The challenges of alleviating poverty through ecological restoration: Insights from South Africa's “working for water” program
- McConnachie, Matthew M, Cowling, Richard M, Shackleton, Charlie M, Knight, Andrew T
- Authors: McConnachie, Matthew M , Cowling, Richard M , Shackleton, Charlie M , Knight, Andrew T
- Date: 2013
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/181003 , vital:43680 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1111/rec.12038"
- Description: Public works programs have been posited as win–win solutions for achieving societal goals for ecological restoration and poverty alleviation. However, little is documented regarding the challenges of implementing such projects. A commonly cited example is South Africa's invasive alien plant control program “Working for Water” (WfW), which aims to create employment via restoring landscapes invaded with alien plants. Recent studies have raised questions over the effectiveness of this program in achieving both its restoration and poverty alleviation goals. This is the first study that we are aware of that synthesizes the knowledge of managers on both the poverty alleviation and environmental outcomes of a public works project. Herein, we sought to understand the challenges and constraints faced by 23 WfW managers in fulfilling the program's environmental and poverty alleviation objectives. We found that the challenges most frequently cited by managers related to the capacity and competence of managers and teams, followed by challenges relating to planning and coordination, specifically the challenges of being flexible and adaptive when constrained by operating procedures. In addition, the current focus on maximizing short-term employment was perceived by some as limiting the efficiency and long-term effectiveness of the WfW program in achieving its environmental and social goals. We suggest that improving the conditions and duration of employment could improve the effectiveness of invasive alien plant control and ecological outcomes. We also suggest that WfW measure the impacts of their interventions through an adaptive management approach so that it can learn and adapt to the challenges it faces.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2013
- Authors: McConnachie, Matthew M , Cowling, Richard M , Shackleton, Charlie M , Knight, Andrew T
- Date: 2013
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/181003 , vital:43680 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1111/rec.12038"
- Description: Public works programs have been posited as win–win solutions for achieving societal goals for ecological restoration and poverty alleviation. However, little is documented regarding the challenges of implementing such projects. A commonly cited example is South Africa's invasive alien plant control program “Working for Water” (WfW), which aims to create employment via restoring landscapes invaded with alien plants. Recent studies have raised questions over the effectiveness of this program in achieving both its restoration and poverty alleviation goals. This is the first study that we are aware of that synthesizes the knowledge of managers on both the poverty alleviation and environmental outcomes of a public works project. Herein, we sought to understand the challenges and constraints faced by 23 WfW managers in fulfilling the program's environmental and poverty alleviation objectives. We found that the challenges most frequently cited by managers related to the capacity and competence of managers and teams, followed by challenges relating to planning and coordination, specifically the challenges of being flexible and adaptive when constrained by operating procedures. In addition, the current focus on maximizing short-term employment was perceived by some as limiting the efficiency and long-term effectiveness of the WfW program in achieving its environmental and social goals. We suggest that improving the conditions and duration of employment could improve the effectiveness of invasive alien plant control and ecological outcomes. We also suggest that WfW measure the impacts of their interventions through an adaptive management approach so that it can learn and adapt to the challenges it faces.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2013
Voices of the hungry: a qualitative measure of household food access and food insecurity in South Africa
- Chakona, Gamuchirai, Shackleton, Charlie M
- Authors: Chakona, Gamuchirai , Shackleton, Charlie M
- Date: 2013
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/67277 , vital:29066 , https://doi.org/10.1186/s40066-017-0149-x
- Description: publisher version , Background: South Africa is rated a food secure nation, but large numbers of households within the country have inadequate access to nutrient-rich diverse foods. The study sought to investigate households’ physical and economic access and availability of food, in relation to local context which influences households’ access to and ability to grow food which may affect the dietary quality. We sought to understand self-reported healthy diets, food insecurity from the perspective of people who experienced it, barriers to household food security and perceptions and feelings on food access as well as strategies households use to cope with food shortages and their perceptions on improving household food security. Methods: Focus group discussions were conducted along a rural–urban continuum in three South African towns situated along an agro-ecological gradient. Participants were asked about their knowledge of healthy diets, factors influencing their food consumption, their perceptions regarding food insecurity, barriers to food security, coping strategies and solutions to improve access to nutrient-rich foods. Results: A total of 91 people participated in 11 focus groups, with 76% females. The majority of participants aged between 31 and 50 years. Participants were knowledgeable about healthy diets but had limited access to it hence consumed monotonous diets. The perceptions provided insights into the pressing issues of inadequate access to food, food insecurity, coping strategies and ideas on improving food security. The majority of participants reported on experiencing food insecurity and female-headed households, unemployed and orphaned children were most vulnerable. Focus group participants highlighted the complexity of the food system in their communities which relies on own production, collecting from open spaces, donations and to a larger extent purchase, in the context of unemployment, low income, water and land shortages as well as theft. Conclusion: The results provide a significant contribution from a needs assessment perspective from the communities, identify “hidden” constrains in household food access and provide effective future solutions for improving food security in the communities. Government should assist with capacity building, employment creation and providing resources (especially, land and water) for communities to practise agriculture which they all agreed can improve food security.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2013
- Authors: Chakona, Gamuchirai , Shackleton, Charlie M
- Date: 2013
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/67277 , vital:29066 , https://doi.org/10.1186/s40066-017-0149-x
- Description: publisher version , Background: South Africa is rated a food secure nation, but large numbers of households within the country have inadequate access to nutrient-rich diverse foods. The study sought to investigate households’ physical and economic access and availability of food, in relation to local context which influences households’ access to and ability to grow food which may affect the dietary quality. We sought to understand self-reported healthy diets, food insecurity from the perspective of people who experienced it, barriers to household food security and perceptions and feelings on food access as well as strategies households use to cope with food shortages and their perceptions on improving household food security. Methods: Focus group discussions were conducted along a rural–urban continuum in three South African towns situated along an agro-ecological gradient. Participants were asked about their knowledge of healthy diets, factors influencing their food consumption, their perceptions regarding food insecurity, barriers to food security, coping strategies and solutions to improve access to nutrient-rich foods. Results: A total of 91 people participated in 11 focus groups, with 76% females. The majority of participants aged between 31 and 50 years. Participants were knowledgeable about healthy diets but had limited access to it hence consumed monotonous diets. The perceptions provided insights into the pressing issues of inadequate access to food, food insecurity, coping strategies and ideas on improving food security. The majority of participants reported on experiencing food insecurity and female-headed households, unemployed and orphaned children were most vulnerable. Focus group participants highlighted the complexity of the food system in their communities which relies on own production, collecting from open spaces, donations and to a larger extent purchase, in the context of unemployment, low income, water and land shortages as well as theft. Conclusion: The results provide a significant contribution from a needs assessment perspective from the communities, identify “hidden” constrains in household food access and provide effective future solutions for improving food security in the communities. Government should assist with capacity building, employment creation and providing resources (especially, land and water) for communities to practise agriculture which they all agreed can improve food security.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2013
