Livelihood roles of cattle and prospects for alternative land uses at the wildlife/livestock interface in South Africa

The emergence of wildlife ranching as an alternative land use option to agriculture, in Transfrontier Conservation Areas (TFCAs), has cast renewed interest on the role of cattle farming in rural livelihoods in areas close to wildlife parks. This study analysed the contribution of cattle to livelihoods and relationships between cattle and potential wildlife land uses in rural areas near Kruger National Park. Data were collected through household surveys, key informant interviews and community workshops. About 11% of households studied owned cattle, and cattle income constituted 29% of total household income. Benefits from cattle were also derived by households without cattle. About 71% of households had at least three sources of income, reflecting diversity of livelihoods. Wildlife related land uses were perceived by some households as threatening cattle production, whilst others viewed them as opportunities for alternative livelihoods. We conclude that cattle production has important livelihood roles, but is not sufficient as a driver of economic development in these areas. Incentives to encourage diversification of livelihoods at the wildlife/livestock interface, with possibilities for rural communities to explore wildlife based land uses should be put in place. In addition, land use policy and planning in such areas should focus on creating institutional mechanisms through which programmes integrating conservation and rural development goals can benefit rural communities.     

The impact of protected areas on the rural households’ incomes in Ethiopia

Protected areas are cornerstones for biodiversity conservation, yet they can be controversial because of their potential impact on the livelihoods of local people due to restrictions on agricultural land use and the extractive use of natural resources. This study evaluates the impact of PAs on households’ livelihoods, as measured by total household income (THI) and livestock income (LI). We use a survey and a quasi-experimental design to gather socioeconomic and biophysical data from households living within, adjacent to and outside three national parks (NPs) in Ethiopia and employ matching methods to isolate the impact of NPs. Our findings suggest that there is no evidence that the establishment of NPs adversely affects local livelihoods. Instead, we find that households within and in adjacent areas to NPs have higher incomes compared to those living outside. Understanding the heterogeneity of the effect of NPs on local livelihoods can help in designing well-targeted policy interventions that improve conservation goals while also addressing livelihood concerns of resource-dependent local communities.     

Intra-regional variation in land use and livelihood change during a forest transition in Costa Rica's dry North West

The work reported here examined intra-regional differences in land use and livelihood changes made by landholders during a forest transition in a dry region of North-West Costa Rica. It drew on the Sustainable Livelihoods Analysis framework to evaluate a qualitative, comparative study of landholders’ access to livelihood resources in two key landholder groups across five communities. Research findings show that while forest outcomes were similar across the two landholder groups and the five communities (net forest recovery), the livelihood dynamics leading to these outcomes varied. One important factor influencing this was small differences in the geographic location of the five communities, which shaped the effect of mediating institutions and policies on the accessibility and deployment of livelihood resources. The findings point to the importance of locally tailored interventions that reach beyond the field of forest conservation and management. These would include interventions to strengthen rural peoples’ access to resources needed to adapt livelihoods to changing socio-economic conditions. They would also include programs to reduce locally felt trade-offs between conservation and development. The findings also raise doubts that Costa Rica's payments for environmental services (PES) program, as it is currently structured, is an effective mechanisms for linking forest recovery and sustainable rural livelihoods in this particular region.     

Loss of land and livelihoods from mining operations: A case in the Limpopo Province,South Africa

