Evolution and Innovation in Wildlife Conservation

The crucible of innovation in wildlife and habitat conservation is in southern Africa where it has co-evolved with decolonization, political transformation and the rise of development, ownership, management and livelihood debates.

Charting this innovation, early chapters of this volume deal with the traditional 'fines and fences' conservation that occurred in the colonial and early post-independence period, with subsequent sections focussing on the experimentation and innovation that occurred on private and communal land as a result of the break from these traditional methods. The final section deals with more recent innovations in the sector, focussing on building and strengthening the relationships between parks and society. Importantly, the book provides a data-rich summary of experimentation with more inclusive models of conservation in terms of ecological, social, political and economic indicators.

Published with the Southern African Sustainable Use Specialist Group (SASUSG) of IUCN.

Helen Suich is a development and resource economist, policy adviser, project manager.

Brian Child is Associate Professor in the Geography Department at the University of Florida, USA and editor of Parks in Transition (2004).

Anna Spenceley is editor of Responsible Tourism (2008).