How do HIV and AIDS impact the use of natural resources by poor rural populations?: The case of wild animal products
- Kaschula, Sarah, Shackleton, Charlie M
- Authors: Kaschula, Sarah , Shackleton, Charlie M
- Date: 2012
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/182344 , vital:43822 , xlink:href="https://hdl.handle.net/10520/EJC97203"
- Description: As a result of heightened financial and food insecurity, populations adversely affected by HIV and/or AIDS may be more likely to utilise wild natural resources to supplement their diet and livelihoods. Should this effect be pronounced, HIV and AIDS may pose a serious environmental threat. We explored the hypothesis that the presence of factors in the household, such as chronic illness in and recent mortality of individuals in a high HIV-risk age group, as well as the fostering of orphans, are associated with increased utilisation of wild animal products (WAPs) at the household level. We randomly surveyed 519 households from four sites in rural South Africa, recording household socio-economic status, the utilisation of wild animal products and health and demographic factors attributed to HIV or AIDS. Binary logistic regressions were used to test if households with markers of HIV and/or AIDS affliction were more likely to have a higher incidence and frequency of WAP utilisation relative to non-afflicted households, after adjusting for socio-economic and demographic variables. We found that, although households with markers of HIV and/or AIDS were generally poorer and had higher dependency ratios, there was no evidence to support the hypothesis that WAP harvesting was associated with either poverty, or markers of HIV and/or AIDS affliction. Our findings suggest that generalisations about a possible interaction between HIV and/or AIDS and the environment may not uniformly apply to all categories of natural resources or to all user groups.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2012
- Authors: Kaschula, Sarah , Shackleton, Charlie M
- Date: 2012
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/182344 , vital:43822 , xlink:href="https://hdl.handle.net/10520/EJC97203"
- Description: As a result of heightened financial and food insecurity, populations adversely affected by HIV and/or AIDS may be more likely to utilise wild natural resources to supplement their diet and livelihoods. Should this effect be pronounced, HIV and AIDS may pose a serious environmental threat. We explored the hypothesis that the presence of factors in the household, such as chronic illness in and recent mortality of individuals in a high HIV-risk age group, as well as the fostering of orphans, are associated with increased utilisation of wild animal products (WAPs) at the household level. We randomly surveyed 519 households from four sites in rural South Africa, recording household socio-economic status, the utilisation of wild animal products and health and demographic factors attributed to HIV or AIDS. Binary logistic regressions were used to test if households with markers of HIV and/or AIDS affliction were more likely to have a higher incidence and frequency of WAP utilisation relative to non-afflicted households, after adjusting for socio-economic and demographic variables. We found that, although households with markers of HIV and/or AIDS were generally poorer and had higher dependency ratios, there was no evidence to support the hypothesis that WAP harvesting was associated with either poverty, or markers of HIV and/or AIDS affliction. Our findings suggest that generalisations about a possible interaction between HIV and/or AIDS and the environment may not uniformly apply to all categories of natural resources or to all user groups.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2012
Is there no urban forestry in the developing world?
- Authors: Shackleton, Charlie M
- Date: 2012
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/181060 , vital:43695 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.5897/SRE11.1117"
- Description: Urban forestry and greening offer a multitude of benefits to the inhabitants of towns and cities. However, the nature and magnitude of these frequently depend upon the context. Yet, at first glance, the developing world context around urban forestry debates seems to be poorly represented in the international peer-reviewed literature. This is examined in this paper, followed by a brief outline of ten key research areas for urban forestry in the developing world. A survey of the peer-reviewed literature confirms that almost 80% of articles come from the developed world context. This correlates with the greater availability of research finance and personnel from developed regions. However, there are urban forestry questions and issues that require examination in the developing world because they cannot simply be transferred from knowledge gleaned from and tested in a developed world context. Ten of these are briefly outlined as a catalyst towards greater attention to urban forestry in the developing world and their contributions to global debates and models.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2012
- Authors: Shackleton, Charlie M
- Date: 2012
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/181060 , vital:43695 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.5897/SRE11.1117"
- Description: Urban forestry and greening offer a multitude of benefits to the inhabitants of towns and cities. However, the nature and magnitude of these frequently depend upon the context. Yet, at first glance, the developing world context around urban forestry debates seems to be poorly represented in the international peer-reviewed literature. This is examined in this paper, followed by a brief outline of ten key research areas for urban forestry in the developing world. A survey of the peer-reviewed literature confirms that almost 80% of articles come from the developed world context. This correlates with the greater availability of research finance and personnel from developed regions. However, there are urban forestry questions and issues that require examination in the developing world because they cannot simply be transferred from knowledge gleaned from and tested in a developed world context. Ten of these are briefly outlined as a catalyst towards greater attention to urban forestry in the developing world and their contributions to global debates and models.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2012
Linking poverty, HIV/AIDS and climate change to human and ecosystem vulnerability in southern Africa: Consequences for livelihoods and sustainable ecosystem management
- Shackleton, Sheona E, Shackleton, Charlie M
- Authors: Shackleton, Sheona E , Shackleton, Charlie M
- Date: 2012
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/181081 , vital:43697 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1080/13504509.2011.641039"
- Description: People in southern Africa are facing escalating levels of risk, uncertainty and consequently vulnerability as a result of multiple interacting stressors, including HIV/AIDS, poverty, food insecurity, weak governance, climate change and land degradation, to name but a few. Vulnerability or livelihood insecurity emerges when poor people as individuals or social units have to face harmful threats or shocks with inadequate capacity to respond effectively. In such situations, people often have no choice but to turn to their immediate environment for support. Evidence suggests that rising levels of human vulnerability are driving increased dependency on biodiversity and ecosystem services, which in turn, and along with other threats, is rendering ecosystems more vulnerable. This paper explores the dynamic and complex linkages and feedbacks between human vulnerability and ecosystem vulnerability, drawing on data from the southern African region. Human vulnerability is conceptualized as a threat to ecosystem health, as driven by the interplay between a number of current and emerging factors. We focus on poverty, HIV/AIDS and more intense climate extremes as examples of stressors on livelihoods and direct and indirect drivers of ecosystem change. We discuss how some of the responses to increased vulnerability may pose threats to biodiversity conservation, ecosystem management and sustainable development, whilst considering potential solutions that rely on a thorough understanding of coupled social–ecological systems and the interplay between multiple stressors and responses at different scales.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2012
