Reversing environmental decline: Lessons from

In rural Africa, where livelihoods are often directly tied to the land, environmental degradation poses a critical threat to both ecosystems and human well-being. New research reveals ways to tackle the twin challenges of land degradation and poverty.

In rural Africa, where livelihoods are often directly tied to the land, environmental degradation poses a critical threat to both ecosystems and human well-being. A new study co-authored by researchers at Stanford University and the French Center for Agricultural Research for International Development (CIRAD) analyzes how different African communities have tried to reverse this trend and provides valuable insights into what works. The study, published October 30 in Sustainability Science, points out that long-term coalitions between local communities, governments and organizations are essential to drive the transition to sustainability.

“Each country is different and a ‘one-size-fits-all approach’ to environmental policy should be avoided, but we should also learn from past experiences to identify the conditions that lead to success in reversing environmental degradation,” said the co-author of Eric Lambin study. , George and Setsuko Ishiyama Provostial Professor at the Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability and Senior Fellow at the Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment.

Reversal of degradation
For decades, many African communities have faced the dual challenge of addressing environmental degradation while improving people’s livelihoods. As land becomes less productive due to low soil fertility, deforestation or climate change, the pressure on these communities intensifies. Lambin and study co-author Camille Jahel from CIRAD point out that, in many cases, this situation is inextricably linked to a history of colonialism in which authorities denied people’s rights to natural resources and transmitted a narrative of overexploitation of natural resources. This led to top-down restoration efforts with often limited success, according to the researchers.

Recently, in many areas, new efforts have been made to reverse these negative trends, often with the support of governments, NGOs or international organizations. However, results have been mixed, with some initiatives leading to significant improvements while others have failed.

After examining 17 cases representing different initiatives to reverse land degradation in 13 African countries, the researchers found that successful interventions typically share several key characteristics. First of all, they often involve strong social agreements between actors, supported by well-functioning institutions. In cases like Tanzania’s Shinyanga region, where 90% of the population was involved in reforestation efforts, the results were impressive. 300,000 to 500,000 hectares, or about 1,100 to 1,900 square miles, of forest land were restored in the region, which increased livelihoods by providing resources such as fuel wood.

Another critical factor is the alignment of incentives with environmental goals. In Burkina Faso, for example, farmers started planting cashew trees, encouraged by the opportunity to sell their produce on international markets. This not only provided a new stream of income, but also helped fight desertification as more trees were planted. These cases highlight the importance of ensuring that environmental restoration efforts also address the economic and social needs of communities.

“The incentives were mostly economic in nature, but some were also related to the security of access to land or the improved provision of ecosystem services after the restoration of natural resources,” said Jahel, a researcher at CIRAD. Jahel was funded by the Stanford France-Stanford Center for Interdisciplinary Studies for a collaborative research project with the Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment while conducting the research.

Restoration support
Alongside local coalitions, the study highlights the importance of external support, particularly in the form of resources and technical assistance. In many successful cases, such as in Nigeria and Burkina Faso, NGOs and government agencies provided the tools, knowledge and financial support needed to launch projects. This external support was often vital in the early stages of interventions, reducing the risk associated with adopting new practices in a context of resource scarcity and climate variability.

However, the study also warns that external support should be managed carefully. In some cases, top-down approaches that did not fully engage local communities led to limited success or even failure. For example, in Zambia’s Kafue Flats, an intervention aimed at restoring wildlife populations ultimately failed in part because new governance structures imposed by external actors were not accepted by the local community. This underlines the need for external agencies to work closely with local stakeholders and respect existing social and governance systems.

Lambin and Jahel emphasize the need to maintain momentum over the long term. Some of the interventions they studied showed positive results initially but faltered after external funding dried up or local interest waned. The researchers emphasize the importance of building long-term sustainability into these projects, ensuring that local communities can continue to manage and sustain improvements without ongoing external support. In Namibia, for example, some community-based wildlife management organizations, known as conservancies, are now generating enough profits to sustain their activity over time.

By providing general lessons learned from past experiences in Africa, this study can help improve the design, management and monitoring of projects aimed at reversing land degradation and adopting sustainable land use practices.

“It is possible to turn the tide on environmental decline,” Lambin said. “The key lies in creating long-term interventions that are locally driven [and] the integration of poverty-related concerns, supported by strong governance structures and based on coalitions of actors.”