In a 3 June 2020 press release, written by NASA staff writer Elizabeth Goldbaum, the new initiatives were outlined. Goldbaum writes that NASA’s Advanced Information Systems Technology program’s aim in launching these virtual portals is to improve access to information on terrestrial ecosystems. She writes that “these projects provide critical information to conservationists and policymakers to protect our planet.” The following overviews these recently funded projects as presented in the press release:

Map of Life

The Map of Life is an interactive database that tracks mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, as well as some fish, insect and plant species around the world. It draws data from several sources including species range maps, species occurrence points, ecoregions, and protected areas from providers like IUCN, WWF, GBIF, and others. So, if you come across a Monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus), you can use the Map of Life to learn more including the species’ general characteristics and habitat range. It also includes access to the source data for the different parameters aggregated in the Map of Life interface. For some species, the interface includes projections of species distribution amidst climate change. Just as interestingly, users can also explore patterns of various parameters in the categories of species, phylogeny, and functionality all on both local and global scales. 

The Map of Life was also made into a user-friendly app accessible on personal cell phones. I simply entered location as “Bayreuth, Germany,” and was very happy to discover over 1,000 plant species, 122 butterflies, nearly 200 bird species, and many others. Each category of flora and fauna is then further divided into smaller groups which can make identifying what you’re looking for easier. Once you’ve selected a specific species, similarly to the web version, you can see a range map, description, and photographs which help with species identification (if, like me, you’re not so familiar with Bayern flora and fauna).

(Image source: https://mol.org/)

Generalized Joint Attribution Model (PDGJAM)

The second exciting project is the Predicting Biodiversity with a Generalized Joint Attribution Model, or PDGJAM. This is another online portal, but this one allows users to explore how biodiverse communities respond to climate change, on both an individual species scale as well as for entire ecosystems. The project was led by Duke University professors Jennifer Swenson and Jim Clark as a product of their interest in determining how one species could impact others as it relocates. In relocating, these species could possibly compete with others for alternative habitats amidst climate change, and this can be insightful information to consider. The platform merges information from the National Ecological Observatory Network, NASA’s remotely sensed Earth data, climate data and other sources to better understand which species may go where amidst varying potential climate scenarios.

The PBGJAM was described by Adam Wilson, a professor at the University of Buffalo in the U.S., as “lowering the barrier for entry for decision makers, scientists and any interested individual to get involved. They only need to choose an ecosystem and then see how it’s shifted.”

Advanced Phenological Information System (APIS)

The third project focuses on phenology. Phenology explores the relationships between climate and periodic biological phenomena such as bird migration or plant flowering. In contrast to the PBGJAM, which takes a more general look at climate change impacts, the Advanced Phenological Information System (APIS) zooms in to explore how climate change can affect the phenology of different species. This could include leafing, flowering, reproduction or migration of different species. 

APIS is informed by what is called constellation software which uses millions of field-based observations, satellite data and cameras near the Earth’s surface. Combined, this data allows for the analysis of phenological observations in varying spatial and temporal scales. 

Kathy Gerst is a scientist from the USA-NPN who worked with others in creating APIS. She described APIS as “a technology that makes data more accessible and easier to integrate the data from other observational sources…APIS allowed people to bring data together seamlessly.”

APIS is currently supporting efforts at two of the U.S. Geological Survey centers where they examine phenological ties to drought, as well as other work with the U.S. National Park Service, zoos, and nature reserves. And Gerst, mentioned above, used APIS in her and others’ publication which links spring indices to field data on phenological activity in 19 different species of trees and shrubs. This aggregation of data into an open-source platform is surely creating new opportunities not just for scientists, but also other entities with interest in the effects of climate change influences on phenological behaviors.

EcoSIS

Phil Townsend is a professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He led a team in developing the EcoSIS database. The EcoSIS database includes spectral data which helps to support the plant data in the afore-mentioned virtual platforms. Spectral data of vegetation can be an indicator of vegetation health, and changes in vegetation. There is already a lot of this data available from satellite imagery, but it is not always so easy to interface with. In addition to supporting Map of Life, PBGJAM and APIS, Townsend and his team are using EcoSIS to build the Geospatial Spectroscopy Processing Environment (GeoSpec). GeoSpec will be a cloud-based data-system which will allow users to access and interact with the spectral data without having to download it and manipulate it on their local drives. This is helpful because these datasets can be cumbersome and require a lot of computing power. GeoSpec is being designed to provide interested users the opportunity not to just access the data, but also to work with it in an easier way.