- Authors: Shackleton, Sheona E , Shackleton, Charlie M
- Date: 2012
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/181081 , vital:43697 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1080/13504509.2011.641039"
- Description: People in southern Africa are facing escalating levels of risk, uncertainty and consequently vulnerability as a result of multiple interacting stressors, including HIV/AIDS, poverty, food insecurity, weak governance, climate change and land degradation, to name but a few. Vulnerability or livelihood insecurity emerges when poor people as individuals or social units have to face harmful threats or shocks with inadequate capacity to respond effectively. In such situations, people often have no choice but to turn to their immediate environment for support. Evidence suggests that rising levels of human vulnerability are driving increased dependency on biodiversity and ecosystem services, which in turn, and along with other threats, is rendering ecosystems more vulnerable. This paper explores the dynamic and complex linkages and feedbacks between human vulnerability and ecosystem vulnerability, drawing on data from the southern African region. Human vulnerability is conceptualized as a threat to ecosystem health, as driven by the interplay between a number of current and emerging factors. We focus on poverty, HIV/AIDS and more intense climate extremes as examples of stressors on livelihoods and direct and indirect drivers of ecosystem change. We discuss how some of the responses to increased vulnerability may pose threats to biodiversity conservation, ecosystem management and sustainable development, whilst considering potential solutions that rely on a thorough understanding of coupled social–ecological systems and the interplay between multiple stressors and responses at different scales.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2012
Municipal commonage: an undervalued national resource
- Gambiza, James, Shackleton, Charlie M, Davenport, N, Atkinson, D, Hoffman, Michael T, Martens, C, Puttick, J, De Groot, W
- Authors: Gambiza, James , Shackleton, Charlie M , Davenport, N , Atkinson, D , Hoffman, Michael T , Martens, C , Puttick, J , De Groot, W
- Date: 2012
- Subjects: Land reform -- South Africa Land use -- South Africa South Africa -- Social conditions
- Language: English
- Type: text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/49969 , vital:25947
- Description: This policy brief will highlight the importance of municipal commonage in enhancing livelihoods of poor urban families. This will be followed by an overview of the role of municipal commonage in the land reform programme. Current challenges in securing benefits from municipal commonages are then outlined. Policy considerations to optimise benefits from commonages conclude the policy brief.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2012
- Authors: Gambiza, James , Shackleton, Charlie M , Davenport, N , Atkinson, D , Hoffman, Michael T , Martens, C , Puttick, J , De Groot, W
- Date: 2012
- Subjects: Land reform -- South Africa Land use -- South Africa South Africa -- Social conditions
- Language: English
- Type: text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/49969 , vital:25947
- Description: This policy brief will highlight the importance of municipal commonage in enhancing livelihoods of poor urban families. This will be followed by an overview of the role of municipal commonage in the land reform programme. Current challenges in securing benefits from municipal commonages are then outlined. Policy considerations to optimise benefits from commonages conclude the policy brief.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2012
The direct use value of municipal commonage goods and services to urban households in the Eastern Cape, South Africa
- Davenport, Nicholas A, Shackleton, Charlie M, Gambiza, James
- Authors: Davenport, Nicholas A , Shackleton, Charlie M , Gambiza, James
- Date: 2012
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/181071 , vital:43696 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landusepol.2011.09.008"
- Description: To redress past racial discrepancies in ownership and tenure, the ANC government of South Africa initiated programmes to make land accessible to the previously disadvantaged. A key component of the national land reform programme was the provision of commonage lands to urban municipalities for use by the urban poor. However, there has been no assessment of the contribution that urban commonage makes to previously disadvantaged households. This study assessed the economic benefits of the commonage programme to local households, through an in-depth survey of 90 households across three small towns in the Eastern Cape of South Africa. We examined the marketed and non-marketed consumptive direct-use values of land-based livelihoods on commonage, calculated via the ‘own reported values’ approach. The results indicate that a proportion of South Africa's urban population rely to some degree on municipal commonage for part of their livelihoods. Commonage contributions to total livelihood incomes ranged between 14 and 20%. If the contributions from commonage were excluded, the incomes of over 10% of households in each study town would drop below the poverty line. Overall, the value of harvests from commonage was worth over R1 000 (US$ 142) per hectare per year and over R4.7 million (US$ 0.68 million) per commonage per year. However, the extent and nature of use and reliance was not uniform among households, so that we developed a typology of commonage users, with four types being identified. However, rapidly growing urban populations and high levels of poverty potentially threaten the sustainability of commonage resource use. Yet the national land reform programme focuses largely on the transfer of land to municipalities and not on sustainable management. Municipalities, in turn, invest relatively little in commonage management, and the little they do is focussed on livestock production. Non-timber forest products are not considered at all, even though this study shows that they are a vital resource for the urban poor, notably for energy and construction materials.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2012
- Authors: Davenport, Nicholas A , Shackleton, Charlie M , Gambiza, James
- Date: 2012
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/181071 , vital:43696 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landusepol.2011.09.008"
- Description: To redress past racial discrepancies in ownership and tenure, the ANC government of South Africa initiated programmes to make land accessible to the previously disadvantaged. A key component of the national land reform programme was the provision of commonage lands to urban municipalities for use by the urban poor. However, there has been no assessment of the contribution that urban commonage makes to previously disadvantaged households. This study assessed the economic benefits of the commonage programme to local households, through an in-depth survey of 90 households across three small towns in the Eastern Cape of South Africa. We examined the marketed and non-marketed consumptive direct-use values of land-based livelihoods on commonage, calculated via the ‘own reported values’ approach. The results indicate that a proportion of South Africa's urban population rely to some degree on municipal commonage for part of their livelihoods. Commonage contributions to total livelihood incomes ranged between 14 and 20%. If the contributions from commonage were excluded, the incomes of over 10% of households in each study town would drop below the poverty line. Overall, the value of harvests from commonage was worth over R1 000 (US$ 142) per hectare per year and over R4.7 million (US$ 0.68 million) per commonage per year. However, the extent and nature of use and reliance was not uniform among households, so that we developed a typology of commonage users, with four types being identified. However, rapidly growing urban populations and high levels of poverty potentially threaten the sustainability of commonage resource use. Yet the national land reform programme focuses largely on the transfer of land to municipalities and not on sustainable management. Municipalities, in turn, invest relatively little in commonage management, and the little they do is focussed on livestock production. Non-timber forest products are not considered at all, even though this study shows that they are a vital resource for the urban poor, notably for energy and construction materials.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2012
The effect of harvesting approaches on fruit yield, embelin concentration and regrowth dynamics of the forest shrub, Embelia tsjeriam-cottam, in central India
- Pandey, Ashok K, Shackleton, Charlie M
- Authors: Pandey, Ashok K , Shackleton, Charlie M
- Date: 2012
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/181094 , vital:43698 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2011.11.015"