Loss or degradation of communal lands can have major implications for people’s livelihoods and well-being in rural underdeveloped areas. Mining operations are one driver of land loss with negative implications for people. This study assesses the livelihood effects of open-cast mining on a rural communal land village that lost 8 000 ha of land and compares it to another village nearby that did not. The results suggest that the loss of land and the ecosystem services they provide has negatively affected people’s livelihood strategies and outcomes. On average, only 23 % of households in the affected village had crop fields compared to an adjacent village, that did not lose land to the mine, where 90 % of households had a crop field. This accounts for substantial losses in income through agriculture, both as cash earnings and savings, and negatively affects household food security. As a result of the mine the affected community has also lost access to grazing, and now many households must pay to graze their livestock in other areas. Furthermore, the option to harvest several key natural resources (provisioning services) or non-timber forest products (NTFPs) such as wild fruits and vegetables, edible insects, fuelwood, and to a lesser extent resources like reeds and medicinal plants were lost due to the mine, negatively impacting local livelihoods. NTFPs are important for rural livelihoods as they allow for cash saving, income generation and act as a safety net or fall-back option during times of increased vulnerability. The findings also give a good indication of changes in agriculture and resource use over time and the varying reasons for this. Other negative effects from the mine included; cracking of houses due to blasting, dust pollution, water contamination, social and cultural effects, community alterations and conflicts, and very little was seen to be gained in terms of employment through Social Labour Plans (SLPs) or corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives. Households in the village affected by the mine lose approximately R 15 000 per year through losses of agricultural potential and the ability to collect NTFPs, which is larger than the annual cash incomes for most households. This value is likely to be an underestimate of the total value lost, as reductions in grazing potential and the loss of supporting, regulating and cultural ecosystem services were not included in this figure. This study highlights the importance of considering land access and associated land-based livelihoods in rural communal land areas in the context of disturbance and change. Recommendations for future assessments and policy on compensation for rural communities are made and issues relating to CSR are discussed.     

Impacts of protected areas on local livelihoods: Evidence of giant panda biosphere reserves in Sichuan Province,China

Given the debates about whether Protected Areas (PAs) exacerbate local poverty or might contribute to poverty alleviation, there is a critical need for evidence to examine the impacts. In this study, we have conducted a household investigation of 560 rural households in 7 PAs of Sichuan province of China. We used matching method to value impacts of PAs on local livelihoods. The results showed that compared to the Average Treatment Effect, the results of traditional regression model exaggerate the negative impacts of the PAs. However, we should notice that the overall impact of PAs on local household wealth was still negative. Households inside the PAs had more Non-timber Forest Products gathering income and compensation, but fewer crop production income and forestry income. Better conservation policies need to be initiated to realize the harmonious and concurrent development of ecological objectives and livelihood objectives.     

Tenure security, resource poverty, public programs, and household plot-level conservation investments in the highlands of northern Ethiopia

Land degradation poses a serious problem for the livelihoods of rural producers. Furthermore, there is rarely enough private investment taking place to commensurate the scale of the problem. This article examines the role of tenure insecurity, resource poverty, risk and time preferences, and community‐led land conservation on differentiated patterns of household investment in land conservation in northern Ethiopia. We control for biophysical, household characteristics, market access conditions, and village level factors. Investments in soil bunds and stone terraces are specifically studied so as to capture the link between these various factors and the durability of conservation investments. We introduce the distinction between the determinants of the decision to invest and how much to invest in conservation. Regression results show that publicly led conservation programs seem to significantly stimulate private investment. A host of plot‐level variables and household perceptions of returns on conservation investments, expressed in terms of perceived improvements in land quality and increased crop yields, were found to be critical to the decision to invest and intensify soil conservation. The evidence on the significance of households' attitudes toward risk aversion suggests the important role of risk and the household's risk‐bearing capacity in the decision to intensify conservation measures. At the same time, tenure security indicators and households' resource endowments (resource poverty) had weaker effects in increasing willingness to invest and the level of investment made. The policy implications of these results point to the importance of agricultural research and extension efforts that target technologies which reduce household risk and poverty while enabling sustainable investments in conservation measures by individual households.     