Going Forward

Each of these virtual platforms are continuing to evolve. An overarching goal is to make the data and analysis tools provided via these platforms more accessible to users with mixed skills sets and to develop and share new information products. NASA continues to meaningfully contribute to the collective effort of monitoring and understanding planet Earth. 

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Next, we are walking into the “cloud forest greenhouse”. Compared to the previous greenhouse, it is becoming cooler. Here, we have a look on Chlorophytum comosum, one of the most commonly used house plants. Because it is so simple to propagate the plant, which has its origin in Africa, market gardens usually do not try to sell them. Chlorophytum comosum is very effective in reducing formaldehyde concentrations indoors.

Photo: Chlorophytum comosum is a popular house plant

The next stop is in the “dry forest greenhouse”. Here, the air is comparatively warm and dry (at that time, the dry season is simulated in the greenhouse). Plants from those climatic regions can cope with little water and dry air which means that such house plants also survive close to heating installations in rooms. In the greenhouse, Mr. Aas shows us a species of the genus Sansevieria. Species of this genus are mainly growing in Africa, in particular in Kenya and Tanzania, but also on the Arabian Peninsula. They are helpful to “clean” the room air in flats where residents are smoking (mainly benzene and trichloroethane).

Photo: Species of the genus Sansevieria filter toxic substances out of the room air

In the “Mediterranean and Subtropical greenhouse” the air is cooler and smells pleasant. House plants which have their origin in such climatic regions have a difficult life in houses in Germany. They would need colder winters than the temperature in rooms usually is and it would be better to put them out during summer. Euphorbia pulcherrima, better known as “poinsettia”, is a popular house plant during the Advent season. The natural wild plant grows along the Pacific coast of Central America. In nature, the species blossoms and develops its characteristic intensive coloured bracts during the dry period in winter when the sun is shining less than 12 hours/day. That is why poinsettias are artificially darkened in greenhouses in market gardens in Central Europe from October to make sure that the plants have intensive coloured bracts when the Advent season starts. The plants are usually thrown away when they are wilting although they could be cultivated further.

Photo: “Poinsettia” is a popular house plant during the Advent season

Finally, Mr. Aas guides us into the “Mangrove greenhouse”. Here, he talks about Monstera deliciosa which originally comes from tropical regions in America. It is one of the typical house plants and “hip” again these days. After that, the tour ends where it started: in the “tropical forest greenhouse”.

Photo: Monstera deliciosa is a “hip” house plant these days

The botanical guided tour was very enlightening and Mr. Aas had interesting stories to tell about every plant he showed to us.
Next time I am visiting a garden centre, I will not focus on the beauty of the house plants only but also on the functions which the respective plant on our health and well-being has. As a result of the tour, I want to make sure that my first office will be green with the aid of house plants and I recommend others to do the same. House plants are beautiful, motivating and healthy.

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Over several years, he showed his culture to Thomas Fischermann, a German journalist writing for the German newspaper Die Zeit. Now, the two men wrote a book about their journeys, called “The last Guardian of the Amazon”. Yes, both men. Madarejuwá Tenharim is listed as the first author in the book, Fischermann as the second. This is something that makes this book special in my eyes. It’s not the typical story of a foreigner visiting a foreign culture, collecting data and information to leave for good and write a book about this culture, not giving back anything to the people.

“The last Guardian of the Amazon” is different. The book is written from Madarejuwá Tenharim’s perspective: he takes the reader onto a journey through the Amazon, showing him his daily life and telling him which problems his community is facing. For example, deforestation which is destroying the rainforest. Or Brazilian loggers threatening him and his family because they want to exploit the Tenharim’s land. Or his own balancing act living between two completely different worlds – the Brazilian life with cities, buses and smartphones, and the Tenharim life with hunting animals, learning from the elders and listening to the birds.

The 184 pages of the book are a source of knowledge for the reader and a guide to understand the Tenharim culture. The reader also learns why the Amazon rainforest is so important for the indigenous communities living in and off it. Not only is it the provider of food, but it is also the main part of the people’s identity and spirituality. If the Amazon gets destroyed, the indigenous people inhabiting it are dying both physically and mentally. But it also gives an impression of how determined and resolute Madarejuwá Tenharim and other indigenous people are to protect the forest.

