“ – this is the topic of the last talk, held by Susanne Winter from WWF. She speaks about the loss of biodiversity in Germany – which has already crossed a tipping point. “The climatic relevance of forests is huge. About 15-20% of the annual CO2 emissions are caused by deforestation”, Winter says. According to her, the usage of wood is not sustainable per se, referring to wood that is used for energy generation. “Forests work as a carbon sink. But this sink function has decreased”, she says. While German forests were storing 75.500 tons of CO2 in 1990, in 2016, they only absorbed 57.000 tons of the climate gas. There will be a point when forests work as a source of CO2 instead of a sink – for example when deforestation continues, if swamp soils are used by the agricultural sector for crop production or if peat is extracted to the same extent or even more than now, Winter says. In the audience, a few people show with their reactions that they don’t agree with Winter’s words: A lady – the print of her jumper reveals she is part of a forestry society in Lower Franconia – rolls her eyes and throws up her arms, a gesture of obvious frustration.

At the end of the event, the title “Controversies of the forest” is just perfectly accurate. We don’t know yet what the future with a changing climate will bring and how the forests are going to react to these alterations. Different measures for mitigation do exist – but the human factor is hard to estimate. Also, regarding some of the reactions of people in the audience, it is obvious that many different parts of the German population are differently affected by changes in the forest – and that their expectations, hopes and fears need to be considered. But this requires a lot of work and a lot of communication. But as the example of Christian Ammer’s friend Sepp (and his daughter) showed: There is a way. With enough patience, solutions can be found.

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After breakfast, we pack the things we need for our day in the field: backpacks, pens, questionnaires, water, food, tree and wildlife books, sunscreen, hats and sunglasses. Dust raises as our two cars drive on the gravel roads of the Wuparo conservancy to the village Sangwali where we start our fieldwork every day. Wuparo means “life” in the local language Siyey. On our first day here, the committee of the conservancy welcomed us and gave us an insight into their work and progress. Conservancies are protected areas in Namibia where the local community protects their nature and is also allowed to work in tourism, for example by running lodges, campsites – but also by offering hunting tourism. If you want to know further about the concept of conservancies, read this article .The Wuparo conservancy is 148 km2 in area – quite big for the 2500 people living in it. “1500 of them are registered members which means that they will profit from the benefits of the conservancy”, says Shine Limbo, manager of the Wuparo conservancy. When asked why 1000 people are not registered, he answers with a smile, explaining that you can only register when you are above 18 – and there are many children in the area.

The days of our fieldwork are intense but incredibly interesting and full of new lessons. We are split up into three working groups:

One group goes into the field, recording plants by installing transects in the bush. For a transect, we throw a stick, roll out a measuring tape of 30 meters in the direction the stick points to and then record all the trees within two arm-lengths when standing on the measuring tape. Coully Sanimombo, a 27-year old ranger of the conservancy, helps with identifying the tree species – frequently recorded species are for example Combretum imberbe and Acacia nigrescens. Even though Coully doesn’t have a scientific background, the fieldwork without him would be almost impossible: He knows how the flowers of trees look like, which fruits they carry, if they are poisonous or not. As most trees don’t carry any fruits or flowers at the time of our research, he is basically indispensable for identifying the trees. As we are spending the whole day together, we also have lunch together, mostly sweaty and exhausted, sitting in the sparse shade of a tree. It’s a time filled of laughter and breezily chattering, exchanging about cultural traditions and differences. When Coully tries some of the olives we brought for lunch, he makes a face, shakes his head and grins: “Too sour”, he says.

The second and third group work mainly with the same method: interviewing people in the conservancy. While group two focuses on human-wildlife-conflicts (HWC), group three wants to investigate which impacts the conservancy has on the life of local people and on (the perception of) biodiversity and nature conservation.

The HWC-group has one questionnaire and mostly speaks to the people living in the villages: As not all speak English fluently, they get assistance from John Musuweu, a 30-year old member of the committee. He turns out to be very skilled in translating and choosing the houses and families. Once, when driving back to the conservancy’s office, he starts singing “The lion sleeps tonight” in a perfect imitation of the original song. “Bonjovo” – the Siyey word for elephant, is the most frequent answer of the local farmers when they get asked which animals cause the biggest problems. The people have different strategies to keep elephants away from their fields (the big animals frequently come at night and eat all of the farmers’ crops and fruits, leaving the fields totally destroyed): All farms are surrounded by a rather low traditional fence, built out of interwoven wood sticks. But there are also a few people who  set up fences with metal cans because the animals don’t like noise, they grow chili to build so-called chili bombs to ward of the animals with the stinging smoke or they guard their fields at night with torches to chase away the unwelcome guests. Taking care of the crops is work intensive, expensive and time consuming, so most of the people are not able to invest a lot in it. But most of them would invest in wired fences if they had enough money.

