participatory development: a kalahari case study
DESCRIPTION
Presentation by Prof Mark ReedTRANSCRIPT
Participatory Development:
the case of land degradation in southern Africa
What is stakeholder participation?
• A process where stakeholders (e.g. individuals, groups and organisations) choose to take an active role in making decisions that affect them
(After Wandersman 1981; Wilcox 2003; Rowe et al. 2004)
What are stakeholders?
• Anyone who can affect or be affected by a decision or action
(after Freeman, 1984)
What is land degradation?
What is desertification?
“Our most significant non-renewable geo resource is fertile land and soil.
Nevertheless each year, an estimated 24 billion tons of fertile soil are lost. Arable
land loss is estimated at 30 to 35 times the historical rate. In the drylands, due to
drought and desertification 12 million ha are transformed in new man-made deserts
each year. The world has continued building towards 'a soil peak' which will have far-worse consequences than the
current 'oil peak’”
Luc Gnacadja, Executive Secretary, United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (2011)
Challenges
1. The nature of land degradation: multi-dimensional, contextual and dynamic
2. The methods we have can’t cope with this
N
GLASOD map
Non-degraded
Light
Moderate
Severe
Very Severe
Degradation Severity:
N
New expert map
N
Cattle productivity trends 1980-
1998
N
Remote sensing
Makgadikgadi Pans
Okavango Delta
Gaborone
N
NDVI Grazing Potential
Map
20o45’
47500021o00’
50000021o15’
52500021o30’
550000
20o45’
475000
21o00’
50000021o15’
52500021o30’
550000
27
o00’
70
25
00
02
6o4
5’
70
50
00
02
6o3
0’
70
75
00
02
6o1
5’
70
71
00
00
26
o00’
71
25
00
0
Molopo RiverTinkpitsDrieertjies
Vanwyksis
Strong WaterLambwester
Spaarwater
WetwerdlendVyf Dunes
Rappel’s Pan
InversnaidVaalhoek
Bokspits
Soatputs
Magalie
Geelpits
Kalkpits
Struizendam
Ganna Hoek
Welgewa
Welkom
Oowih
Two Rivers Camp Tshane Tshane
Khotswane
Khawa
Drieboom
Welte VredeWilderbeerstkop
50 10 20 km15
Dunes predominantly unstable, interdunes dominated by R. trichotomumand Schmitia kalahariensis (Suir gras). Acacia erioloba near river course.
Dunes partially stabilised by Stipagrostis amabilis (Duin gras), interdune vegetation dominated by annual and perennial grasses, S. kalahariensis and Centropodia glauca (Gha gras), with occasional R. trichotomum and A. mellifera (Swaartak/Blackthorn)
Dunes stabilised by a range of species, dominated by S. amabilis, interdune vegetation dominated by perennial grasses, C. glaucaand Eragrostis lehmanniana (Knietjies gras), patches of R. trichotomum (restricted to more mineral-rich soils) and A. mellifera, sparse trees dominated by Boscia albitrunca (Motlopi) with occasional A. haemotoxolon (Vaalkame eldoring).
Riverbed and calcrete outcrops, with associated plant communities, including Rhyzogum trichotomum (Makurubane) and Acacia erioloba (Camel Thorn)
As above, but interdunes contain wider diversity of perennial grasses at higher density, including C. glauca, E. lehmannianaEragrostis tricophera and Stipagrostis obtusa (Kleef gras).
Information not collected
HoumoedPavijo
Mara
Kgalagadi Transfrontier
Park
Fly’s Kop
Goodhope
SOUTH AFRICA
Woody zone (natural): A. mellifera, A. haemotox-olon, A. leuderitzii, B. albitrunca. Ground layer dominated by palatble creepers, low grass cover
Transition between woody and grass dominated zones
Pan Track
Borehole Tar Road/ Riverbed/ International Border
Crush
Village Fence
N
Vegetation Map
Citrullus lanatus (wild melon) zone
As above, with Grewia flava (Moretlwa)
20o45’
475000
21o00’
500000
21o15’
52500021o30’
550000
20o45’
475000
21o00’
50000021o15’
52500021o30’
550000
27
o00
’
70
25
00
02
6o4
5’
70
50
00
02
6o3
0’
70
75
00
02
6o1
5’
70
71
00
00
26
o00
’
71
25
00
0
Molopo RiverTinkpitsDrieertjies
Vanwyksis
Strong WaterLambwester
Spaarwater
WetwerdlendVyf Dunes
Rappel’s Pan
InversnaidVaalhoek
Bokspits
Soatputs
Magalie
Geelpits
Kalkpits
Struizendam
Ganna Hoek
Welgewa
Welkom
Oowih
Two Rivers Camp Tshane Tshane
Khotswane
Khawa
Drieboom
Welte VredeWilderbeerstkop
50 10 20 km15
Dunes predominantly unstable, interdunes dominated by R. trichotomumand Schmitia kalahariensis (Suir gras). Acacia erioloba near river course.