Unfortunately, so far, the book is only available in German but there is an English preview on the book’s website where still some important parts of Madarejuwá’s story are available. (Maybe, if enough English speaking persons insist on a translation, there will be an English version, who knows…)

A few days ago, Madarejuwá’s message became more important than ever: Paulo Paulino Guajajara, a 26-year old member of the Guajajara indigenous group was killed in the Araribóia reserve located in Brazil’s North-East. He was one of the most prominent indigenous activists fighting for the protection of the Amazon rainforest in the country. Under the far-right government of Jair Bolsonaro, Brazil has become one of the most dangerous countries for environmental and indigenous activists. Bolsonaro wants to open indigenous territories to exploitation. This is fatal in various ways: indigenous communities rely on the intactness of the surrounding nature since it provides their daily life; also, indigenous people are one of the most important players when it comes to environmental protection in the Amazon rainforest. Large parts of the Amazon forest were burning in August and September 2019 due to wildfires which were in parts caused by human activities, especially by land clearing for farming. After the burning was controlled in October, deforestation has increased extremely. This year, the deforestation rate of the first nine months has been 85% higher than the one of the respective time span of last year.

The Amazon forests seem to be far away. Many may say: Why should I care? The Amazon rainforest is also called the “lungs of the planet” because its innumerable trees and plants are providing oxygen and working as a CO2 sink – which in times of the global climate crisis is of incomparable importance. Therefore, we should all care about what is going on in Brazil.

Indigenous communities are fighting, risking their lives to protect the forest which is the center of their culture, traditions, and lives. There are various institutions and organizations supporting the indigenous groups’ resistance against the exploitation of the Amazon forest, here are some: Amazonwatch, Amazonfrontlines, The Amazon Conservation Team, Amazon Conservation, and others. 

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And then, I cannot stop myself from diving into the topic. Rifling the internet for more information about this very newest report on climate change. At one point, I stumble upon another article: “Eat less meat: UN climate-change report calls for change to human diet”. This puts my feelings a bit to ease. Finally, I think. Finally, the IPCC gives a suggestion on how we all should behave if we want to save the Earth’s climate as we know it.

This is new. Before, there was hardly such thing as a direct call for action in the IPCC reports. As mentioned in our article on the World Conference for Science Journalists, the chairman of the IPCC did not want to answer directly to a person in the audience asking if a change in diet would help to reduce emissions. That was the moment when my jaw dropped, I couldn’t believe it.

Now, the new report on land and climate suggests that a change in diet is necessary. That means, all of us – unless not already vegetarian or vegan – have to rethink their daily life. The cards are on the table (actually not just since this IPCC report but much longer), science provides evidence after evidence that tipping points are likely to be reached. Then, there will probably be no way back to our current climate. For example, if permafrost soils thaw, they will not freeze in the next moment (or the coming century) just because we cut emissions. Dairy products should also be mentioned since they as well generate high amounts of greenhouse gas emissions.

Around 80 percent of the world’s arable land is used for livestock production. Meanwhile, 820 million people around the world suffer from malnourishment. More and more land is used for agricultural production – a huge amount of food is thrown away in the end. It is absurd.

Of course, it is not possible that all people don’t eat meat at all – some people rely on it since they live in environments where the soil is not favourable for crop production or similar. Yet, a reduction in our westernized meat consumption is definitely inevitable.

That the IPCC is now at least suggesting to reduce the global meat consumption may not lead to a drastic change by tomorrow. But, to me personally, it gives hope. Hope, that science may, in the end, convince people to understand the urgency of changing our lifestyle. More suggestions and drastic words are needed, of course. Even though science is supposed to be independent or neutral – we cannot afford to waste time anymore. There are solutions for tackling the problem of climate change such as reducing our meat consumption; we just have to do our part now. “We” includes states, policymakers, the economy, and individuals.

It has had an impact already: In Germany, discussions about meat consumption have been wild the past few months. Various ideas are debated: increasing the tax on meat, a tax on CO2 generation and others. This may be a good sign, maybe it made “click” for some politicians. Who knows? To say it with well-known words: We are all sitting in the same boat. And this boat is likely to get caught by a storm. Literally. Therefore, action is needed. Spread the word, speak to people who may not be aware of the problems we will have to face due to climate change – and point out some solutions. 