- Description: Embelia tsjeriam-cottam Roem and Schult A. DC. (Myrsinaceae), popularly known as Vaividang, is a vulnerable forest species because of the high demand of fruits for medicinal purposes. It is in great demand in ayurveda and the pharmaceutical industry (>100 t/yr), which has imposed tremendous pressure on some natural populations. The fruits contain embelin (a benzoquinone derivative), which has wide clinical applications. Considering the importance, growing use and decreasing populations in some areas of its natural habitat, a study on development of sustainable harvesting practices of E. tsjeriam-cottam fruits was conducted in Chhattisgarh, in central India. Experiments were laid out in Dhamtari, Marvahi and Bilaspur forest divisions of the state covering both protected and open forests in a randomized design with three replications. At each site, quadrats of 40 × 20 m were laid out to study the effect of two fruit harvesting methods and four harvesting intensities on fruit yield, and regeneration of the species. Fruits were analyzed for their embelin content by HPLC method. This study is the first to experimentally assess the consequences of harvesting of E. tsjeriam-cottam fruits from India. It was found that up to 70% fruits could be hand plucked at the right time of maturity (December) to obtain quality produce without impacting the current population size. Since every year is not a good fruiting year, it is difficult to develop universal harvest regime for sustainable management of E. tsjeriam-cottam. The embelin content increased as fruits ripened, ranging from 1.01% to 5.63%. The adoption of sustainable harvesting practices will be helpful in sustainable management of E. tsjeriam-cottam and also provide income and livelihood opportunities to rural people on a sustainable basis.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2012
- Authors: Pandey, Ashok K , Shackleton, Charlie M
- Date: 2012
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/181094 , vital:43698 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2011.11.015"
- Description: Embelia tsjeriam-cottam Roem and Schult A. DC. (Myrsinaceae), popularly known as Vaividang, is a vulnerable forest species because of the high demand of fruits for medicinal purposes. It is in great demand in ayurveda and the pharmaceutical industry (>100 t/yr), which has imposed tremendous pressure on some natural populations. The fruits contain embelin (a benzoquinone derivative), which has wide clinical applications. Considering the importance, growing use and decreasing populations in some areas of its natural habitat, a study on development of sustainable harvesting practices of E. tsjeriam-cottam fruits was conducted in Chhattisgarh, in central India. Experiments were laid out in Dhamtari, Marvahi and Bilaspur forest divisions of the state covering both protected and open forests in a randomized design with three replications. At each site, quadrats of 40 × 20 m were laid out to study the effect of two fruit harvesting methods and four harvesting intensities on fruit yield, and regeneration of the species. Fruits were analyzed for their embelin content by HPLC method. This study is the first to experimentally assess the consequences of harvesting of E. tsjeriam-cottam fruits from India. It was found that up to 70% fruits could be hand plucked at the right time of maturity (December) to obtain quality produce without impacting the current population size. Since every year is not a good fruiting year, it is difficult to develop universal harvest regime for sustainable management of E. tsjeriam-cottam. The embelin content increased as fruits ripened, ranging from 1.01% to 5.63%. The adoption of sustainable harvesting practices will be helpful in sustainable management of E. tsjeriam-cottam and also provide income and livelihood opportunities to rural people on a sustainable basis.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2012
Adoption, use and perception of Australian acacias around the world
- Kull, Christian A, Shackleton, Charlie M, Cunningham, Peter J, Ducatillon, Catherine, Dufour-Dror, Jean-Mark, Esler, Karen J, Friday, James B, Gouveia, António C, Griffin, A R, Marchante, Elizabete, Midgley, Steven J, Pauchard, Aníbal, Rangan, Haripriya, Richardson, David M, Rinaudo, Tony, Tassin, Jacques, Urgenson, Lauren S, van Maltitz, Graham P, Zenni, Rafael D, Zylstra, Matthew J
- Authors: Kull, Christian A , Shackleton, Charlie M , Cunningham, Peter J , Ducatillon, Catherine , Dufour-Dror, Jean-Mark , Esler, Karen J , Friday, James B , Gouveia, António C , Griffin, A R , Marchante, Elizabete , Midgley, Steven J , Pauchard, Aníbal , Rangan, Haripriya , Richardson, David M , Rinaudo, Tony , Tassin, Jacques , Urgenson, Lauren S , van Maltitz, Graham P , Zenni, Rafael D , Zylstra, Matthew J
- Date: 2011
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/182149 , vital:43804 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1472-4642.2011.00783.x"
- Description: To examine the different uses and perceptions of introduced Australian acacias (wattles; Acacia subgenus Phyllodineae) by rural households and communities. Eighteen landscape-scale case studies around the world, in Vietnam, India, Réunion, Madagascar, South Africa, Congo, Niger, Ethiopia, Israel, France, Portugal, Brazil, Chile, Dominican Republic and Hawai‘i. Qualitative comparison of case studies, based on questionnaire sent to network of acacia researchers. Information based on individual knowledge of local experts, published and unpublished sources. We propose a conceptual model to explain current uses and perceptions of introduced acacias. It highlights historically and geographically contingent processes, including economic development, environmental discourses, political context, and local or regional needs. Four main groupings of case studies were united by similar patterns: (1) poor communities benefiting from targeted agroforestry projects; (2) places where residents, generally poor, take advantage of a valuable resource already present in their landscape via plantation and/or invasion; (3) regions of small and mid-scale tree farmers participating in the forestry industry; and (4) a number of high-income communities dealing with the legacies of former or niche use of introduced acacia in a context of increased concern over biodiversity and ecosystem services. Economic conditions play a key role shaping acacia use. Poorer communities rely strongly on acacias (often in, or escaped from, formal plantations) for household needs and, sometimes, for income. Middle-income regions more typically host private farm investments in acacia woodlots for commercialization. Efforts at control of invasive acacias must take care to not adversely impact poor dependent communities.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2011
- Authors: Kull, Christian A , Shackleton, Charlie M , Cunningham, Peter J , Ducatillon, Catherine , Dufour-Dror, Jean-Mark , Esler, Karen J , Friday, James B , Gouveia, António C , Griffin, A R , Marchante, Elizabete , Midgley, Steven J , Pauchard, Aníbal , Rangan, Haripriya , Richardson, David M , Rinaudo, Tony , Tassin, Jacques , Urgenson, Lauren S , van Maltitz, Graham P , Zenni, Rafael D , Zylstra, Matthew J
- Date: 2011
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/182149 , vital:43804 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1472-4642.2011.00783.x"
- Description: To examine the different uses and perceptions of introduced Australian acacias (wattles; Acacia subgenus Phyllodineae) by rural households and communities. Eighteen landscape-scale case studies around the world, in Vietnam, India, Réunion, Madagascar, South Africa, Congo, Niger, Ethiopia, Israel, France, Portugal, Brazil, Chile, Dominican Republic and Hawai‘i. Qualitative comparison of case studies, based on questionnaire sent to network of acacia researchers. Information based on individual knowledge of local experts, published and unpublished sources. We propose a conceptual model to explain current uses and perceptions of introduced acacias. It highlights historically and geographically contingent processes, including economic development, environmental discourses, political context, and local or regional needs. Four main groupings of case studies were united by similar patterns: (1) poor communities benefiting from targeted agroforestry projects; (2) places where residents, generally poor, take advantage of a valuable resource already present in their landscape via plantation and/or invasion; (3) regions of small and mid-scale tree farmers participating in the forestry industry; and (4) a number of high-income communities dealing with the legacies of former or niche use of introduced acacia in a context of increased concern over biodiversity and ecosystem services. Economic conditions play a key role shaping acacia use. Poorer communities rely strongly on acacias (often in, or escaped from, formal plantations) for household needs and, sometimes, for income. Middle-income regions more typically host private farm investments in acacia woodlots for commercialization. Efforts at control of invasive acacias must take care to not adversely impact poor dependent communities.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2011
The next decade of environmental science in South Africa: a horizon scan
