Effect of Climate Change on Acquisition of Quality Education: A Case Study of Maasai Pastoralists in Narok County, Kenya

Climate change is a global phenomenon with far reaching impacts. Arid and semi-arid communities in Kenya, among them the Maasai community from Narok County, are dependent on the natural resources for their livelihood thus are greatly hit by the adverse impacts of climate change. This paper sought to establish the indirect effects of climate change on the quality of education among the Maasai community. Desktop literature review approach and key informant phone interviews were adopted for data collection. The review of literature indicated that increased poverty levels arising from climate change has largely affected the affordability of quality education. Therefore, people in Maasai community resort to coping mechanisms on labour demands that accelerate school dropout as well as early marriages. The Maasai herders are forced to increase their migration trends to long distances, a practice that has increased child labour disrupting learning for most school going children. In addition, the girl child has become more vulnerable to sexual abuse and early marriages with a consequent denial of education opportunities. The effect of the climate change on wildlife habitat has led to human- wildlife conflict that poses a threat to the security of the community members and therefore interferes with the smooth running of schools. Consequently, interventions to mitigate climate change effects should not only concentrate on the direct but also the indirect impacts that have got multiplier effects on sectors like education. These interventions should include, provision of adequate water infrastructure, investment in education policy and boarding school Infrastructural development.

Rapid Ecological Integrity Assessment Metrics to Restore Wildlife Habitat and Biodiversity for Shortleaf Pine–Oak Ecosystems

Open woodlands dominated by shortleaf pine (Pinus echinata Mill.) and oak are historically an important component of the landscape across the southeastern United States. These ecosystems support numerous wildlife species, many of which have declined in recent years as the amount and condition of their habitat have declined. Land managers and private landowners need guidance on how to efficiently and accurately quantify the condition and wildlife habitat value of the pine stands that they manage. Here we provide a set of rapid assessment metrics, based on NatureServe’s ecological integrity assessment (EIA) method, to (a) identify exemplary tracts that provide the best habitat for key wildlife species, and (b) monitor restoration efforts to assess progress toward the improved quality of existing tracts. To ensure an ecologically appropriate scaling of metrics, we distinguished six types of shortleaf pine–oak woodland: A.—Interior Highlands shortleaf pine–oak (including A.1—shortleaf pine–oak forest and woodlands; A.2—shortleaf pine–bluestem woodlands); B—montane longleaf pine–shortleaf pine woodlands; C—southern Appalachian pine–oak woodlands; D—West Gulf coastal plain shortleaf pine–oak woodlands; and E—southeast coastal plain and Piedmont shortleaf pine–oak woodlands. We relied on a narrative conceptual model and peer review-based indicator selection to identify a core set of 15 stand-level metrics (two were optional). Individual assessment points (thresholds) and ratings (Excellent, Good, Fair, and Poor) were developed that were sensitive to the distinct attributes of each of the five shortleaf pine–oak and Appalachian pine–oak types. Values for the metrics can all be collected using rapid field methods, such as using basal area prisms and ocular (visual) estimates of cover. Protocols for the consistent application of these EIA methods are provided. A case study is presented from the Cherokee National Forest in Tennessee. These methods provide improved and rapid EIA metrics for all shortleaf pine–oak ecosystems in the southeastern US to help guide conservation-minded landowners in assessing the biodiversity and priority wildlife values of shortleaf pine–oak and southern Appalachian pine–oak ecosystems.

The use of weeping fig Ficus benjamina by wildlife in campus area of Dramaga, Bogor, Indonesia

Figs are recognized as keystone species in sustaining wildlife. Many studies showed that Dramaga Campus (Bogor) provides suitable wildlife habitat but no information available on the use of figs by wildlife in the area. This study aimed at identifying wildlife species and examining the role of weeping fig (Ficus benjamina) in the campus area. A rapid pre-survey was conducted to list wildlife species using fig trees in July 2020; observation on sample trees was conducted (September-November 2020) to obtain data on the type, time, and location of wildlife activities. The results showed that fig trees were used by mammals (4 species), birds (26 species), reptiles (12 species), and amphibians (2 species; found nearby the sample trees). Mammals used fig trees primarily as part of locomotion (59%) and feeding (28%), birds mainly were perching (63%) and feeding (29%), and reptiles mainly were found resting (86%). Mammals were active during day and night; birds were most active in the morning. Lizards were found during the day, while snakes were mainly observed during nighttime. Birds and mammals used lower to top strata, while reptiles used lower strata and trunk. Weeping figs have essential roles as wildlife habitats in peri-urban areas.