Dunes partially stabilised by Stipagrostis amabilis (Duin gras), interdune vegetation dominated by annual and perennial grasses, S. kalahariensis and Centropodia glauca (Gha gras), with occasional R. trichotomum and A. mellifera (Swaartak/Blackthorn)
Dunes stabilised by a range of species, dominated by S. amabilis, interdune vegetation dominated by perennial grasses, C. glaucaand Eragrostis lehmanniana (Knietjies gras), patches of R. trichotomum (restricted to more mineral-rich soils) and A. mellifera, sparse trees dominated by Boscia albitrunca (Motlopi) with occasional A. haemotoxolon (Vaalkame eldoring).
Riverbed and calcrete outcrops, with associated plant communities, including Rhyzogum trichotomum (Makurubane) and Acacia erioloba (Camel Thorn)
As above, but interdunes contain wider diversity of perennial grasses at higher density, including C. glauca, E. lehmannianaEragrostis tricophera and Stipagrostis obtusa (Kleef gras).
Information not collected
HoumoedPavijo
Mara
Kgalagadi Transfrontier
Park
Fly’s Kop
Goodhope
SOUTH AFRICA
Woody zone (natural): A. mellifera, A. haemotox-olon, A. leuderitzii, B. albitrunca. Ground layer dominated by palatble creepers, low grass cover
Transition between woody and grass dominated zones
Pan Track
Borehole Tar Road/ Riverbed/ International Border
Crush
Village Fence
N
Vegetation Map
Citrullus lanatus (wild melon) zone
As above, with Grewia flava (Moretlwa)Community
Map
3. Communities don’t participate
Indicators
Land degradation and sustainability indicators
How can we develop degradation indicators that can empower non-specialists to accurately detect
change, and point them to potential solutions?
Reed et al. (2011) Land Degradation & Development
Yr 1
Thorny bush encroachment
Yr 10
Yr 20
1 10 20 yrs
Kalahari Results
A wealth of local knowledge, thinly spread
Holistic: vegetation, livestock, wild animal and socio-economic indicators + soil indicators
Vegetation
52%
Soil
23%
Livestock
17%
Wild Animal
& Insect5%
Socio-
economic3%
Vegetation38%
Soil19%
Livestock19%
Wild Animal & Insect17%
Socio-Economic
7%
Socio-
Economic9%
Wild Animal &
Insect14%
Livestock
11%
Soil
9%
Vegetation
57%
Site 1 Site 2 Site 3
Qualitative evaluation of indicators
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
Site 1 Site 2 Site 3
Nu
mb
er
of
ind
ica
tors
Indicators tested
Indicators validated (p < 0.05)
Quantitative evaluation of indicators
Overlap and adaptation of technical indicators
Meaningful participation and scientific rigour
Management
What do we do with the information indicators provide us with?
Literature
Local ideas
Ideas combined and discussed
Global Application: DESIRE
Desertification Mitigation and Remediation of Landa global approach for local solutions
Future Degradation Assessment
Multi-source, multi-scale assessment is possible
Break
Vulnerability to the interactive effects of land degradation & climate change
The challenge
• Predicted 10-15% decrease in summer rainfall• Increased unpredictability, incidence and severity of
droughts• Combined with existing concerns over land degradation
Vulnerable?• Impacts are not inevitable
• The vulnerability of a system to climate change or land degradation depends on lots of things
• Turn to the person next to you and:
1. Choose a terrestrial ecosystem you are familiar with (e.g. heather moorland or tropical rainforest)
2. Think of a driver that is threatening that ecosystem (e.g. climate change or atmospheric pollution)
3. Decide how vulnerable you think your system is to the driver you’ve identified (very, slightly or not at all)
4. What are the characteristics of the ecosystem that made it was vulnerable or not?
VulnerabilityThe vulnerability of a system depends on 3 questions:
1. How exposed is the system? Not exposed – not vulnerable. If it is exposed, then…
2. How sensitive is the system? Not sensitive – not vulnerable. If it is sensitive, then…
3. How adaptable is the system? Can adapt effectively to perturbation – not vulnerable. If it can’t adapt then it is vulnerable
Vulnerability (or fragility): a system’s exposure, sensitivity and capacity to adapt to stress or perturbation
(based on Kasperson et al., 1995 and IPCC, 2001)
The Concepts
Exposure: the magnitude of stress or perturbation a system is exposed to
Sensitivity (or susceptibility): the degree of system (or system component) change associated with a given degree of stress or perturbation
Adaptive capacity: the ability (often measured in the time it takes) for a system to change its structure to support basic system functions in response to perturbation
The Concepts
Drivers of change the system is exposed to:
• UK appetite for Botswana beef
• Borehole-led expansion of cattle industry
• Changes in land tenure
1. 1960-70s: Common property to open access
2. 1970s-present: open access to private
Sensitive?
• Not sensitive to sustainable stocking levels of mixed species
• Sensitive to overgrazing by a single species over long periods
Adaptable?
• Goats can use the results of overgrazing by cattle (bush encroachment) as a valuable browse resource
• The adaptive capacity of the system is limited by cultural values: cattle = status
• Strength of community/kinship structures weakenned by out-migration from rural areas and decreased life expectancy due to HIV/AIDS
• Weakened traditional tribal/village institutions due to power of national land boards
• Widening gap between rich & poor means the poor majority have less access to financial capital to buffer effects of climate change and land degradation
The impacts:
• Reduction in the cover of palatable grasses and replacement by less palatable species
• Bush encroachment cited as a major livelihood constraint by 67% pastoralists
• Livestock mortality during drought unless they move, have to purchase supplementary feeds
• Loss of biodiversity, particularly in bush encroached systems
• Borehole water depths are increasing and in the more arid areas little or no potable water is currently found
• Wind erosion and dune activity in some areas
Future climate change will hit the poor hardest
Dougill et al., 2010
However:
• Some adaptation is occurring in response to the already high rainfall variability and drought frequency
• Can we improve and extend these adaptations to comparable areas to facilitate adaptation to climate change?
• The “mafisa” livestock movement system
• Livestock movement can effectively track available rainfall and forage
• Maintains livestock herds and livelihoods in the existing social and economic system
• But how sustainable is this system?
• Current Government fencing policy
• Can the livestock movement system keep up with increased rainfall variability in a low rainfall, hotter future? Not with large-scale dune remobilisation…
• And if it can, will it lead to even greater environmental degradation?
• By attempting to maintain herds in equilibrium with forage, it is possible to exceed equilibrium (esp. in drought years) and cause land degradation
What can we do?
• Maintain the mafisa system • Enable land managers to monitor the interactive effects
of climate change and land degradation: indicators• Document and refine a wide range of adaptations that
can prevent/remediate different aspects of climate-induced land degradation
• Disseminate indicators and adaptations to land managers to help maintain livelihoods under future climate change
Reading
Reed MS et al. (2011) Cross-scale monitoring and assessment of land degradation and sustainable land management: a methodological framework for knowledge management. Land Degradation & Development
Reed MS, Dougill AJ (2010) Linking Degradation Assessment to Sustainable Land Management: a decision support system for Kalahari pastoralists. Journal of Arid Environments 74: 149–155
Dougill AJ, Fraser EDG, Reed MS (2010) Anticipating vulnerability in food systems to climate variability and change: challenges of using dynamic systems approaches and the case of pastoral systems in Botswana. Ecology & Society 15(2): 17
Stringer LC, Reed MS, Dougill AJ, Twyman C (2009) Local adaptations to climate change, drought and desertification: insights to enhance policy in southern Africa. Environmental Science & Policy
Reed MS, Dougill AJ & Baker T (2008) Participatory indicator development: what can ecologists and local communities learn from each other? Ecological Applications 18: 1253–1269
Staying in an area too long is like wearing the same dress for years; it gets worn out. Female farmer, age 65, Six Mile Cattle Post
It is not possible to be a cattle farmer in a place like this: you have to be a grass farmer. Male Farmer, age 74, Hereford Farm
For more publications and resources Google “Mark Reed”