- Shackleton, Charlie M, Scholes, Robert J, Vogel, Coleen, Wynberg, Rachel, Abrahamse, Tanya, Shackleton, Sheona E, Ellery, William F N, Gambiza, James
- Authors: Shackleton, Charlie M , Scholes, Robert J , Vogel, Coleen , Wynberg, Rachel , Abrahamse, Tanya , Shackleton, Sheona E , Ellery, William F N , Gambiza, James
- Date: 2011
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/157124 , vital:40088 , https://doi.org/10.1080/03736245.2011.563064
- Description: Environmental systems are in constant flux, with feedbacks and non-linearities catalysed by natural trends and shocks as well as human actions. This poses challenges for sustainable management to promote human well-being. It requires environmental understanding and application that can accommodate such fluxes and pressures, as well as knowledge production systems and institutions that produce graduates with appropriate skills. In this article we consider these challenges in the South African context. Firstly, we summarise six significant environmental realisations from the last decade of environmental science internationally and question what they mean for the teaching of environmental science and research into environmental systems in South Africa in the near future. We then consider these lessons within the context of a horizon scan of near-term pressing environmental issues in South Africa. These include wateruse efficiency, poverty, food security, inequities in land and resource access, urbanisation, agrochemicals and water quality, promoting human well-being and economic adaptability in the face of climate change, and imbuing stronger environmental elements and stewardship into the integrated development planning processes and outcomes. Lastly, we consider the knowledge areas and skills that environmental graduates will require to be able to confront these problems in South Africa and simultaneously contribute to international debates and understandings around the complexity of environmental systems and how to manage them.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2011
- Authors: Shackleton, Charlie M , Scholes, Robert J , Vogel, Coleen , Wynberg, Rachel , Abrahamse, Tanya , Shackleton, Sheona E , Ellery, William F N , Gambiza, James
- Date: 2011
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/157124 , vital:40088 , https://doi.org/10.1080/03736245.2011.563064
- Description: Environmental systems are in constant flux, with feedbacks and non-linearities catalysed by natural trends and shocks as well as human actions. This poses challenges for sustainable management to promote human well-being. It requires environmental understanding and application that can accommodate such fluxes and pressures, as well as knowledge production systems and institutions that produce graduates with appropriate skills. In this article we consider these challenges in the South African context. Firstly, we summarise six significant environmental realisations from the last decade of environmental science internationally and question what they mean for the teaching of environmental science and research into environmental systems in South Africa in the near future. We then consider these lessons within the context of a horizon scan of near-term pressing environmental issues in South Africa. These include wateruse efficiency, poverty, food security, inequities in land and resource access, urbanisation, agrochemicals and water quality, promoting human well-being and economic adaptability in the face of climate change, and imbuing stronger environmental elements and stewardship into the integrated development planning processes and outcomes. Lastly, we consider the knowledge areas and skills that environmental graduates will require to be able to confront these problems in South Africa and simultaneously contribute to international debates and understandings around the complexity of environmental systems and how to manage them.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2011
Use and users of municipal commonage around three small towns in the Eastern Cape, South Africa
- Davenport, Nicholas A, Shackleton, Charlie M, Gambiza, James
- Authors: Davenport, Nicholas A , Shackleton, Charlie M , Gambiza, James
- Date: 2011
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/181116 , vital:43700 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2010.11.003"
- Description: Municipal commonages surround many small towns throughout South Africa, and are an integral component of the national land reform programme. But little is known about their extent, use or value, and most appear to have limited or no management or investment. This paper reports on a survey of randomly selected households in three small towns in the Eastern Cape to ascertain the extent and purpose of use of municipal commonages. Between 27% and 70% of urban households used commonage depending on site. Key resources used were fuelwood, medicinal plants, and grazing of livestock. Typically, commonage using households were poorer and less educated than other urban residents, although the profile of users is unique for each town. Given the extensive use of commonage resources, and their contribution to the livelihoods of the poor, local municipalities need to develop and implement sound management strategies that account for all users of commonages, rather than the oft encountered focus on livestock owners and production.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2011
- Authors: Davenport, Nicholas A , Shackleton, Charlie M , Gambiza, James
- Date: 2011
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/181116 , vital:43700 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2010.11.003"
- Description: Municipal commonages surround many small towns throughout South Africa, and are an integral component of the national land reform programme. But little is known about their extent, use or value, and most appear to have limited or no management or investment. This paper reports on a survey of randomly selected households in three small towns in the Eastern Cape to ascertain the extent and purpose of use of municipal commonages. Between 27% and 70% of urban households used commonage depending on site. Key resources used were fuelwood, medicinal plants, and grazing of livestock. Typically, commonage using households were poorer and less educated than other urban residents, although the profile of users is unique for each town. Given the extensive use of commonage resources, and their contribution to the livelihoods of the poor, local municipalities need to develop and implement sound management strategies that account for all users of commonages, rather than the oft encountered focus on livestock owners and production.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2011
'Rich man poor man': inter-household and community factors influencing the use of wild plant resources amongst rural households in South Africa
- Cocks, Michelle L, Bangay, Lindsey, Shackleton, Charlie M, Wiersum, K Freerk
- Authors: Cocks, Michelle L , Bangay, Lindsey , Shackleton, Charlie M , Wiersum, K Freerk
- Date: 2010
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/141211 , vital:37953 , DOI: 10.3843/SusDev.15.3:3
- Description: Biodiversity is recognised as an integral part of people's daily livelihoods. This study therefore aims to understand the use of NTFPs at an intricate level by determining what role these resources fulfil in six rural villages and 1011 households' livelihoods. It examines how the use of NTFPs are influenced by intra-household variables, such as wealth and gender, and inter-community variables, such as accessibility to the natural resource. The results reveal that approximately 4453 kg of wild material is used annually per household, of which 1598 kg is used for cultural purposes. The influence of vegetation type and differences between villages are statistically more significant than inter-household variables. At an inter-household level, an increase in the financial status of households did not result in a decrease in the use of natural resources, nor in the quantity of material used.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2010
- Authors: Cocks, Michelle L , Bangay, Lindsey , Shackleton, Charlie M , Wiersum, K Freerk
- Date: 2010
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/141211 , vital:37953 , DOI: 10.3843/SusDev.15.3:3
- Description: Biodiversity is recognised as an integral part of people's daily livelihoods. This study therefore aims to understand the use of NTFPs at an intricate level by determining what role these resources fulfil in six rural villages and 1011 households' livelihoods. It examines how the use of NTFPs are influenced by intra-household variables, such as wealth and gender, and inter-community variables, such as accessibility to the natural resource. The results reveal that approximately 4453 kg of wild material is used annually per household, of which 1598 kg is used for cultural purposes. The influence of vegetation type and differences between villages are statistically more significant than inter-household variables. At an inter-household level, an increase in the financial status of households did not result in a decrease in the use of natural resources, nor in the quantity of material used.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2010
