UNEP published a story on the Africa’s Coexistence Landscapes project: “Researchers strive to end human-wildlife conflicts in Southern Africa”.

“A major highlight of the landscapes project was the development of a computer model that simulates the effects of government policies and conservation strategies. While still a pilot programme, limited to a section of the KAZA known as the Hwange-Kazuma-Chobe Wildlife Dispersal Area along the border of Botswana and Zimbabwe, the upshot of the dialogues was that the simulator has massive potential.

A team from UNEP and the Universities of Bergen and Nova Lisbon worked with nearly 100 local stakeholders to develop the model and collect data on many variables, including wildlife, borehole and livestock numbers. They also used satellite imagery to track land use. The data was then put into the computer model and tested until it was accurate enough to simulate real policy choices.”

Read the full story here: https://www.unep.org/news-and-stories/story/researchers-strive-end-human-wildlife-conflicts-southern-africa