“…Studies have shown that decades of severe underfunding have prevented institutions from achieving their potential on biodiversity studies and conservation [65,66].…”
Section: Challenges With Funding and Researchmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…This creates a vexing cycle that hinders access to highly sought-after grants and biases the understanding of biodiversity loss and conservation priorities in Africa. Studies have shown that decades of severe underfunding have prevented institutions from achieving their potential on biodiversity studies and conservation [ 65 , 66 ].…”
Section: Challenges With Funding and Researchmentioning
Africa is experiencing extensive biodiversity loss due to rapid changes in the environment, where natural resources constitute the main instrument for socioeconomic development and a mainstay source of livelihoods for an increasing population. Lack of data and information deficiency on biodiversity, but also budget constraints and insufficient financial and technical capacity, impede sound policy design and effective implementation of conservation and management measures. The problem is further exacerbated by the lack of harmonized indicators and databases to assess conservation needs and monitor biodiversity losses. We review challenges with biodiversity data (availability, quality, usability and database access) as a key limiting factor that impacts funding and governance. We also evaluate the drivers of both ecosystems change and biodiversity loss as a central piece of knowledge to develop and implement effective policies. While the continent focuses more on the latter, we argue that the two are complementary in shaping restoration and management solutions. We thus underscore the importance of establishing monitoring programmes focusing on biodiversity–ecosystem linkages in order to inform evidence-based decisions in ecosystem conservation and restoration in Africa.
This article is part of the theme issue ‘Detecting and attributing the causes of biodiversity change: needs, gaps and solutions’.
“…Studies have shown that decades of severe underfunding have prevented institutions from achieving their potential on biodiversity studies and conservation [65,66].…”
Section: Challenges With Funding and Researchmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…This creates a vexing cycle that hinders access to highly sought-after grants and biases the understanding of biodiversity loss and conservation priorities in Africa. Studies have shown that decades of severe underfunding have prevented institutions from achieving their potential on biodiversity studies and conservation [ 65 , 66 ].…”
Section: Challenges With Funding and Researchmentioning
Africa is experiencing extensive biodiversity loss due to rapid changes in the environment, where natural resources constitute the main instrument for socioeconomic development and a mainstay source of livelihoods for an increasing population. Lack of data and information deficiency on biodiversity, but also budget constraints and insufficient financial and technical capacity, impede sound policy design and effective implementation of conservation and management measures. The problem is further exacerbated by the lack of harmonized indicators and databases to assess conservation needs and monitor biodiversity losses. We review challenges with biodiversity data (availability, quality, usability and database access) as a key limiting factor that impacts funding and governance. We also evaluate the drivers of both ecosystems change and biodiversity loss as a central piece of knowledge to develop and implement effective policies. While the continent focuses more on the latter, we argue that the two are complementary in shaping restoration and management solutions. We thus underscore the importance of establishing monitoring programmes focusing on biodiversity–ecosystem linkages in order to inform evidence-based decisions in ecosystem conservation and restoration in Africa.
This article is part of the theme issue ‘Detecting and attributing the causes of biodiversity change: needs, gaps and solutions’.
“…Climate change is an increasing focus of heritage research across Europe and North America, including identification of site-specific adaptation options for heritage perservation 1, 2 . In contrast, climate change research in low-and middle-income countries (LMICs) is limited due to systemic gaps in access to funding and its associated knowledge generation and thought leadership 3,4 , and rarely concentrates on heritage 5,6 (see Fig. 1).…”
Climate change poses a threat to heritage globally. Decolonial approaches to climate change heritage research and practice can begin to address systemic inequities, recognise the breadth of heritage, and strengthen adaptation action globally.
Main textClimate change is an increasing focus of heritage research across Europe and North America, including identification of site-specific adaptation options for heritage perservation 1, 2 . In contrast, climate change research in low-and middle-income countries (LMICs) is limited due to systemic gaps in access to funding and its associated knowledge generation and thought leadership 3,4 , and rarely concentrates on heritage 5,6 (see Fig. 1). As heritage includes all the inherited traditions, monuments, objects, places and culture, as well as contemporary activities, knowledge, meanings and behaviours that are drawn from them 7 , its preservation is crucial for all societies. Heritage can be tangible, in the case of objects or monuments, or intangible, including cultural practices and traditions, cultural identity, and sense of place. Across LMICs, tangible and intangible heritage coexist, commonly without clear delineations between them.
“…LAC earth system science EC researchers are vital for tackling the regional issues previously mentioned, as they have the expertise of these issues with a global perspective combined with a cultural background that allows the applicability of a worldwide scientific issue to the regional and local context 35 , 40 , 41 . For example, previous experiences in Africa 42 , 43 showed that research done without local expertise might exclude crucial local knowledge, not be locally relevant or applicable, or miss local-based solutions of potential global importance. Fig.…”
Section: Present Regional Scientific Challenges In Lacmentioning
Early career (EC) Earth system scientists in the Latin America and the Caribbean region (LAC) have been facing several issues, such as limited funding opportunities, substandard scientific facilities, lack of security of tenure, and unrepresented groups equality issues. On top of this, the worsening regional environmental and climatic crises call for the need for this new generation of scientists to help to tackle these crises by increasing public awareness and research. Realizing the need to converge and step up in making a collective action to be a part of the solution, the Latin America Early Career Earth System Scientist Network (LAECESS) was created in 2016. LAECESS’s primary goals are to promote regional networking, foster integrated and interdisciplinary science, organize soft skills courses and workshops, and empower Latin American EC researchers. This article is an initial step towards letting the global science community grasp the current situation and hear the early career LAC science community’s perspectives. The paper also presents a series of future steps needed for better scientific and social development in the LAC region.
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