Davies, Jonathan

Rangelands are large natural landscapes that can include grasslands, shrublands, savannahs and woodlands. They are greatly influenced by, and often dependent on, the action of herbivores. In the majority of rangelands the dominant herbivores are found in domestic herds that are managed by mobile pastoralists. Most pastoralists manage their rangelands communally, benefitting from the greater flexibility and seasonal resource access that common property regimes can offer. As this book shows, this creates a major challenge for governance and institutions.

This publication is intended to raise awareness amongst all stakeholders and galvanise wider action to boost drylands conservation and development. The book is designed to inform and remind us of the beauty of dryland biodiversity and its intrinsic and instrumental value. It demonstrates the mutual dependency of dryland biological and cultural diversity. The book includes new analyses of drylands biodiversity and an overview of approaches that promote sustainable development as well as conservation goals.

This publication presents innovative ways that have been used to influence policy processes, from community pressure groups through elected and unelected leaders, to scientific discourse at the levels of directors of economic planning and conservation. The book analyzes experiences from a variety of conservation interventions by IUCN and other agencies, primarily in Eastern Africa, and challenges the notion of policymaking as a cyclical process.

Community Environmental Action Planning (CEAP) is a stripped-down and simple participatory approach that has been used successfully over several years, and in a variety of forms, to introduce a greater degree of participation into environmental planning. CEAP is a proven and practical way to introduce greater accountability and community-ownership into ongoing institutional processes, such as district development planning, and to build capacity for creating and implementing policies of community participation.

Drylands cover 41 percent of the earth’s terrestrial surface. The urgency of and international response to climate change have given a new place to drylands in terms both of their vulnerability to predicted climate change impacts and their potential contribution to climate change mitigation. This book aims to apply the new scientific insights on complex dryland systems to practical options for development.