Production of and trade in African indigenous vegetables in the urban and peri-urban areas of Durban, South Africa
- Shackleton, Charlie M, Paumgartner, Fiona, Mthembu, Thami, Ernst, Lisa, Pasquini, Margaret W, Pichop, Germain
- Authors: Shackleton, Charlie M , Paumgartner, Fiona , Mthembu, Thami , Ernst, Lisa , Pasquini, Margaret W , Pichop, Germain
- Date: 2010
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/181134 , vital:43701 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1080/0376835X.2010.498937"
- Description: This paper reports on the farming and trade of lesser known crops, here termed African indigenous vegetables (AIVs), in the Durban metropole. Most households grow AIVs, and collect them from the wild, primarily for home consumption. Modal income from sale was approximately R30 per month per farmer, most of whom were middle-aged to elderly females, with limited education, who had been cultivating AIVs here for many years. The main constraints to greater sales were deemed to be low market demand and adverse climate. The commonest AIVs grown were pumpkin leaves, taro and amaranth. Although most farmers sold very little, there is a thriving retail trade in AIVs. Generally, retailers were females, but younger and more educated than the farmers. The majority viewed retailing as a full-time occupation. Modal income for retailers was R450 per month, but included non-AIV produce. Most of the traders thought there was insufficient market demand for AIVs.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2010
- Authors: Shackleton, Charlie M , Paumgartner, Fiona , Mthembu, Thami , Ernst, Lisa , Pasquini, Margaret W , Pichop, Germain
- Date: 2010
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/181134 , vital:43701 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1080/0376835X.2010.498937"
- Description: This paper reports on the farming and trade of lesser known crops, here termed African indigenous vegetables (AIVs), in the Durban metropole. Most households grow AIVs, and collect them from the wild, primarily for home consumption. Modal income from sale was approximately R30 per month per farmer, most of whom were middle-aged to elderly females, with limited education, who had been cultivating AIVs here for many years. The main constraints to greater sales were deemed to be low market demand and adverse climate. The commonest AIVs grown were pumpkin leaves, taro and amaranth. Although most farmers sold very little, there is a thriving retail trade in AIVs. Generally, retailers were females, but younger and more educated than the farmers. The majority viewed retailing as a full-time occupation. Modal income for retailers was R450 per month, but included non-AIV produce. Most of the traders thought there was insufficient market demand for AIVs.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2010
The use and appreciation of botanical gardens as urban green spaces in South Africa
- Ward, Catherine D, Parker, Caitlin M, Shackleton, Charlie M
- Authors: Ward, Catherine D , Parker, Caitlin M , Shackleton, Charlie M
- Date: 2010
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/181146 , vital:43702 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ufug.2009.11.001"
- Description: There are few formal studies on the contribution of botanical gardens as urban green spaces, particularly within developing countries. Therefore, this paper reports on an assessment of the use and appreciation of botanical gardens as urban green spaces in South Africa. Users and staff were surveyed in six national botanical gardens. The gardens provided numerous benefits in terms of conservation, education and recreation. However, the people using the gardens were not demographically representative of the general population of the surrounding city or town. Generally, most of the visitors were middle- to old-aged, well-educated professionals with medium to high incomes. Most were white and English was their home language. There was an even gender representation. Most visited only a few times per year. The majority of users visited the gardens for recreation and psychological reasons rather than educational ones. However, the staff of each garden placed emphasis on education in the gardens and amongst surrounding schools. Most visitors appreciated the conservation dimensions of botanical gardens, and felt that there was insufficient public green space in their town or city. Understanding how people perceive and use the botanical gardens of South Africa is important to inform future research and strategies regarding the conservation of urban green space within a developing country.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2010
- Authors: Ward, Catherine D , Parker, Caitlin M , Shackleton, Charlie M
- Date: 2010
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/181146 , vital:43702 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ufug.2009.11.001"
- Description: There are few formal studies on the contribution of botanical gardens as urban green spaces, particularly within developing countries. Therefore, this paper reports on an assessment of the use and appreciation of botanical gardens as urban green spaces in South Africa. Users and staff were surveyed in six national botanical gardens. The gardens provided numerous benefits in terms of conservation, education and recreation. However, the people using the gardens were not demographically representative of the general population of the surrounding city or town. Generally, most of the visitors were middle- to old-aged, well-educated professionals with medium to high incomes. Most were white and English was their home language. There was an even gender representation. Most visited only a few times per year. The majority of users visited the gardens for recreation and psychological reasons rather than educational ones. However, the staff of each garden placed emphasis on education in the gardens and amongst surrounding schools. Most visitors appreciated the conservation dimensions of botanical gardens, and felt that there was insufficient public green space in their town or city. Understanding how people perceive and use the botanical gardens of South Africa is important to inform future research and strategies regarding the conservation of urban green space within a developing country.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2010
Beyond just research: Experiences from Southern Africa in developing social learning partnerships for resource conservation initiatives
- Shackleton, Charlie M, Cundill, Georgina, Knight, Andrew T
- Authors: Shackleton, Charlie M , Cundill, Georgina , Knight, Andrew T
- Date: 2009
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/181157 , vital:43703 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1744-7429.2009.00559.x"
- Description: There is a well-acknowledged communication or knowledge gap between scientists and decision-makers. Many scientists who take on the challenge of narrowing this gap operate on the understanding that their role is to communicate their findings in a one-way flow of information: from science to decision-makers. However, to be effective scientists must engage in an ongoing social learning process with decision-makers, and regard themselves as facilitators, and also as one among many stakeholders who have valid and important ecological knowledge. The developing world poses some particular challenges in this regard, specifically in terms of the large number of local level subsistence resources users who are important de facto decision-makers. We examine four natural resource management case studies from South Africa that differ in spatial scale and complexity, ranging from a single village to a whole biome. We distil seven lessons to help guide development of social learning processes and organizations in similar situations relating to natural resource planning and management. The lessons pertain to: maintaining ‘key individuals’ within social learning processes; the role of researchers; the formulation of research questions that social learning processes require adaptive long-term funding and capacity support; that local resource users are key decision-makers in developing countries; some perspectives on knowledge; and the need to measure research success.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2009
- Authors: Shackleton, Charlie M , Cundill, Georgina , Knight, Andrew T
- Date: 2009
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/181157 , vital:43703 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1744-7429.2009.00559.x"
