Historical perspectives on contemporary human–environment dynamics in southeast Africa

Abstract

The human communities and ecosystems of island and coastal southeast Africa face significant and linked ecological threats. Socioecological conditions of concern to communities, governments, nongovernmental organizations, and researchers include declining agricultural productivity, deforestation, introductions of non-native flora and fauna, coastal erosion and sedimentation, damage to marine environments, illegal fishing, overfishing, waste pollution, salinization of freshwater supplies, and rising energy demands, among others. Human-environment challenges are connected to longer, often ignored, histories of social and ecological dynamics in the region. We argue that these challenges are more effectively understood and addressed within a longer-term historical ecology framework. We reviewed cases from Madagascar, coastal Kenya, and the Zanzibar Archipelago of fisheries, deforestation, and management of human waste to encourage increased engagement among historical ecologists, conservation scientists, and policy makers. These case studies demonstrate that by widening the types and time depths of data sets we used to investigate and address current socioecological challenges, our interpretations of their causes and strategies for their mitigation varied significantly.Perspectivas Históricas sobre las Dinámicas Contemporáneas entre Humanos y el Ambiente en el Sureste deÁfrica Resumen: Las comunidades humanas y los ecosistemas de las costas del sureste africano enfrentan amenazas ecológicas significativas y vinculadas. Las condiciones socio-ecológicas que preocupan a las comunidades, los gobiernos, las organizaciones no gubernamentales y a los investigadores incluyen la poductividad agrícola en declinación, la deforestación, la introducción de flora y fauna no nativa, la sedimentación y erosión costera, el daño hacia los ecosistemas marinos, la pesca ilegal, la sobrepesca, la contaminación por desechos, la salinización de las cuencas de agua dulce, y la creciente demanda de energía, entre otras. Los retos humanos -ecosistema están conectados con historias más largas, y frecuentemente ignoradas, de dinámicas sociales y ecológicas en la región. Argumentamos que estos retos se entienden y se tratan con mayor efectividad dentro de un marco de trabajo de ecología histórica con un periodo más largo. Revisamos casos de pesquerías, deforestación y manejo de desechos humanos en Madagascar, la costa de Kenia y el archipiélago de Zanzíbar para propiciar una mayor participación entre los ecologistas históricos, los científicos de la conservación, y los * email: kdouglass@psu.edu Article impact statement: Past human-environment dynamics are key to addressing today's threats to livelihoods and ecosystems in island and coastal southeast Africa. Douglass et al. 261legisladores. Estos estudios de caso demuestran que al ampliar los tipos y la temporalidad de los conjuntos de datos que usamos para investigar y tratar los retos socio-ecológicos contemporáneos, nuestras interpretaciones de las causas de estos retos y las estrategias para...

Pre-colonial Amerindian legacies in forest composition of southern Brazil

“…Historical ecology research seeks to understand past human legacy on present day species composition, community assemblage, and identify positive interactions (eg. mutualism) and process associated with niche modification [ 1 – 3 ]. A place with the appropriate environmental characteristics for a species is how Grinnell [ 4 ] defined a niche.…”

Archaeology, environmental justice, and climate change on islands of the Caribbean and southwestern Indian Ocean

“…Perceptions of modernity and the simultaneous devaluing of indigenous forms and practices are trends throughout the Caribbean and SWIO as well other island communities around the world. The Caribbean and SWIO, however, have been less well represented in historical ecological studies than other island groups (5,73,74) and require further research on the adaptive role of indigenous forms and practices alongside efforts to disseminate research findings to a broad audience, including policy makers. When indigenous forms and practices are celebrated in these regions today, it is typically in a fetichized context of ecotourism, where foreign visitors are offered opportunities to experience "traditional" lifeways, rather than in a context of developing and revitalizing successful solutions to climate hazards (72).…”

“…Today, the island communities of the SWIO are experiencing significant and interlinked threats to environments and livelihoods. According to the Indian Ocean Observing System (IndOOS), key threats across the region are 1) food insecurity due to degradation of coastal and marine environments and declining agricultural productivity, 2) water scarcity due to freshwater salinization and pollution, and 3) rising energy demands due to population growth and urbanization (5). Increasingly rapid climate change exacerbates all of these threats.…”

“…4 D and E). Indigenous farmers and herders were pushed onto marginal lands where soils were quickly depleted, a process that led to increasing economic inequality; energy insecurity; and more rapid deforestation, erosion, and sedimentation of waterways and fragile coastal habitats (5,68).…”

“…Long-term historical models and short-term predictive models show that the Caribbean and SWIO will experience increased intensity of cyclonic activity, relative sea-level rise (RSLR), and unpredictability of precipitation patterns (3,4). These climate dynamics are closely intertwined with socioecological hazards, including biodiversity loss, pollution, deforestation, coastal erosion and sedimentation, overfishing, and freshwater salinization (5) (Fig. 1 B-E and G-J).…”