The third group has three different target groups and therefore also three different questionnaires. They speak to experts – referring to people working for the conservancy, at the lodge, in the field of nature conservation in Wuparo like John Kasaona (https://globalchangeecology.com/2018/10/17/living-with-wildlife-is-not-easy/). The second questionnaire is for people from all over the conservancy: farmers, students, workers, old people. It means a lot of walking around, talking to people, getting in touch with local people and their traditions. For example, in this region of Namibia, people clap their hands to say thank you. As tourism plays a big role in the conservancy, also tourists from all over the world get interviewed as a third target group. They are here for different reasons: Some just want to do a safari, others are interested in the culture – and then, there are also trophy hunters who come to the conservancy with a license to kill. More specifically, a license to kill wildlife in the Wuparo conservancy. Each Namibian conservancy gets annual so-called quota – numbers of animals they are allowed to shoot, given by the government to each conservancy and according to the numbers of wildlife living in the area.

After spending the whole day in the sun, crawling around in the bush, entangling ourselves in thornes, walking through the dusty villages, and talking to people, we return to our campsite in the evening with reddish, sweaty faces and dusty hands and feet. Exhausted but happy. We even have the luxury of being able to shower every night – but what is even better is to put the hurting feet into the cool water of the river next to the campsite. It’s a time for reflecting the experiences of the day, going through conversations again, thinking about that one tree species we couldn’t define yet. Sitting there, harking to the croaking frog-concert, it feels as if this adventurous life could go on like this forever.

Namibia Geräuschkulisse 2

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On our second day in Windhoek and after a nice long sleep (shivering as the African sun still did not hold its promises), we tried out our rented car and headed to the GIZ (German Corporation for International Cooperation) office in Windhoek. It took some time to get used to drive on the “wrong” side of the road, but after a while it felt quite normal to drive on the left-hand side. The GIZ office can be found in a neat, white house, not so different from the family homes in the neighbourhood, surrounded by a huge wall, topped with barbed wire, and a nice blooming tree reaching over it, covering the street with faded-red blossoms. While the wall might seem unusual for someone from Germany, this is a common sight in Windhoek. Also gated communities can be seen often, and many houses are protected by a huge fence. We passed a sleepy guard and stepped into the building. Inside, it looked like a normal office which you could find all over the world, with posters on the wall and pictures from projects in Namibia. We were asked into a kind of conference room, with a long table and a beamer in the front. Sitting down, I could see long-tailed birds fluttering around the trees outside.

We met three GIZ employees, Johannes Laufs, who works on a project about bush encroachment, Innocent Haingura, who gave us insights how the GIZ supports CBNRM (community-based natural resource management) projects and Alexander Schönig who talked about the adaption of agriculture to climate change.

Johannes Laufs, a brown-haired man, who looked very German and behaved accordingly, told us about the issue of bush encroachment, which is a huge problem in Namibia. Approximately 30-45 million ha are affected – an area as big as Germany. Bush encroachment affects the savannah, an ecosystem that is usually composed of grass and occasionally by trees, because more and more bushes are growing there. This is mainly caused by overgrazing, the lack of natural fires (often because fires are suppressed by farmers) and according to some sources also the rising levels of CO2. And even though most of the bush-species are indigenous to Namibia (and not invasive), the ecosystem savannah is still disturbed. This means for example that the habitat for certain species vanishes because of the bushes or the available food range has changed, which in turn can affect biodiversity and ecosystem services accordingly. Bushes have also deeper roots than grasses and are thus affecting the groundwater. This is decreases the quality of land negatively: The livestock carrying capacity of the land is reduced by two thirds which in turn causes a loss of 100 million € per year. As bush encroachment diminishes not only the functionality of the ecosystem but also the income of the farmer, it is crucial to restore the natural savannah to guarantee food security and fight poverty in Namibia, Johannes Laufs tells.

However, the bushes provide a huge amount of biomass, which can be used in many ways. In total, 500 million tons of biomass can be harvested in Namibia every year and used to produce coal or energy. In fact, a 20 MW power plant could be sustained from within a 50-kilometre radius over 20 years, and there is furthermore a great potential to export coal or other products. This means, there could be a win-win situation accomplished, which can create environmental as well as ecological benefits.