家庭禀赋对山区农户林业相关生计策略的影响研究

基于浙江省山区315户农户的调查数据,描述了山区农户的生计策略、不同类型农户的家庭禀赋、收入水平及来源,运用mlogit模型就家庭禀赋对山区农户林业相关生计策略的影响进行实证分析。结果表明:家庭禀赋对山区农户林业相关生计策略具有显著影响;在人力资本指标中,劳动力人数、劳动力平均健康程度对农户选择林业专业化型、林业补充型、生计多样化型生计策略具有一定的正向影响;劳动力平均受教育程度对选择林业补充型生计策略有显著的正向影响;在自然资本指标中,林地面积对农户选择林业专业化型生计策略具有正向影响;耕地面积则对于林业补充型生计策略的选择具有正向影响;在社会资本指标中,家族能人数量对于农户选择林业专业化型、林业补充型、生计多样化型具有显著的正向影响。因此,提出促进非农就业,鼓励自主创业;充分利用自然资本;加强山区农户的人力资本建设等建议。     

改进可持续生计框架下易地扶贫搬迁前后农户生计对比分析以贵州省贞丰县者相镇安置点为例

目的 基于改进可持续生计框架,对比分析搬迁前后农户生计现状,厘清易地扶贫搬迁对农户生计的影响,对推动贵州省易地扶贫搬迁农户生计可持续发展具有重要的现实意义,提出提升易地扶贫搬迁农户生计资本量和生计资本稳定性的建议。方法 文章引入主观满意度对可持续生计框架进行改进,建立适宜易地扶贫搬迁农户的可持续生计评价的指标体系,探究者相镇安置点农户搬迁前后的生计资本持有量变化,并对其生计可持续性及生计资本对生计稳定性的影响进行分析。结果 （1）者相镇安置点易地扶贫搬迁农户搬迁后生计资本综合值得到一定程度的提升,物质资本和满意度明显提升,自然资本和金融资本下降;（2）者相镇安置点农户搬迁后生计稳定性总体呈下降趋势,但随搬迁年限的增加而提高,生计多样性和收入多样性降低,非农业生计多样性提升;（3）搬迁后农户生计耦合度提升4.059 6%,生计资本与生计稳定性耦合协调度由低度耦合提升至中度耦合。结论 者相镇安置点农户生计可持续发展水平得到一定程度的提高,各类生计资本指标差异明显,推动搬迁农户生计资本的均衡发展和提高收入多样性,可帮助搬迁农户实现“搬得出、稳得住、能致富”。     

农地整治区农户生计脆弱性指数评估研究——基于湖北荆门和宜昌的实证研究

[目的]农地整治能通过多种有效途径改善农户的生计资本。以农地整治的角度切入来研究农户生计脆弱性的变化规律,探究农地整治对农户生计脆弱性的影响,为探索改善农户生计的可持续性提供理论借鉴。[方法]以农地整治对生计资本的直接改善为出发点,基于可持续生计分析框架,根据IPCC关于脆弱性的解释,建立农地整治区农户生计脆弱性评估框架体系,其主要涵盖农户面临的自然风险、生计资本以及适应策略3方面,通过熵权法确定指标权重。基于湖北省荆门、宜昌两地区的394户农户调查问卷,运用生计脆弱性评估框架计算得到农地整治前后农户生计脆弱性指数,同时,针对荆门、宜昌两地区分别进行评估研究。[结果](1)农地整治前后农户生计脆弱性指数分别为-0.223和-0.423,在整治之后农户生计脆弱性显著降低。(2)生计脆弱性指数变化的影响因素存在地区性差异。荆门地区整治前后的生计脆弱性指数变化依次受旱地情况、耕地灌溉情况、村庄绿化设施、农田水利设施的变化量等因素的影响;宜昌地区整治前后生计脆弱性指数变化依次受农田水利设施、村庄道路通达、村庄绿化设施、田间道路、耕地灌溉情况、水田情况、旱地情况的变化量等因素的影响。[结论]为提高农户福利水平,降低其生计脆弱性,建议农地整治的规划与实施要进一步关注农户生计问题,特别重视相关自然资本和物质资本的改善,同时不同实施地区要从贡献因素排序出发,实现提高农户生计脆弱性改善的目的。     

