Informations et ressources scientifiques
sur le développement des zones arides et semi-arides

Titre : Human Acceptance and Ecological Outcomes of Conservation Strategies in Fragile Forest Ecosystems of South-Eastern Kenya

Auteur : Nzau, Joslyn Muthio

Université de soutenance : Technische Universität München

Grade : Doktorin der Naturwissenschaften (Dr. rer. nat.) 2021

Sommaire partiel
Current environmental changes suggest that anthropogenic activities are severely impacting natural ecosystems and driving an unprecedented biodiversity loss. One of the biggest challenges of the Anthropocene remains the reconciliation of biodiversity conservation and human livelihood needs. This quest becomes notably relevant for tropical forests in subSaharan Africa. Most forest remnants in Africa are global biodiversity hotspots and supply essential ecosystem services that quality human livelihoods depend on. Today, these forests are under numerous socio-economic pressures at different spatial and temporal scales. Participatory Forest Management (PFM) is currently advanced as a viable approach towards conserving these increasingly fragile forests. PFM includes broad co-management initiatives that aim to equitably share the governing authority, responsibilities, and entitlements among different stakeholders. The applicability, acceptance and socio-ecological outcomes of PFM are highly debated in sub-Saharan Africa, a region characterised by highly diverse landscapes, people, and biodiversity. Against this backdrop, this dissertation offers a two-step analysis into understanding the dynamics that impact forest conservation interventions’ legitimacy and efficiency in three different forest types found in south-eastern Kenya. The study areas presented here include the Kitui gallery forests, the Arabuko-Sokoke lowland coastal forest and the Taita Hills cloud forests. The first study area attracts minimal conservation attention, and therefore PFM is nonexistent. The latter study areas are listed as global biodiversity hotspots and attract considerable conservation interest with PFM at various implementation stages. Data collections were carried out from 2016 to 2018, whereby a total of 827 residents living within the vicinity of these forests participated in structured surveys. These datasets were complemented by 37 expert interviews with representants of the state, civil and community environmental organizations from the respective study areas. Inferences on ecological outcomes are drawn from recently published ecological studies from the respective study areas. The examined thematic areas include biodiversity awareness and knowledge, appreciation of ecosystem services, perceptions towards species protection, willingness to implement good environmental practices, environmental communication, and inclusion and participation in conservation action. The main predictor variables were area of study, age, gender, ethnicity, education, income, and landholding size. In a first step, the area-specific trade-offs that compromise forest conservation were investigated. In a second step, the overriding trends were explored. Overall, the results showed a low biodiversity awareness, an inclination to protect plant species over animals, high spatial bias, and a general willingness to conserve biodiversity but combined with underwhelming conservation action.

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