- Description: There is a well-acknowledged communication or knowledge gap between scientists and decision-makers. Many scientists who take on the challenge of narrowing this gap operate on the understanding that their role is to communicate their findings in a one-way flow of information: from science to decision-makers. However, to be effective scientists must engage in an ongoing social learning process with decision-makers, and regard themselves as facilitators, and also as one among many stakeholders who have valid and important ecological knowledge. The developing world poses some particular challenges in this regard, specifically in terms of the large number of local level subsistence resources users who are important de facto decision-makers. We examine four natural resource management case studies from South Africa that differ in spatial scale and complexity, ranging from a single village to a whole biome. We distil seven lessons to help guide development of social learning processes and organizations in similar situations relating to natural resource planning and management. The lessons pertain to: maintaining ‘key individuals’ within social learning processes; the role of researchers; the formulation of research questions that social learning processes require adaptive long-term funding and capacity support; that local resource users are key decision-makers in developing countries; some perspectives on knowledge; and the need to measure research success.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2009
Children navigating rural poverty: Rural children's use of wild resources to counteract food insecurity in the Eastern Cape, South Africa
- McGarry, Dylan K, Shackleton, Charlie M
- Authors: McGarry, Dylan K , Shackleton, Charlie M
- Date: 2009
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/181191 , vital:43706 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1080/10796120802677594"
- Description: This paper analyzes the role of natural resources in the lives of rural children experiencing heightened vulnerability to poverty and the impact of HIV/AIDS, a subject that previously has been unexplored. The authors highlight wild-food use by rural children as a regular activity that supplements their domestic diets. Over the course of 18 months in the Eastern Cape of South Africa, the authors used a broad quantitative and qualitative methodology to explore the food acquisition and consumption patterns for 850 children. They found that the quality of children's domestic diets was, on average, 60% lower than the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) guidelines. This occurred in a population where 62% of the children surveyed were supplementing their diets with wild foods; and 30% with over half their diet supplemented in this way. Significantly, dietary diversity increased by 13% when wild food supplementation occurred. Another result was the commercialization of wild foods (observed among 47% of the children), wherein significantly more vulnerable children sold these foods. Considering the heightened nutritional and energy needs of children, combined with the impact of poverty and HIV/AIDS on household food access, wild foods represent the last freely attainable food sources available to them.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2009
- Authors: McGarry, Dylan K , Shackleton, Charlie M
- Date: 2009
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/181191 , vital:43706 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1080/10796120802677594"
- Description: This paper analyzes the role of natural resources in the lives of rural children experiencing heightened vulnerability to poverty and the impact of HIV/AIDS, a subject that previously has been unexplored. The authors highlight wild-food use by rural children as a regular activity that supplements their domestic diets. Over the course of 18 months in the Eastern Cape of South Africa, the authors used a broad quantitative and qualitative methodology to explore the food acquisition and consumption patterns for 850 children. They found that the quality of children's domestic diets was, on average, 60% lower than the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) guidelines. This occurred in a population where 62% of the children surveyed were supplementing their diets with wild foods; and 30% with over half their diet supplemented in this way. Significantly, dietary diversity increased by 13% when wild food supplementation occurred. Another result was the commercialization of wild foods (observed among 47% of the children), wherein significantly more vulnerable children sold these foods. Considering the heightened nutritional and energy needs of children, combined with the impact of poverty and HIV/AIDS on household food access, wild foods represent the last freely attainable food sources available to them.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2009
Conservation, commercialisation and confusion: Harvesting of Ischyrolepis in a coastal forest, South Africa
- Shackleton, Charlie M, Parkin, Fiona, Chauke, Maphambe I, Downsborough, Linda, Olsen, Ashleigh, Brill, Greg, Weideman, Craig I
- Authors: Shackleton, Charlie M , Parkin, Fiona , Chauke, Maphambe I , Downsborough, Linda , Olsen, Ashleigh , Brill, Greg , Weideman, Craig I
- Date: 2009
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/181169 , vital:43704 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s10668-007-9106-3"
- Description: Harvesting of non-timber forest products is an integral component of rural livelihoods throughout the developing world. At times this is at odds with conservation objectives. Reconciliation of the two requires examination of local level contexts and needs. This paper reports on the harvesting needs for Ischyrolepis by a rural community in South Africa, against the setting that they had recently been prohibited from harvesting by the local conservation officials. Interviews were conducted with conservation officials to understand the reasoning for the prohibition. Local demand for Ischyrolepis was assessed by household surveys, as well as in-depth interviews with traders. The density and size class distribution of Ischyrolepis was determined using transects. The total annual demand for Ischyrolepis was determined to be approximately only 2.7% of the standing crop. The bulk of the annual demand was for small-scale trade, the income from which was a primary source of income for the few harvesters. Very little evidence could be found indicating that harvesting was damaging the resource or its habitat, and local knowledge suggested that the abundance of the species was stimulated by harvesting. Even if market demand were to increase, the size of the shoots required means that less than 20% of the standing crop could be harvested annually. Current regulations around harvesting are in a state of revision, and hence confusion prevails regarding if harvesting is permissible, and if so, under what conditions, which is detrimental to both conservation and livelihoods.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2009
- Authors: Shackleton, Charlie M , Parkin, Fiona , Chauke, Maphambe I , Downsborough, Linda , Olsen, Ashleigh , Brill, Greg , Weideman, Craig I
- Date: 2009
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/181169 , vital:43704 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s10668-007-9106-3"
- Description: Harvesting of non-timber forest products is an integral component of rural livelihoods throughout the developing world. At times this is at odds with conservation objectives. Reconciliation of the two requires examination of local level contexts and needs. This paper reports on the harvesting needs for Ischyrolepis by a rural community in South Africa, against the setting that they had recently been prohibited from harvesting by the local conservation officials. Interviews were conducted with conservation officials to understand the reasoning for the prohibition. Local demand for Ischyrolepis was assessed by household surveys, as well as in-depth interviews with traders. The density and size class distribution of Ischyrolepis was determined using transects. The total annual demand for Ischyrolepis was determined to be approximately only 2.7% of the standing crop. The bulk of the annual demand was for small-scale trade, the income from which was a primary source of income for the few harvesters. Very little evidence could be found indicating that harvesting was damaging the resource or its habitat, and local knowledge suggested that the abundance of the species was stimulated by harvesting. Even if market demand were to increase, the size of the shoots required means that less than 20% of the standing crop could be harvested annually. Current regulations around harvesting are in a state of revision, and hence confusion prevails regarding if harvesting is permissible, and if so, under what conditions, which is detrimental to both conservation and livelihoods.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2009
Growing of trees in home-gardens by rural households in the Eastern Cape and Limpopo Provinces, South Africa:
- Shackleton, Charlie M, Paumgarten, Fiona, Cocks, Michelle L
- Authors: Shackleton, Charlie M , Paumgarten, Fiona , Cocks, Michelle L
- Date: 2009
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/141360 , vital:37965 , DOI: 10.1080/13504500509469647