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In addition to the fact that it is the first global report on land use, it could also be described as the most ‘inclusive’ IPCC report to date. The report has more contributor scientists from the global south than the global north and 40% female scientists. Simultaneously, this highlights the growing importance of the topic, and the rising interest in the question in the global south.

The body of knowledge on climate change, its causes, consequences and mechanisms is already extensive. I think that what we need is more awareness raising, and more climate action, for a better future for everyone. Therefore, every new IPCC reports is a good occasion to debate the climatic crisis.

Land use and Climate Change

The first chapter is a general introduction to the issue. It presents the scope of the report and the related topics to land use that will be undertaken. Land use describes the activities, arrangements and inputs that humans use to modify the land cover according to their interests and needs. These activities could result in more greenhouse gas emissions in the atmosphere, or on the contrary, result in a decrease of greenhouse gases. Since humans directly affect around 70% of the global ice-free land surface, this issue and its impact on the climate and the climate action is of extreme importance.

Land use and the climate

The second chapter of the report treats the land-climate interaction in detail, building on the accumulated knowledge of the previous IPCC reports. The land use and climate change interactions are difficult to forecast, as they intertwine in a complex net of casualties and action-reaction. Nonetheless, the general trends are well described in the report, as well as their potential outcomes.

The growing human pressure on land is driving the greenhouse emissions to increase beyond the fixed limits to mitigate climate change. Moreover, the land is used more intensively and extensively to satisfy an increasing food demand through agricultural production. Compared to the pre-industrial levels, this caused the mean temperature over land to increase by 1.5°C, compared to the global 1°C increase over land and ocean. 

The pressure on the land comes from increasing pressure for resources and agricultural products. for example, since 1961, the total production of cereals increased by 240%. This results in increased land degradation and adverse effects on the ecosystems, and interacts also with the climate.

According to the report, the current changing trends of the climate will have potential benefits to agriculture in high latitude areas, as it will expand the arable lands in the north. But eventually, it will trigger a chain of events (known as feedback loops) such as snow melting and release of methane and CO2 in the atmosphere that will lead to further warming and climate extreme events in many parts of the world. These consequences will negatively affect land use and agricultural production in many areas, such as drylands. This will probably exacerbate the negative land use practices even more. It could also put the food security of large populations at risk.

Land degradation

Chapters 3 and 4 of the report treat the topic of desertification and land degradation. In addition to the study of the ongoing processes and their impacts, they present future scenarios and projections.

Among the consequences of climate change, the intensification of the hydrological cycle will lead to more intense rainfalls which in turn will result in increased soil erosion and land degradation. In dry regions of the world, land degradation will happen because of decreased rainfall and increased warming and leading to desertification. In both cases, it will cause the loss of fertile soil and vegetation. The report claims that a sustainable management of land could prevent land and forest degradation. It would alsod contribute to reversing the negative effects of climate change. In turn, this could support the implementation and achievements of the sustainable development goals (SDGs), and even create benefits for adaptation measures. The three last chapters (5-6-7) focus on food security, sustainable development and risk management. They present useful insights on the current opportunities to limit the adverse effects of the combined land use-climate change effect. They also present how new policies and governance approaches could lead to a more sustainable way of living. That could avoid a climatic worst case scenario, and preserve the environmental rights of future generations.

We are on a crossroad

My take home message from the report, is that the situation of land use is critical. Humans are approaching a crossroad, in which we will have to choose a development path. This choice will have huge consequences on the climate, positively or negatively, and consequently on humanity’s future ways of life.

Accordingly, humans need to adopt a less economist evaluation of the value of lands and land exploitation in general. Perusing pure economic profit-driven interests will only lead to the further degradation of the environment and destabilization of the climate. Knowing that the consequences of such actions will not be distributed equally means that there will be winners and losers.  This leaves no doubt that the current exploitation of the earth and its resources will not change spontaneously.

