Bridging the divide between intuitive social-ecological value and sustainability in the Manica Highlands of southern Africa (Zimbabwe-Mozambique)

Southern African mountains remain poorly studied as social-ecological systems (SES) and are poorly represented in the global mountain discourse. However, these mountains provide essential ecosystem services (ES) that underpin local and regional development. Quantitative data on ES, their representation in policy, and the political will for sustainable management are limited. We demonstrate this using the Manica Highlands (MH; Zimbabwe—Mozambique): benefiting one million immediate and five million downstream beneficiaries, the seven identified ES are supported in the literature but lack recent quantitative data needed to persuade policymakers for action to promote sustainability. The ES are most at risk from mining, alien invasive species, rapid land transformation, and climate change – yet fine-scale quantitative data to inform mountain-specific policy on these are also lacking. We recommend a ‘science to policy to action’ agenda for the MH, but highlight that the greatest challenge to achieving sustainability is a lack of effective governance; therefore it may be difficult to change ‘immediate benefits’-thinking to higher ideals that would render the ES of the MH sustainable. As a result, academics, civic society, policy makers and governance instruments should work closely together to quantify the value of the MH, and to formulate specific policy for the MH.Travel and workshops (2015) were supported by the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNF; Grant No. IZ07Z0_160871), and a draft manuscript was supported by a South African National Research Foundation post-doctoral fellowship for VRC (2014–2016). The manuscript was completed with support from a University of the Free State (UFS) Afromontane Research Unit Post-doctoral Fellowship (for JDD), and publication costs were covered by the UFS.http://www.elsevier.com/locate/ecoser2020-10-01hj2019Plant Production and Soil Scienc

Charcoal production in the Mopane woodlands of Mozambique: what are the trade-offs with other ecosystem services?

African woodlands form a major part of the tropical grassy biome and support the livelihoods of millions of rural and urban people. Charcoal production in particular is a major economic activity, but its impact on other ecosystem services is little studied. To address this, our study collected biophysical and social datasets, which were combined in ecological production functions, to assess ecosystem service provision and its change under different charcoal production scenarios in Gaza Province, southern Mozambique. We found that villages with longer histories of charcoal production had experienced declines in wood suitable for charcoal, firewood and construction, and tended to have lower perceived availabilities of these services. Scenarios of future charcoal impacts indicated that firewood and woody construction services were likely to trade-off with charcoal production. However, even under the most extreme charcoal scenario, these services were not completely lost. Other provisioning services, such as wild food, medicinal plants and grass, were largely unaffected by charcoal production. To reduce the future impacts of charcoal production, producers must avoid increased intensification of charcoal extraction by avoiding the expansion of species and sizes of trees used for charcoal production. This is a major challenge to land managers and policymakers in the area. This article is part of the themed issue ‘Tropical grassy biomes: linking ecology, human use and conservation’