The Diversity and Conservation Status of Snakes in Rawa Mekar Jaya, Riau, Indonesia

Snakes in Mekar Jaya mangrove ecosystem have the potential be ecotourism objects. On the other hand ecotourism activities might reduce the quality of wildlife habitat, including that of the snake. This study aimed to determine the diversity and status of snake species in the mangrove ecosystem of Rawa Mekar Jaya. A transect of 20 x 50 m was made in three stations: rivers (S1), ecotourism route (S2), and dense mangroves (S3). The observation was carried out at low tide and repeated three times with a span of 2 days. Snake data was collected using the Visual Encounter Survey (VES) method. We revealed 59 snakes in the mangrove area of Rawa Mekar Jaya consisting of 3 species namely Boiga dendrophila, Cerberus rynchops, and Trimeresurus purpureomaculatus. B. dendrophila and C. rhyncops are mangrove specialists. The Shannon Wiener diversity index value (H ') for all observation stations is below one, so it is classified as low. All types of snakes found are not protected and classified as the least concern. C. rynchops is included in the CITES appendix III

Human Wildlife Conflict and Impacts on Livelihood: A Study in Community Forestry System in Mid-Hills of Nepal

Human wildlife conflict (HWC) impacts the livelihood of many rural communities worldwide. This study investigated the impact of HWC on people living near community forests (CF) in Nepal. Using databases provided by the Division of Forest Offices and data obtained from surveys between October 2019–March 2020, we quantified the financial loss of HWC to the local people. Between 2015 and 2019, 3315, or 27%, of the livestock owned by the survey respondents were killed by wild predators in the Kaski and Tanahun Districts. Chicken (Gallus spp.) was the most common prey taken (80%), followed by sheep (Ovis spp.) and goats (Capra spp.) (15%), cows (Bos spp.) (2%), pigs (Sus spp.) (2%), and buffalo (Bubalus spp.) (1%). Leopards (Panthera pardus) were the primary predators, followed by golden jackals (Canis aureus), jungle cats (Felis chaus), yellow-throated martens (Martes flavigula), and Himalayan black bears (Ursus thibetanus). The financial loss of livestock during this period was USD $115,656.00, equivalent to USD $142.61 per household. Crops were also damaged and eaten by wildlife, and 2165 crop-raiding events were recorded between 2015 and 2019. Rice (Oryza sativa), followed by maize (Zea mays), millet (Panicum miliaceum), and potatoes (Solanum tuberosum) were the main crops lost. Rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta) were the most common crop raiders, causing 74% of the damage, followed by Indian field mice (Mus booduga) (12%). From 2015 to 2019, crop losses equated to USD $83,424.00. Forest regeneration on abandoned agricultural land expanded wildlife habitats, enabling wild animals to come within reach of human settlements, which increased the likelihood of HWC events. Although the success of the community forest restoration program resulted in increased forest-cover, marginally increasing biodiversity, the reduced distance between human settlements and wildlife habitat, compounded by a lack of natural prey, may have unwittingly exacerbated HWC in this region. We recommend surveying predator and prey populations in the forest habitat, and implementing a habitat management program to improve prey populations within the community forests. Meantime, we propose establishing a financial relief and insurance program for crop and livestock losses at the local community level to alleviate any financial difficulties to the local communities caused by HWC.

Isotopic evidence of increasing water abundance and lake hydrological change in Old Crow Flats, Yukon, Canada

Lake-rich northern permafrost landscapes are sensitive to changing climate conditions, but ability to track real-time and potentially multiple hydrological responses (e.g. lake expansion, drawdown, drainage) is challenging due to absence of long-term, sustainable monitoring programs in these remote locations. Old Crow Flats (OCF), Yukon, is a Ramsar Wetland of International Importance where concerns about low water levels and their consequences for wildlife habitat and traditional ways of life prompted multidisciplinary studies during the International Polar Year (2007–2008) and led to the establishment of an aquatic ecosystem monitoring program. Here, we report water isotope data from 14 representative thermokarst lakes in OCF, the foundation of the monitoring program, and time-series of derived metrics including the isotope composition of input waters and evaporation-to-inflow ratios for a 13 year period (2007–2019). Although the lakes spanned multiple hydrological categories (i.e. rainfall-, snowmelt- and evaporation-dominated) based on initial surveys, well-defined trends from application of generalized additive models and meteorological records reveal that lakes have become increasingly influenced by rainfall, and potentially waters from thawing permafrost. These sources of input have led to more positive lake water balances. Given the documented role of rainfall in causing thermokarst lake drainage events in OCF and elsewhere, we anticipate increased vulnerability of lateral water export from OCF. This study demonstrates the value of long-term isotope-based monitoring programs for identifying hydrological consequences of climate change in lake-rich permafrost landscapes.

Common notions and composite collaborations: Thinking with Spinoza to design urban infrastructures for human and wild cohabitants

This paper explores the ways in which we might construct urban environments that are responsible to the needs of more than just human cohabitants. Drawing on Spinoza’s common notion and attentive to the possibilities of socio-natures that both construct and respond to the habitat needs of urban wildlife, I look at how urban design and wildlife habitat might be thought and planned together as a human/non-human composite, invoking a complex spatial and temporal choreography which serves divergent needs. Drawing on examples of urban design in Toronto, Canada, this paper offers a way to think of the city as a composite body in Spinoza’s terms, to become open to an awareness of the city as a composition of forces—a choreography of bodies that are constantly interweaving and overflowing imagined boundaries, struggles that are fought as much over time as space, the accommodation of the temporalities and spatialities of other life processes, other rhythms and cycles that would, without a recalibration, sync uneasily with the pacing and spacing of human requirements.