- Description: Trees provide a wide range of goods and services to rural households which, when incorporated into their livelihood strategies, help reduce their vulnerability to adversity. Governments and policy makers often ignore the contribution made by trees and consequently resources are focussed on cash crops and livestock. Villagers in the Eastern Cape and Limpopo Province, South Africa utilise a range of trees from home-gardens for various purposes, although predominantly for fruit and shade. Trees are either planted or actively retained in households' home-gardens. There were noticeable differences between the villages in the Eastern Cape and those in Limpopo Province, particularly with respect to the overall density of trees per hectare and the number of species per household, both being significantly greater in Limpopo Province. The five most preferred species were listed for each village, revealing a preference for exotic fruit trees in Limpopo Province and a mix of exotic fruit trees and shade trees in the Eastern Cape. Households also retained useful indigenous species, predominantly fruit-bearing species. A range of factors constrain tree growing in home-gardens and households engage in practices to grow and maintain their trees. Not all of these constraints and practices were significantly different between the various localities.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2009
- Authors: Shackleton, Charlie M , Paumgarten, Fiona , Cocks, Michelle L
- Date: 2009
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/141360 , vital:37965 , DOI: 10.1080/13504500509469647
- Description: Trees provide a wide range of goods and services to rural households which, when incorporated into their livelihood strategies, help reduce their vulnerability to adversity. Governments and policy makers often ignore the contribution made by trees and consequently resources are focussed on cash crops and livestock. Villagers in the Eastern Cape and Limpopo Province, South Africa utilise a range of trees from home-gardens for various purposes, although predominantly for fruit and shade. Trees are either planted or actively retained in households' home-gardens. There were noticeable differences between the villages in the Eastern Cape and those in Limpopo Province, particularly with respect to the overall density of trees per hectare and the number of species per household, both being significantly greater in Limpopo Province. The five most preferred species were listed for each village, revealing a preference for exotic fruit trees in Limpopo Province and a mix of exotic fruit trees and shade trees in the Eastern Cape. Households also retained useful indigenous species, predominantly fruit-bearing species. A range of factors constrain tree growing in home-gardens and households engage in practices to grow and maintain their trees. Not all of these constraints and practices were significantly different between the various localities.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2009
Paper recycling patterns and potential interventions in the education sector: A case study of paper streams at Rhodes University, South Africa
- Amutenya, N, Shackleton, Charlie M, Whittington-Jones, Kevin J
- Authors: Amutenya, N , Shackleton, Charlie M , Whittington-Jones, Kevin J
- Date: 2009
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/181180 , vital:43705 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resconrec.2008.12.001"
- Description: This paper considers the use of paper by academics and student computer laboratories at Rhodes University as a basis for identifying areas to reduce the amounts used and increase rates of recycling. A sample of 50 academic staff monitored the volume and purpose of the paper they used over 5 months, and the procurement officers in all the academic departments were interviewed regarding the total amount of paper used per academic department. Mean use was 34 ± 20 new sheets of paper per working day, of which 3% were trashed, 15% were kept for later use (as scrap or printed on the opposite side) and 79% were given out as notes to students, filed as records or posted out as mail to other departments or institutions. There was a significant relationship between number of students served by a department and the overall demand for paper, as well the number of staff per department and the number of recycling bins. The university could save approximately US$ 7000 per year for every 10% reduction in current use of paper (12,784 reams/year). Reduction in paper usage could be achieved through an increase in re-use of paper, printing handouts for students on both sides of each sheet of paper and by investing in printers that are capable of printing on both sides of a sheet of paper. Double-sided printers are only 20–25% more expensive than single-sided ones, but will potentially reduce paper usage by half. A 40% reduction would save the university approximately US $ 20,000 per year in direct costs, and more in reduced waste streams, as well as help promote the environmental image of the university. On a per unit basis, the higher costs for a double-sided printer in offices would be repaid in 9 months or less through reduced paper use.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2009
- Authors: Amutenya, N , Shackleton, Charlie M , Whittington-Jones, Kevin J
- Date: 2009
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/181180 , vital:43705 , xlink:href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resconrec.2008.12.001"
- Description: This paper considers the use of paper by academics and student computer laboratories at Rhodes University as a basis for identifying areas to reduce the amounts used and increase rates of recycling. A sample of 50 academic staff monitored the volume and purpose of the paper they used over 5 months, and the procurement officers in all the academic departments were interviewed regarding the total amount of paper used per academic department. Mean use was 34 ± 20 new sheets of paper per working day, of which 3% were trashed, 15% were kept for later use (as scrap or printed on the opposite side) and 79% were given out as notes to students, filed as records or posted out as mail to other departments or institutions. There was a significant relationship between number of students served by a department and the overall demand for paper, as well the number of staff per department and the number of recycling bins. The university could save approximately US$ 7000 per year for every 10% reduction in current use of paper (12,784 reams/year). Reduction in paper usage could be achieved through an increase in re-use of paper, printing handouts for students on both sides of each sheet of paper and by investing in printers that are capable of printing on both sides of a sheet of paper. Double-sided printers are only 20–25% more expensive than single-sided ones, but will potentially reduce paper usage by half. A 40% reduction would save the university approximately US $ 20,000 per year in direct costs, and more in reduced waste streams, as well as help promote the environmental image of the university. On a per unit basis, the higher costs for a double-sided printer in offices would be repaid in 9 months or less through reduced paper use.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2009
Household attributes promote diversity of tree holdings in rural areas, South Africa:
- Shackleton, Charlie M, Paumgarten, Fiona, Cocks, Michelle L
- Authors: Shackleton, Charlie M , Paumgarten, Fiona , Cocks, Michelle L
- Date: 2008
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/141301 , vital:37960 , DOI: 10.1007/s10457-007-9066-5
- Description: Trees within the homestead area provide many functions to rural households. However, within the semi-arid regions of southern Africa, there has been only limited examination of the correlates between the socio-economic attributes of rural households and the density, species richness and types of trees they keep. This paper reports on a multivariate analysis of household attributes in relation to homestead tree holdings from six rural villages in South Africa. In terms of density of trees per household, gender of the household head was the only significant correlate, with female-headed households having significantly fewer trees than their male-headed counterparts. This was especially so for the density of indigenous trees.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
- Authors: Shackleton, Charlie M , Paumgarten, Fiona , Cocks, Michelle L
- Date: 2008
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/141301 , vital:37960 , DOI: 10.1007/s10457-007-9066-5
- Description: Trees within the homestead area provide many functions to rural households. However, within the semi-arid regions of southern Africa, there has been only limited examination of the correlates between the socio-economic attributes of rural households and the density, species richness and types of trees they keep. This paper reports on a multivariate analysis of household attributes in relation to homestead tree holdings from six rural villages in South Africa. In terms of density of trees per household, gender of the household head was the only significant correlate, with female-headed households having significantly fewer trees than their male-headed counterparts. This was especially so for the density of indigenous trees.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008