The long-awaited UN Biodiversity Conference COP15 is currently taking place in Montréal, Canada. The Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) set of targets, which are under negotiation at COP15, include specific reference to human-wildlife conflict, calling on Parties to work towards coexistence. Our Specialist Group has been advising on this matter as part of IUCN’s Delegation to COP15 and in the IUCN Position Paper on the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework. We have also been convening efforts to develop a suitable indicator on human-wildlife conflict and coexistence as part of the monitoring framework for the GBF. More on this follows in the section below.
Meanwhile, preparations are well underway to re-convene the postponed International Conference on Human-Wildlife Conflict & Coexistence, which will be held on 30 March - 1 April 2023 in Oxford. This multi-sector, multi-disciplinary event will explore human-wildlife coexistence through various viewpoints and provide participants with the opportunity to build new links and collaborations.
As always, our document library continues to be updated with new literature on the topics of human-wildlife conflict and coexistence. We added another publication from the group in the form of an IUCN Issues Brief on Human-Wildlife Conflict, as well as a new video page to our library. To highlight good practices in the management of human-wildlife conflict and coexistence, we published three more case studies and held two more Learning in Practice webinars in recent months. More details on the conference and these publications can be found below.
Dr Alexandra Zimmermann Chair
Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework
In June, the Open-Ended Working Group 4 on the UN Convention on Biological Diversity Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework took place in Nairobi, Kenya, to advance preparations for the development of the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework. To support the process, we convened an open technical meeting on developing an indicator for human-wildlife conflict. We recommend the indicator for the human-wildlife conflict component of Target 4 to be revised to: Trends in effective and sustainable management of human-wildlife conflict and coexistence. The participants discussed, as a first draft, that this indicator could be disaggregated into trends in the following components, including (1) incidences of negative impacts or encounters on people and wildlife, (2) willingness to coexist with wildlife, and (3) quality of processes of engagement, policy and capacity for efficient management. These discussions will continue after the conclusion of COP15 with the formation of a technical working group, please contact us for participation.
A summary of the workshop can be found here. We have produced several documents with recommendations for the Global Biodiversity Framework. They include:
IUCN Issues Briefs provide short, accessible introductions on key and current topics in nature conservation and sustainable development for anyone looking for an accessible overview of the often complex issues related to nature conservation and sustainable development. In June, we published an Issues Brief on Human-Wildlife Conflict. It covers what the issue is, why it is important and what can be done, and can be read and downloaded here.
Since our last newsletter, 85 publications were added to our document library in April, May, June, July, August and September. Publications include articles on ways to improve social-ecological research and outcomes through partnerships with qualitative researchers, implications of taxonomic bias for human-carnivore conflict mitigation and mediating human-wolf conflicts through dialogue, joint fact-finding and empowerment. We've highlighted some articles below that made for interesting reading. For any missing items or to suggest a topic or species page to be added to the library, please let us know here.
We have added a new video page to our Library. The page includes a range of presentations, webinars, documentaries, films and training sessions on human-wildlife conflict and coexistence, with new items to be added regularly. Alongside this, we have also launched our YouTube channel, where it is possible to view webinars organised by the Specialist Group.
International Conference on Human-Wildlife Conflict & Coexistence
The International Conference on Human-Wildlife Conflict & Coexistence will be held on Thursday 30th March – Saturday 1st April 2023, with side meetings and short courses in the days before. The conference will be an in-person event, with video recordings of all sessions for later viewing. We are bringing together representatives from several major sectors, including governments, NGOs, intergovernmental organisations, academic and business sectors, and indigenous and local communities, to discuss and debate insights and solutions for human-wildlife conflict management. Further information about the conference, and all news as it develops, can be found on the conference website.
Human-Wildlife Conflict & Coexistence Case Studies
In collaboration with the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of the United Nations, we are developing a set of case studies with the aim of covering the process projects have taken to manage various aspects of a human-wildlife conflict & coexistence situation. The case studies will be used to illustrate key components of the IUCN SSC Guidelines on Human-Wildlife Conflict & Coexistence. We published three more case studies on:
We held two webinars in October and November as part of our Learning in Practice Webinar Series, which provides an opportunity to link the theory of principles in human-wildlife conflict engagement with practical experience and insights from projects on the ground that have also been published as case studies. The first webinar covered the topic of community-led management of wildlife impacts using three case studies from India and Zimbabwe. The presentations covered developing a community guardian programme to reduce livestock depredation, the Terai Tiger Project and the primary response teams for efficient conflict management and building communities' capacities to coexist with wildlife.
Our second webinar was on incentives and financial instruments for coexistence via a discussion of three case studies from Bolivia, Kenya and Botswana. Presentations included the role of honey production for achieving coexistence with Andean bears, the opportunities and challenges of insurance in human-wildlife conflict and reversing the cost-benefit imbalance for communities sharing space with elephants by building an “Elephant Aware Economy”. In both webinars following the presentations, a moderated discussion was held with members of the Specialist Group. Recordings of the webinars can be found here and below.
Community-led management of wildlife impacts
Incentives and financial instruments for coexistence