Sources:
Press release https://www.ipcc.ch/2019/08/08/land-is-a-critical-resource_srccl/
Climate change and land, summary for policymakers: https://www.ipcc.ch/site/assets/uploads/2019/08/4.-SPM_Approved_Microsite_FINAL.pdf
Climate change and Land https://www.ipcc.ch/srccl-report-download-page/

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“This is one of the avalanches returning most frequently at this site”, Walter Gebhard says. He is head of the Wildbach- und Lawinenverbauung Tirol, a section of the ministry for environment and tourism in Austria working on avalanche protection. “There are around 2600 avalanche sites in Tirol, we know that they occur frequently there.” They do not occur every year but in varying intervals of time, depending on the location. “Some have a higher release, others are rarer”, Gebhard says. This year alone, 400-450 avalanches have been documented in the county of Tirol. Avalanches are part of the mountains, the people living there are used to this disturbance. Yet, it is a natural hazard which has to be dealt with. Avalanches often are triggered when high temperatures occur in spring.

In a future not too far away, it is very likely that natural hazards such as avalanches will increase in mountainous areas like the Alps. The reason: global climate change. While the Paris Agreement aims to restrict global temperature rise to 1.5° (or as this is very unlikely to be reached below 2°C), the Alps already face this rise in temperature in some regions. Very likely, these temperature changes will bring some drastic challenges to the Alps. They will seriously impact the lives of people living in that region as well as biodiversity, wildlife and environment in general. Therefore, the Alpine Convention has been founded in 1989 by the neighbouring countries of the Alps (Germany, France, Italy, Liechtenstein, Monaco, Austria, Switzerland and Slovenia) as well as the EU. The Alpine Convention aims to generate sustainable development and protection of the Alps. The Permanent Secretary of the Alpine Convention is in Innsbruck, while the presidency of the Alpine Convention changes every two years.

Squeezing his eyes in the sunlight, Walter Gebhard looks into the clear sky. “Today, we have perfect weather conditions, nobody would expect avalanches when standing in the green areas where the snow has melted.” And yet – they crawl down the mountains like a howling monster, destroying everything that is in their way. In order to protect the people in the Innsbruck area from avalanches coming down the steep mountain chain, various measures are installed.

Firstly, there is a wall of cement which was built in the 1950-60s. Since then it has been renovated and improved several times. Another approach is to release avalanches artificially. Here, small avalanches are triggered helping to avoid big avalanches. “This approach has grown in the past 20 years. It is especially useful for protecting highways and skiing areas”, Gebhard says. This is done via targeted detonations – a huge knowledge base is necessary. “An early release is important. The detonation takes place 1-10 meters above the snow, it is not located directly in the snow”, says Gebhard, looking up the mountain. Over settled areas, the artificial release of avalanches is not allowed as this has caused accidents in the past when avalanches grew bigger than it was expected. Warning and monitoring systems that include the local population and their knowledge are as well a very helpful tool.

Ever since people started to live in the Alps, natural hazards have been part of their life. Due to a changing climate, these hazards are now even more threatening as they are increasing in frequency and becoming less predictable. With extreme events like storms or floods, climate change is putting a heavy weight onto the shoulders of the people living close or in the mountains. If they want to adapt to the new situations and problems, they have to come up with sustainable and adaptable solutions. And it is very likely that they want to adapt – because who would like to see their house buried under trees and snow?

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“Agroecology is a key tool in the transition to sustainable food.”

FAO

“The future of agriculture is not input-intensive but knowledge-intensive. We need the integrated approach that agroecology can offer.”

José Graziano da Silva, FAO Director-General

On November 25^th, 2018, Agriculture Day was celebrated at the United Nation Conference on Biodiversity COP-14 in Sharm El Sheikh. Under theme of Agriculture Day various sessions were organized and one such session was about ‘Agro-ecological approaches and biodiversity-friendly practices to increase productivity ‘. The session was moderated by Emile Frison from IPES-Food and included panelists from Government of France and Bolivia, Friends of the Earth International, Southeast Asia Regional Initiatives for Community Empowerment (SEARICE) and Forest Peoples Program (FPP). The session began with panel members presenting initiatives taken by their respective governments and organizations. Mr. Jean Lanotte, from the Government of France (Ministère de l’agriculture et de l’alimentation) highlighted his government’s agroecology policy which aims at reducing use of pesticides, promoting agroforestry and organic agriculture, conducting training of farmers and building an Agriculture Observatory of Biodiversity. Georgina Catacora-Vargas from Government of Bolivia said her country has regulatory framework on agroecology since 2006 and current focus is on education and the inclusion of the tourism sector for the adaptation of the agroecology law. Other panel members mainly from civil society organisations emphasized on connecting agriculture to local culture and moving political systems from large agricultural systems and investing more in agroecology.

