Editorial: Towards an effective commons governance system in Southern Africa?

This special feature presents several papers generated under the EUfunded ‘Cross Sectoral Commons Governance in Southern Africa’ (CROSCOG) project. The feature builds on knowledge generated in case studies which explored existing integrated resource knowledge and governance practices of rural people living in Southern African commons. In earlier generations, especially during the pre-colonial periods, most Southern African societies developed quite effective indigenous institutions for the management of entire landscapes and their component ecosystems, when this was in their interest. Few of these integrated Southern African systems are effective today as they have gone through massive changes, for example due to colonial influences, the increased role of the market and/or conflicts over use and access to natural resources. Meanwhile, most efforts to rebuild or affirm (the management of) the commons through various initiatives, have been specific to certain resources or localised areas. Conversely, the smaller number of ecosystem-wide land use planning initiatives that sought to enhance overall environmental health have been dominated by technical, antipolitical approaches that failed to understood the differential roles of resources in the spectrum of local livelihoods, and failed to achieve the required broader reinforcement of local governance. This introduction and the papers it introduces explore opportunities and challenges with respect to integrating scale – landscapes, ecosystems, and governing systems – into the local commons

Making land management more sustainable: experiences implementing a new methodological framework in Botswana

It is increasingly recognised that tackling land degradation through more sustainable land management depends on incorporating multiple perspectives by using a variety of methods at multiple scales, including the perspectives of those who manage and/or use the land. This paper reports experience implementing a previously proposed methodological framework that is designed to facilitate knowledge sharing between researchers and stakeholders about land degradation severity and extent, and sustainable land management options. Empirical findings are presented from the Botswana site of the EU-funded Desertification Mitigation and Remediation of Land project. The paper reflects upon the challenges and benefits of the proposed framework and identifies a number of benefits, notably related to insights arising from the integration of local and scientific knowledge, and the ownership of the sustainable land management strategies that emerged from the process. However, implementing the framework was not without challenges, and levels of poverty and formal education may limit the implementation of the framework in some developing world contexts

Mmokolodi solar PV project – Demonstrating sustainable renewable energy system design and potential for Botswana rural electrification

The aim of this paper is to introduce the AU-funded distributed solar photovoltaic (PV) research project currently being implemented at the Mmokolodi Village in Botswana. The paper shall outline the potential of the project for rural electrification and assess system design considerations guaranteeing its sustainability. A descriptive methodology is considered sufficient to capture the complexity of the project's design goal and its sustenance beyond the project time. The inherent complexity cited underlines the need for a holistic system design view embracing technical, social, economical, environmental, and ownership dimensions. These dimensions are substantiated in the paper applying suitable frameworks. Within one of the frameworks, an overview of possible business models is explored, in particular looking at Product-Service Systems and related ownership models as promising approach for project sustainability. The current status of this ongoing research work limits definitive commentary about the expected final result. Whereas valid business case statements for sustaining the Mmokolodi project can already be made, the other sustainability metrics namely feasibility, viability and desirability remain projected goals. The results of this research exemplify the need for interdisciplinary collaboration in sustainable energy research undertakings. The assessments made will help future project implementers to anticipate implementation hurdles proactively. The results will help energy end-users at the Mmokolodi community to access affordable modern energy and assess its desirability. For policy planners these results may shape energy planning to embrace the complexity inherent in the energy planning process

Historical perspectives on pastoralism and land tenure transformation in Ngamiland, Botswana: What are the policy and institutional lessons?

Pastoral societies in dryland Africa continue to face changes to their pastoral systems. These systems are influenced by a range of historical factors but little use is made of this information to design policies that suit pastoralists’ landscapes. This article provides a synthesis of historical perspectives on pastoral land use and tenure transformations in Ngamiland, south of the Okavango Delta, Botswana. Little documentation of herders’ historical perspectives exists and less is known about how past experiences can be applied to sustainable pastoralism policies. In this article, current land use pressing issues are examined and analysed within the context of past experiences. We use a series of oral histories with key informants, focus group discussions, expert interviews and rangelands field observations. Ngamiland historical perspectives depict a pastoral landscape that has been shaped by a variety of factors; livestock diseases, Human-wildlife-conflicts, droughts, land tenure transformations associated with rangeland policies and the pastoral identity of the Ovaherero/Ovambanderu ethnic groups. Pastoralists have followed unique trajectories, specific to their rangeland conditions and socio-cultural context. Resilience to climate shocks and diseases has been weakened by inequitable patterns of control over rangeland resources. We recommend institutional diversity such that from experiences of the past, lessons can be drawn of the sort of processes and institutions required for pastoralism policies including targeted pastoralists’ adaptations. Using pastoralists to provide information, especially in the area of indigenous knowledge, strategies can be developed to link conservation of wildlife and rangelands with pastoral production by developing ecologically-sensitive low-volume tourism that pastoral communities can tap in to diversify their livelihoods

Evaluation and selection of indicators for land degradation and desertification monitoring : types of degradation, causes, and implications for management

International audienceIndicator-based approaches are often used to monitor land degradation and desertification from the global to the very local scale. However, there is still little agreement on which indicators may best reflect both status and trends of these phenomena. In this study, various processes of land degradation and desertification have been analyzed in 17 study sites around the world using a wide set of biophysical and socioeconomic indicators. The database described earlier in this issue by Kosmas and others (Environ Manage, 2013) for defining desertification risk was further analyzed to define the most important indicators related to the following degradation processes: water erosion in various land uses, tillage erosion, soil salinization, water stress, forest fires, and overgrazing.

A synthesis of past, current and future research for protection and management of papyrus (Cyperus papyrus L.) wetlands in Africa

Papyrus wetlands (dominated by the giant sedge Cyperus papyrus L.) occur throughout eastern, central and southern Africa and are important for biodiversity, for water quality and quantity regulation and for the livelihoods of millions of people. To draw attention to the importance of papyrus wetlands, a special session entitled ‘‘The ecology of livelihoods in papyrus wetlands’’ was organized at the 9th INTECOL Wetlands Conference in Orlando, Florida in June 2012. Papers from the session, combined with additional contributions, were collected in a special issue of Wetlands Ecology and Management. The current paper reviews ecological and hydrological characteristics of papyrus wetlands, summarizes their ecosystem services and sustainable use, provides an overview of papyrus research to date, and looks at policy development for papyrus wetlands. Based on this review, the paper provides a synthesis of research and policy priorities for papyrus wetlands and introduces the contributions in the special issue. Main conclusions are that (1) there is a need for better estimates of the area covered by papyrus wetlands. Limited evidence suggests that the loss of papyrus wetlands is rapid in some areas; (2) there is a need for a better understanding and modelling of the regulating services of papyrus wetlands to support trade-off analysis and improve economic valuation; (3) research on papyrus wetlands should include assessment of all ecosystem services (provisioning, regulating, habitat, cultural) so that trade-offs can be determined as the basis for sustainable management strategies (‘wise use’); (4) more research on the governance, institutional and socio-economic aspects of papyrus wetlands is needed to assist African governments in dealing with the challenges of conserving wetlands in the face of growing food security needs and climate change. The papers in the special issue address a number of these issues