Impacts of land leases in Oromia,Ethiopia: Changes in access to livelihood resources for local people

Large-scale land deals have attracted considerable attention for various reasons, including their implications for local livelihoods. While some view the phenomena as a development opportunity, encompassing improvement in the livelihoods of local people, others argue that it is an impoverishing scheme. Ethiopia ranks among the top in terms of the size of land leased out over the last decade. Land is a major resource of state control and investment in Ethiopia. As the foundation of their livelihoods and identity, it is simultaneously a vital resource for the local people. Highlighting the importance of land for local livelihoods and state-society relations and employing a political-ecological approach, this paper analyzes the outcomes of two land lease cases for the local people in Bakko Tibbe district of Oromia, Ethiopia. The findings show that the land leases induced a significant decline in local people’s access to land, resulting in a significant reduction in crop production and livestock husbandry. The land leases also dismantled longstanding land-based social relations in both production systems. Based on empirical evidence from specific localities and contextualizing the local livelihood dynamics within broader political-economic conditions, this study contributes to the ongoing debate on livelihood impacts of global land deals.     

Reducing or creating poverty? Analyzing livelihood impacts of forest carbon projects with evidence from India

Forest carbon projects, in addition to climate mitigation and conservation benefits, are expected to improve local livelihoods and contribute to poverty alleviation across developing countries. Despite substantial investments over last decade, there is limited empirical evidence on the livelihood impacts of these projects especially across different socioeconomic categories.This paper aims to contribute to this knowledge gap through an analysis of the livelihood impacts across small, medium and large categories of participating farmers in a forest carbon project from the state of Haryana in India. Data from 107 households have been analysed to study the impacts in terms of foregone crop, fodder and fuel wood benefits. The analysis suggests that the project has adversely affected the livelihoods of all three categories of farmers. However, small and marginal farmers are the most distressed due to their low incomes, asset base and risk-bearing capacities.It raises critical project design issues such as binding land use, delayed accrual of benefits, static opportunity costs and displacement of existing economic activities, which have serious livelihood and equity implications. Unless these issues are addressed and strong safety nets are provided, forest carbon projects might create more poverty than wellbeing for marginal communities.     

Land acquisition for and local livelihood implications of biofuel development in Zimbabwe

Proponents of “green and clean” fuel argue that land acquisitions for biofuel development could result in significant economic benefits, such as job creation, local development, fuel and energy security, and minimal negative impacts on the environment. With a dominant focus on these purported benefits, comparatively little attention has been given to the processes and impacts of land acquisitions on the local people whose livelihoods depend on land-based activities. Using a case study of bio-ethanol development in Chisumbanje, Zimbabwe, this paper assesses the processes and local livelihood implications of land acquisitions for biofuel development and considers who is likely to bear the costs. Our findings show that local communities felt they were not consulted in the land acquisition process and despite the promises of local livelihood enhancement from biofuel development, displaced households (farmers) perceived that the costs incurred from biofuel development were more than the benefits received.     

In Search of Pathways out of Poverty: Mapping the Role of International Labour Migration,Agriculture and Rural Labour

The issue of rural poverty continues to shape critical academic and policy discourses in the global South. In such discourses, some scholars and policy‐makers highlight non‐agrarian pathways leading to prosperity, while others continue to emphasize the significance of land and farming for poverty reduction. However, such analyses tend not only to obscure strong linkages between agriculture, migration and rural labour, but also stay silent on how rural people interpret changes or continuities in their livelihoods. In this paper, I focus on the case of rural Nepal to unfold how some rural people, but not others, improve their livelihoods through international labour migration, farming and rural labour. This paper reveals that many poor people have experienced improved livelihoods pursuing a diverse portfolio of agricultural and non‐agricultural activities including labour migration. However, the dispossession of poor people from land and their adverse incorporation into the local and international labour markets continue to perpetuate chronic poverty.     