However, a key factor for establishing a win-win situation is the creation of value chains and helping the farmers to utilize those. The biomass can be used to produce charcoal, which is also exported to Germany, wood chips that can be used for cement production as well as for power generation; or even more advanced materials such as chip boards, fuels or biodegradable plastic. The GIZ is working with approaches like these, introducing modern technology and approaches which can support, for example, the Namibia Biomass Industry Group.

According to Laufs, there is still a long way to go. De-bushing is expensive and work intensive and it often has to be redone after some while. Huge investments have to be made. But there is also the possibility to generate a substantial net benefit of around 48 billion Namibian Dollar over the next 25 years, with bush control and biomass utilisation. And there is even more to it: De-Bushing will restore the former carrying capacity of the land, ecosystem services will increase, more water will be available. This can, in turn, increase food and water security and combat poverty. So – if you find coal from Namibia in a German supermarket, you can actually help to bring back the savannah to Namibia.

The post Blog-Journal: Talking with the GIZ about bush encroachment appeared first on Global Change Ecology.

How do you feel about the progress of the conservancy?

John Kasaona: Comparing the Wuparo conservancy to others, I think they are doing well. They have a structure and are quite well organized. I hope changes in the constitution will lead to a spread of knowledge to the new committee members.

How is the status of the management plan of the conservancy?

John Kasaona: Speaking about conservancies in general, their success always depends on the layout of the area (editor’s note: this refers to the environmental surrounding and conditions) which determines the setup of the management plan. It is important to check where people use the land for agriculture, tourism, cattle etc. It is also important to sensitize people for the use of the land. In Wuparo, there is little space for livestock – and farmers depend on this space. Therefore, a flexible management is necessary, also in order to adapt to climate change. With flexible I want to say that they should adapt to altering situations and nothing should be gravelled in stone. The conservancy should help people to fulfil their needs.

Does the conservancy receive any subsidies? If yes, from whom and are they sufficient?

John Kasaona: We (editor’s note: IRDNC) were supporting conservancies here in the North: 30 in the Kunene region and 16 in the Caprivi region. Since 1997, we were helping the communities with their management, with committee elections, human-wildlife-conflicts and tourist accommodation. We were carrying them from the very beginning. Since a couple of years, these conservancies are financially independent.

What is the next step in or for this conservancy?

John Kasaona: People look at conservancies like they look at a president: They expect that their lives will change, they expect that all social needs will be solved with the help of the conservancy. This is impossible – you would need an ideal area for that. As a next step, I think it is important that the conservancy covers access to water, electricity, animal vaccination and education. Once this is done, the conservancy should look at the households and try to help the most vulnerable ones, as they must benefit the fastest as possible.

Do you think the people living here benefit from the conservancy itself?

John Kasaona: It depends on what you see as a benefit. We can’t reach everyone but there is a change as we are creating a platform for talking about conflicts with wildlife and for raising awareness for conservation. Also, there is more employment, e.g. in the lodges, the campsite, in hunting and in the office of the conservancy. So, not everyone benefits but in general there is improvement.

Do you think the health education situation (e.g. AIDS) has changed since the establishment of the conservancy?

John Kasaona: This was part of our education programme from IRDNC. We were talking about how a healthy environment is connected with a healthy population. Conservancies became unknowingly a platform where different NGOs and parties from the government came to. People could talk about their problems. Thus, there were indirect improvements in the health situation.

Do you think the infrastructure in this area (e.g. medical aid, schools, roads, shops) has improved since the establishment of the conservancy?

John Kasaona: Indirectly, yes. In conservancies, we encourage rural democracy. It was our approach to teach people to stand up for their wishes and demands. The communities start to know about their rights. All those things like medical aid and schools came here because the voice of the rural people got out. Remember: Conservancies are not only for wildlife but also for people.

Do you see any necessity for more research in the conservancy area?

John Kasaona: Why not? Looking at human-wildlife-conflicts and ways to mitigate those conflicts is important. Conservation related research would be good. Living with wildlife is not easy – I think, research could help a lot here.

Is tourism an important factor in this conservancy?

John Kasaona: Yes, it’s a key factor! The financial sustainability depends on tourism here. Without tourism, there would be nothing for the community.

Which kind of tourism is most prominent in this conservancy?

John Kasaona: Organized tours bring most income because they have certain routes they always take. (Editor’s note: Many tourists stay in the lodge which is situated in the conservancy. The owners of the lodge pay money to the conservancy because it is the land of the local community.)

Which role does trophy hunting play in this conservancy?