“Agroecology offers a unique approach to meeting the needs of future generations while ensuring no one is left behind.”

FAO

From the presentations, reports and facts presented during this session, I learned that agroecological approaches are bottom-up and territorial processes, that can deliver contextualized solutions to local problems. Agroecological systems works on maximizing synergies between different components (soil, water, plants, animals, livestock’s, trees, human resource) of agriculture for achieving greater resource use efficiency and resilience. The knowledge of agroecology can transform food and agricultural systems, addressing the root causes of problems in an integrated way and providing holistic and long-term solutions. For instance, the farmers in Netherlands have developed a mechanism of exchanging their live stock produce for green manure. The grass/clover mixture is sheared several times a year by a local organic livestock farmer in exchange for the manure. Moreover, these farmers do not use pesticides, ploughing is done with a special eco-plough and weed management is done by use of machinery only in the early stages of crop growth. The growing innovations in agroecology are useful in conservation of above and below ground biodiversity. Agriculture is clearly a crucial sector to achieve the sustainable use and the conservation of biological diversity and agroecological approaches are therefore critical in implementation of post 2020 framework.

References:

• Dalgaard, Tommy, and Nicholas Hutchings, John Porter. “Agroecology, Scaling and Interdisciplinarity.” Agriculture Ecosystems and Environment 100(2003): 39-51.
• Rio Convention Bulletin 26 November 2018 Vol. 200 No. 47
• FAO’s work on Agroecology A pathway to achieve SDGs
• FAO. Agroecology Knowledge Hub. Available at: http://www.fao.org/agroecology/en/

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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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But after kilometers and kilometers, the Savannah still looked the same, and even though I was straining my eyes, I couldn’t spot animals anymore. Trees, bushes, dry grass, sand, over and over again. For hours, nothing happened. I looked out of the window, into the monotonous landscape, trying to spot something that would stand out, something that would break the recurring scenery. But then there was again nothing, nothing except trees, bushes and dry grass, softly swaying in the wind. The journey seemed to stretch into infinity…

Around midday, we crossed the veterinary cordon fence (VCF), which runs through the whole width of Namibia, from East to West. Back in colonial times, it was meant for keeping the indigenous people in the North, and separating them from the, usually white, farmers in the South. Today, the fence (sometimes also called the “red line”)  serves to control the transport of meat across the country. Since 1896, when a Rinderpest outbreak shook Namibia, it is not allowed to transport meat from the North to the South. In the 1960s, the fence was also used to isolate Foot-and-mouth disease outbreaks in the North from the farms in the South.

It is notable to contemplate the respective land tenure systems in Namibia differing between the North and the South: In the South, being influenced by German and South African colonial politics, and formerly occupied by German settlers, the land is owned by the farmers. Each farmer can buy land (5000 hectares in the North and Central Namibia, and even more in the South) and build up a commercial farm. (Check out our article about our stay at a commercial farm here.) As the land needs to be bought, it is freehold land. In the South, the most of the agricultural usable land belonged to commercial farms. We saw the fences, stretching for kilometers next to the road. In the North, most of the land is communal land, and everyone in the respective community is allowed to use it. Livestock is usually not restricted by fences and roams freely, often accompanied by a shepherd, guarding the cattle from wild animals. Some people have inheritance rights to use a certain piece of land  but they cannot sell the land. Otherwise, the distribution and use of the land is in the sovereignty of the local chief. He (or she) can assign or withdraw land use rights. This, however, clashes with the concept of the management of a conservancy. Here, the deputies of the conservancy (as representatives of the government) can decide how the communal land is used and can declare certain land use zones, which can lead to local conflicts over land use rights. But often, this is well managed in conservancies and the chief acknowledges the land use zones and assigns land use right accordingly.

When we crossed the fence, our Professor said: “Now we are driving into the real Africa.” And lo! The scenery was changing: The fences next to the road vanished, and small villages with round huts made from clay or corrugated iron appeared. We could see children playing under Acacia trees and people walking along the road, carrying huge baskets on their head. Sometimes, some cows or goats where crossing the road, jumping nervously when a car approached them. Not always in the right direction. Sometimes we would see people were riding donkeys or just sitting in the shade of a tree, waving merrily at us. Our Professor was right: Whether this is the real Africa or not – this was substantially different from what we had seen before.

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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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