A Livelihood and Farming System approach for effective conservation policies in Protected Areas of Developing Countries: The case study of the Niassa National Reserve in Mozambique

Effective conservation requires that conservation policies and management decisions first target local actors who are dependent on natural resource use in Protected Areas (PA) of Developing Countries (DC). In rural areas of DCs, these actors are mainly farmers who also rely on off-farm activities such as harvest of Non-Timber Forest Products (NTFPs) to complement their livelihoods. Here, we propose a novel approach to support the development of policy interventions aimed at achieving conservation goals through the sustainable development of local people in PAs of DCs. The approach consists in identifying the main Livelihood and Farming Systems (LFS) and select those that are more conservation-friendly, and that may contribute to solve conservation and development problems such as Human-wildlife conflict. Identifying the existing LFS can also help in searching for conservation-relevant improvements that can contribute to local people wellbeing, considering the existing FS as the starting point for a sustainable development strategy in PAs of DC. Data from the Niassa National Reserve (NNR), the largest PA in Mozambique, were used to develop this LFS approach. Measures of effort applied in harvesting NTFPs and in managing agricultural inputs and outputs were collected from 329 households through a structured survey. Cluster analysis was performed to identify and characterise the main LFS in the NNR. Based on the cluster results, we have identified four livelihood systems (LS): gatherers, hunters, farmers and employees; four farming systems (FS): specialized in maize, rice and sorghum, and a mixed FS. A Multinomial Logistic Model was also applied to understand the drivers of LFS choice. Livelihood systems were mainly driven by household-level socio-economic factors, while FS were driven by village-level biophysical conditions. Households who were employed and had diversified farming and off-farm activities were better off and more resilient to climate change and crop-raiding animals. Intensification appears to occur gradually but has found to be limited by rainfall availability. Based on our findings, we propose that conservation experts and policy-makers should use a LFS approach to re-frame the conservation narrative in PAs of DCs and promote the existing practices that can better protect biodiversity while improving livelihood and welfare of local people.     

乡村旅游与农村可持续生计耦合协调的时空演化与驱动机制研究——以青岛市为例

[目的]研究乡村旅游与农村可持续生计耦合协调发展对促进乡村地区社会经济可持续高质量发展具有积极作用。[方法]文章通过构建乡村旅游与农村可持续生计系统指标体系,以熵值法与变异系数法综合确定指标权重,运用耦合协调度模型对2010—2019年青岛市城郊4区3市乡村旅游与农村可持续生计的耦合协调度进行测算,并运用地理探测器对空间布局的驱动机制进行分析。[结果]（1）乡村旅游与农村可持续生计耦合协调度保持持续增长态势,乡村旅游产业发展势头强劲,农村可持续生计水平呈现波动增长。（2）从时空分异特征来看,2010年各区市多呈失调状态,2015年以中级协调为主,2019年黄岛区实现优质协调,其他区市达到良好协调状态。（3）单一影响因子分析显示人口密度对2010年耦合协调度分布状态解释力最强,乡村旅游景点密度对2015年、2019年耦合协调度分布状态解释力最强。（4）因子交互影响分析表明耦合协调度空间分异是多重因素综合作用的结果。[结论]各地区应着力于发挥乡村旅游资源要素集聚的推动力,培育特色鲜明的乡村旅游产业集群,实现资源合理开发与持续利用;聚焦乡村旅游产业高质量发展,发挥新型农业经营主体的带动作用,...     

