Grassland restoration impacts human-wildlife and social conflicts in the Chyulu Hills, Kenya
African grasslands provide benefits for human communities but are negatively impacted by climate change. Climate impacts, combined with human population growth, can increase competition and conflict among humans and wildlife. Grassland restoration, a type of Nature-based Solution for climate adaptat...
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2025-02-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Environmental Science |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fenvs.2024.1431316/full |
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| author | Camila I. Donatti Camila I. Donatti Nora Moraga-Lewy Josephat Nyongesa Maureen Mwanzia Janet Edmond Giacomo Fedele |
| author_facet | Camila I. Donatti Camila I. Donatti Nora Moraga-Lewy Josephat Nyongesa Maureen Mwanzia Janet Edmond Giacomo Fedele |
| author_sort | Camila I. Donatti |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | African grasslands provide benefits for human communities but are negatively impacted by climate change. Climate impacts, combined with human population growth, can increase competition and conflict among humans and wildlife. Grassland restoration, a type of Nature-based Solution for climate adaptation, can improve farmers’ livelihoods by increasing the availability of water and pasture for livestock during drought events. Grassland restoration can also potentially help farmers adapt to climate change by providing human security benefits through a reduction in conflicts, which can also reduce consequent retaliatory measures on wildlife. However, those connections have not been widely explored. This paper assesses whether grassland restoration can reduce human-wildlife and social conflicts in Kenya. We collected information on conflicts using household surveys implemented over 16 months in a total of 1,567 households in Chyulu Hills when grassland restoration was also implemented. Results showed that 88.9% of the households interviewed experienced human-wildlife conflicts and 32% experienced social conflicts. There was a negative and significant correlation between the area restored in each site and both the number of human-wildlife conflicts and the number of social conflicts, showing that conflicts decrease as restoration increases. We also used time as a proxy for restoration, as areas restored and restoration activities increased through time. We did not find a decrease in human-wildlife conflicts over time, but we did find an overall decrease in social conflicts over time, as well as a reduction in the feeling of insecurity. However, not all households behave in the same way. Households led by women experienced a higher number of social conflicts compared to households led by men. Likewise, a higher number of households led by women had a perception of insecurity compared to households led by men. The results of this study provides recommendations for future projects, stakeholders, policy and decisions makers: a) to continue tracking conflicts in Chyulu Hills to understand the connections between grassland restoration and conflicts in the long-term, b) to identify and scale-up measures to mitigate human-wildlife conflicts considering the multiple conflict-causing species, including humans, and c) to consider the needs, perceptions and interests of women in designing strategies to mitigate conflicts. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-31af90b6f4ef4a0191b44405cb2198bb |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2296-665X |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-02-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Environmental Science |
| spelling | doaj-art-31af90b6f4ef4a0191b44405cb2198bb2025-08-20T03:01:07ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Environmental Science2296-665X2025-02-011210.3389/fenvs.2024.14313161431316Grassland restoration impacts human-wildlife and social conflicts in the Chyulu Hills, KenyaCamila I. Donatti0Camila I. Donatti1Nora Moraga-Lewy2Josephat Nyongesa3Maureen Mwanzia4Janet Edmond5Giacomo Fedele6Betty and Gordon Moore Center for Science, Conservation International, Arlington, VA, United StatesDepartment of Biological Sciences, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ, United StatesCenter for Communities and Conservation, Conservation International, Arlington, VA, United StatesKenya Country Program, Conservation International, Nairobi, KenyaKenya Country Program, Conservation International, Nairobi, KenyaCenter for Communities and Conservation, Conservation International, Arlington, VA, United StatesCenter for Natural Climate Solutions, Conservation International, Arlington, VA, United StatesAfrican grasslands provide benefits for human communities but are negatively impacted by climate change. Climate impacts, combined with human population growth, can increase competition and conflict among humans and wildlife. Grassland restoration, a type of Nature-based Solution for climate adaptation, can improve farmers’ livelihoods by increasing the availability of water and pasture for livestock during drought events. Grassland restoration can also potentially help farmers adapt to climate change by providing human security benefits through a reduction in conflicts, which can also reduce consequent retaliatory measures on wildlife. However, those connections have not been widely explored. This paper assesses whether grassland restoration can reduce human-wildlife and social conflicts in Kenya. We collected information on conflicts using household surveys implemented over 16 months in a total of 1,567 households in Chyulu Hills when grassland restoration was also implemented. Results showed that 88.9% of the households interviewed experienced human-wildlife conflicts and 32% experienced social conflicts. There was a negative and significant correlation between the area restored in each site and both the number of human-wildlife conflicts and the number of social conflicts, showing that conflicts decrease as restoration increases. We also used time as a proxy for restoration, as areas restored and restoration activities increased through time. We did not find a decrease in human-wildlife conflicts over time, but we did find an overall decrease in social conflicts over time, as well as a reduction in the feeling of insecurity. However, not all households behave in the same way. Households led by women experienced a higher number of social conflicts compared to households led by men. Likewise, a higher number of households led by women had a perception of insecurity compared to households led by men. The results of this study provides recommendations for future projects, stakeholders, policy and decisions makers: a) to continue tracking conflicts in Chyulu Hills to understand the connections between grassland restoration and conflicts in the long-term, b) to identify and scale-up measures to mitigate human-wildlife conflicts considering the multiple conflict-causing species, including humans, and c) to consider the needs, perceptions and interests of women in designing strategies to mitigate conflicts.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fenvs.2024.1431316/fullclimate change adaptationMaasai communitiesrestorationconflict-mitigating strategiesAfrican grasslandshuman security |
| spellingShingle | Camila I. Donatti Camila I. Donatti Nora Moraga-Lewy Josephat Nyongesa Maureen Mwanzia Janet Edmond Giacomo Fedele Grassland restoration impacts human-wildlife and social conflicts in the Chyulu Hills, Kenya Frontiers in Environmental Science climate change adaptation Maasai communities restoration conflict-mitigating strategies African grasslands human security |
| title | Grassland restoration impacts human-wildlife and social conflicts in the Chyulu Hills, Kenya |
| title_full | Grassland restoration impacts human-wildlife and social conflicts in the Chyulu Hills, Kenya |
| title_fullStr | Grassland restoration impacts human-wildlife and social conflicts in the Chyulu Hills, Kenya |
| title_full_unstemmed | Grassland restoration impacts human-wildlife and social conflicts in the Chyulu Hills, Kenya |
| title_short | Grassland restoration impacts human-wildlife and social conflicts in the Chyulu Hills, Kenya |
| title_sort | grassland restoration impacts human wildlife and social conflicts in the chyulu hills kenya |
| topic | climate change adaptation Maasai communities restoration conflict-mitigating strategies African grasslands human security |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fenvs.2024.1431316/full |
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