John Kasaona: Trophy hunting depends on the abundance of big game like elephants or buffalos which bring most money (editor’s note: The Namibian government gives so called “quotas” on how many animals can be hunted. The hunting tourists pay a given price to the conservancy for the animal they want to shoot ). What I see as a problem is targeting big bulls – especially regarding elephants. Shooting old bulls that will die soon is not so much of a problem – but how many do remain? (Editor’s note: killing bulls leads to a smaller genetic pool) Baby elephants and female animals shouldn’t be killed either. Therefore, hunting guides need to be very comprehensive. They shouldn’t actively target breeding ones and not kill all the bulls.

Could the conservancy survive without trophy hunting?

John Kasaona: Yes, because we have to be very adaptive and look at alternative ways of income generation. The use of the devil’s claw could be an idea. (Editor’s note: Devil’s claw is an indigenous Namibian plant which is used for treatment of arthritis and rheumatoid arthritis.)

Did the number of tourists increase since the establishment of the conservancy?

John Kasaona: Overall, the tourist numbers have increased. In the conservancies, land and wildlife became protected – people are coming to see this.

What influence does trophy hunting have on the local population?

John Kasaona: The population benefits economically as money is generated by trophy hunting.

What could be improved in this conservancy?

John Kasaona: I think that some administrational points could be improved. Also, the distribution of natural resources should be more equal.  

Do you think the traditional lifestyle has changed since the establishment of the conservancy?

John Kasaona: Well, life is changing with new technologies anyways. There is lots of influence and people are exposed to changes and challenges. People also go to other areas and see new things. So, yes, it could well be that the lifestyle has changed.

The post “Living with wildlife is not easy” appeared first on Global Change Ecology.

The airplane is making its landing approach around 10 am at the airport of Namibia’s capital city, Windhoek. Quite exhausted after the 10 hours flight through the night, I look up. Outside I can see dry grass, some bushes and a seemingly endless savannah. I am finally in Africa! A bright sun is gleaming in a cloudless blue sky and I am preparing myself for the heat. But when I step out of the plane, a strong gust of cold wind blows in my face. Shivering I draw my jacket closer around my shoulders. What a start for spending the next two weeks in Namibia!

We are spending the first two days of our excursion in Windhoek, a clean, and quite European looking city, trying to acclimatize to the windy and colder than expected conditions. On our very first day, we have the opportunity to meet John Kasaona, who is the head of the the IRDNC (Integrated Rural Development and Nature Conservation), one of two major nature conservation agencies in Namibia (the other one is NASCO (Namibian Association of Community-Based Natural Resource Management Support Organizations)). John Kasaona is a huge man with lively eyes, who greets us friendly and guides us into his office.

John tells us that Namibia experienced a severe drought in 1980 that endangered many wildlife species and threatened the life of the communities depending on the animals. Thus, the government decided to act and engage rangers to protect wildlife. But who knew the bush and the animals best? The answer was simple: Local poachers. So, John’s father, a former poacher, became a conservationist und John became one after him. In 1986, the number wildlife began to increase again and communities got the right to manage the nature surrounding them. To make nature conservation work, it is crucial that the locals can also benefit from nature. “Conserve and make sure that you benefit from the resources that you protect,” says John. Ten years later, the “Nature Conservation Amendment Act” finally passed, allowing communities to become so-called “conservancies”. This would prove to be a very successful concept throughout Namibia in terms of nature conservation.

Communities wanting to become a conservancy have to define their boundaries, give themselves a constitution, elect representatives of the community and submit management and financial plans. Thus, a conservancy resembles a national park, with the exception that people are still allowed to live on and use the land in defined areas. Nevertheless, the local communities have to respect certain restrictions e.g. in hunting and land use, to conserve nature. In turn, the conservancy gets the right to manage its own land. To generate income, conservancies can set up contracts with investors, who want to build lodges for tourists and trophy hunters. Part of the profit of the lodge goes then to the conservancy. The money is can be distributed evenly amongst the conservancy members or be used to build schools, health points or other projects that benefit the community. To make the foundation process even easier, the IRDNC provides assistance when communities choose to become a conservancy. John told us, he once camped under a large tree for many weeks, until the conservancy was finally running. Now, the conservancy office building is built under that tree. (Check out John’s TedTalk as well.) Today, in 2018, the number of conservancies has summed up to 82 conservancies in Namibia. And it is working: Wildlife numbers are increasing, poaching is becoming harder and harder and ecosystems find their balance again. Thus, Namibia, which is one of the few countries who specifically address habitat conservation and the protection of natural resources in their constitution, can set an example for us all.

The post Blog Journal: How nature conservation works in Namibia appeared first on Global Change Ecology.