从"三农"问题视角解读我国的耕地保护问题

耕地是稀缺资源,紧张的人与耕地的比例关系是我国“三农”问题形成的前提;当前我国最主要的耕地问题是耕地快速非农化,其根本原因来自人口、城市化和工业化快速发展的压力,政策和决策的失误、地方利益的驱动和管理力度不够,从加强耕地国情教育、严格土地利用总体规划、构建与耕地保护相配套的政策激励和经济约束机制、规范耕地管制行为等角度探讨了耕地保护的对策和措施。     

内部需求、外部因素对农户宅基地退出的影响研究——基于马斯洛需求理论视角的审视

目的 通过马斯洛需求理论视角将影响农户的诸多因素分为内部和外部两个层面,厘清农户宅基地退出的影响因素,为指导农村宅基地有序退出,提高农村土地利用效率提供政策建议。方法 文章利用江西安义和湖北监利两个地区138份农户调研数据,运用Probit计量分析模型,对农户宅基地退出的影响因素和影响强度进行了研究。结果 （1）居住、养老、就业等事关当前农户退出宅基地后所面临的社会保障与生计的因素,表征农户的安全方面的需求,对农户宅基地退出产生了显著的影响;（2）发展机遇因素和政策互动因素表征了农户在退地过程中的社交和尊重方面的需求,也对宅基地退出产生了显著的影响;（3）社会保障与生计方面的需求的作用强度要明显高于社交和尊重方面的需求因素,产生的影响强度也相对较强。结论 （1）政府部门加强对保障和生计的重视,应该保证退地后经济补偿,退地后给予城镇购房补助政策的支持力度和农户退地后生活质量改善情况,维持农民的可持续生计水平。（2）注重政策宣传是否到位,政府关于宅基地退出优惠政策,以及安置就业难易程度的考虑。（3）在当前宅基地制度改革中各地财力不均的情况下,应优先注重农户退出购房补偿的货币安置和住房安置,做到政策有的放矢。     

Applying a capitals approach to understand rural development traps: A case study from post-socialist Romania

Rural development models to date have failed to adequately explain why development stagnates in certain regions, and have often focused on single policy areas. This paper proposes a more holistic approach by combining the concept of traps with the sustainable livelihoods approach, applied to a case study in Central Romania. Based on semi-structured interviews with rural inhabitants from 66 villages in 2012, we analyze the barriers creating and maintaining a lock-in situation characterized by an apparently stable low-welfare equilibrium state. By clustering development barriers into livelihood capitals we find that barriers to rural development are multiple and interacting, and are strongly mediated by the institutional context. We show that while financial, social, human, and built capitals are inadequately developed, the region's rich natural and cultural capitals stand the best chances to foster rural development. Yet, these capitals are likely to deteriorate, too, if all other capitals remain under-developed. Given this interconnectedness of development barriers we argue that one-sided interventions cannot help ‘unlock’ the trap-like situation of Central Romania. Instead, multiple barriers will need to be tackled simultaneously. The development of social, human and financial capitals should be of priority concern because of their potentially positive spill-over effects across all other capitals.     

生计资本和社会排斥：长江禁捕补偿政策对渔民生计影响机理研究

目的 渔民作为禁捕补偿政策的直接利益相关者，其生计问题直接关系到禁捕政策成效。探究长江禁捕补偿政策对渔民生计的作用机理，对推动实现长江生态保护和退捕渔民生计保障具有重要意义。方法 基于可持续生计理论和社会排斥理论，文章通过构建长江禁捕补偿政策背景下渔民生计结果的分析框架，利用江苏、安徽和湖北3省调研数据，采用偏微分最小二乘法的结构方程模型估算路径系数，测算长江禁捕补偿政策对生计结果的直接效应、间接效应和总效应。结果 从直接效应上看，政策对促进生计资本积累和生计结果改善有显著影响，对于抑制社会关系排斥和政治排斥有显著作用，但对就业排斥影响不显著；从间接效应上看，政策能够通过生计资本和社会排斥的中介作用对生计结果产生重要影响；从总效应上看，长江禁捕补偿政策的实施能够显著改善渔民的生计结果。结论 生计资本是渔民生计内生动力，对生计结果改善具有重要意义，须继续加大对生计资本建设力度；社会排斥是渔民生计发展的外部阻力，须促进社会融合，保障渔民政治、就业和社会关系等方面权利。