Reversing environmental decline. classes

In rural Africa, where livelihoods are often directly tied to the land, environmental degradation poses a critical threat to both ecosystems and human well-being. New research identifies ways to tackle the twin challenges of land degradation and poverty.

In rural Africa, where livelihoods are often directly tied to the land, environmental degradation poses a critical threat to both ecosystems and human well-being. A new study co-authored by researchers at Stanford University and the French Center for International Agricultural Research Development (CIRAD) analyzes how different African communities have tried to reverse this trend and offers valuable insights into what works. The study, published Oct. 30 in Sustainability Science, highlights that long-term coalitions between local communities, governments, and organizations are critical to driving the sustainability transition.

“Every place is different, and a ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach to environmental policy should be avoided, but we also need to learn from past experiences to identify the conditions that make reversing environmental degradation successful,” said study co-author Eric Lambin. : George and Setsuko Ishiyama Provost Professor at the Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability and Senior Research Fellow at the Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment.

Reversible degradation
For decades, many African communities have faced the dual challenge of combating environmental degradation while improving people’s livelihoods. As land becomes less productive due to low soil fertility, deforestation or climate change, the pressure on these communities intensifies. Lambin and study co-author Camille Jahel of CIRAD point out that in many cases this situation is inextricably linked to the history of colonialism, where authorities denied people’s rights to natural resources and broadcast a history of overexploitation of natural resources. This led to top-down restoration efforts that often had limited success, according to the researchers.

Recently, in many areas, new efforts have been made to reverse these negative trends, often with the support of governments, NGOs or international organizations. However, results have been mixed, with some initiatives leading to significant improvements and others failing.

After examining 17 case studies representing different initiatives to reverse land degradation in 13 African countries, researchers found that successful interventions typically share several key characteristics. First, they often involve strong social arrangements between actors, supported by well-functioning institutions. In cases like Shinyanga District in Tanzania, where 90% of the population was involved in reforestation, the results were impressive. Between 300,000 and 500,000 hectares, or about 1,100 to 1,900 square miles, of forested land were restored in the region, improving livelihoods by providing resources such as wood for fuel.

Another important factor is the alignment of incentives with environmental objectives. In Burkina Faso, for example, farmers began planting cashew trees because of the opportunity to sell their produce on international markets. This not only provided a new income stream, but also helped fight desertification as more trees were planted. These cases highlight the importance of ensuring that environmental restoration efforts also address the economic and social needs of communities.

“Incentives were mostly economic in nature, but some also related to security of land access or improved provision of ecosystem services after natural resource restoration,” said Jahel, CIRAD researcher. Jahel was funded by the Stanford France-Stanford Center for Interdisciplinary Studies for a joint research project with the Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment prior to this study.

Supports recovery
In addition to local coalitions, the study highlights the importance of external support, particularly in the form of resources and technical assistance. In many successful cases, such as in Niger and Burkina Faso, NGOs and government agencies have provided the necessary tools, knowledge and financial support to implement projects. This external support was often vital in the early stages of interventions, reducing the risks associated with adopting new practices in a context of resource scarcity and climate variability.

However, the study also cautions that external support must be carefully managed. In some cases, top-down approaches that have not fully engaged local communities have led to limited success or even failure. For example, an intervention to restore wildlife populations in Zambia’s Kafue Flats ultimately failed in part because new management structures imposed by external actors were not accepted by the local community. This highlights the need for external agencies to work closely with local stakeholders and to respect existing social and governance systems.

Lambin and Jahel stress the need to maintain momentum over the long term. Some of the interventions they studied showed positive results at first, only to falter as external funding dried up or local interest waned. The researchers emphasize the importance of building long-term resilience into these projects, ensuring that local communities can continue to manage and sustain improvements without ongoing external support. In Namibia, for example, some community-based wildlife management organizations, known as conservancies, now generate enough profit to sustain their operations over time.

By providing general lessons learned from past experiences in Africa, this study can help improve the design, management and monitoring of projects aimed at reversing land degradation and sustainable land use practices.

“It is possible to reverse environmental decline,” Lambin said. “The key is to create long-term interventions that are targeted at the local level [and] integrate poverty concerns supported by strong governance structures and based on coalitions of actors”.