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In the dry forest of southern Madagascar, a region of global conservation priority, formally protected areas are nearly totally absent. We illustrate how the continued existence of unique forest habitats in the Androy region is directly dependent on informal institutions, taboos, regulating human behavior. Qualitative interviews to map and analyze...
Contexts in source publication
Context 1
... Tandroy, the dominant group in Androy, are semino- madic and parts of the family migrate in response to the seasonal and localized precipitation patterns to find water and pasture for their herds of the local cattle zebu, goats, and sheep. Permanent settlements are primarily located in the southern part, where population densities are 100-350 persons/km 2 , compared to 10-20 persons/km 2 further north (34). In southern Androy, people also rely on cultivation of maize, cassava, sweet potato, and beans. The zebus have a central role culturally as well as economically (33). The social organization of rural Madagascar is a blend of the fanjakana, the formal institutions of Malagasy society, and the fokonolona, traditions and customs such as the clan leadership structure and taboos. Untitled uncultivated land such as the forest is formally under state domain (35) and Forest Service (Eaux et ForeˆtForeˆt) ...
Context 2
... also held recurrent interviews on the general implications of the forest taboos with represen- tatives of both the fanjakana and fokonolona, as well as with Christian priests and traditional healers and the two forest officers of Eaux et ForeˆtForeˆt, stationed in Ambovombe and Antanimora. The themes and questions for all interviews can be found in Table 1. To crosscheck the information given from the key informants, who were all men except from two women healers, the same questions were also asked to other villagers including women and younger persons. ...
Context 3
... interviews at each patch started with an introduction to our study and its purpose by our local guide. Brief information about the informant was gathered before proceeding with the interview where the questions in Table 1 were used as a checklist for the conversation rather than a questionnaire. The key informant interviews were more open, and not all themes were covered in all interviews. ...
Citations
... Seeking collaboration among community leaders such as kings or chefs de fokontany, still highly respected in some rural areas of Madagascar, can effectively support conservation efforts via locally established prohibitions based on cultural taboos or customs (e.g. fady to cut trees down), as suggested for other rural settings in Madagascar (Tengö et al., 2007;Gardner et al., 2008;Golden and Comaroff, 2015) and in other parts of Africa (Baker et al., 2014;Mavhura and Mushure, 2019). ...
... It remains to be seen whether hunting pressure on these species has diminished during the last few years or whether previous records had assumed lower occurrences of these species than is really the case. At some sites, such as at Ebelo, "sacred forests" protected by the community remain strongholds for biodiversity conservation (e.g., Bodin et al., 2006;Tengo et al., 2007;Ferguson et al., 2013Ferguson et al., , 2014, though the safeguarding effect of these forests vary (e.g., Nopper et al., 2017). Issues to be followed up concern the identification of Lepilemur and some conservation problems. ...
... Furthermore, application of ILK system has been recently considered as strategical in adaptive and participatory management of natural environments to face the global changes (Huntington 2011;Fernández-Llamazares et al. 2015;Huntington et al. 2017). The global notion towards pluralistic and integrative strategies in understanding the complex and interwoven challenges underlines the need for valuation of multiple knowledge systems, to achieve mutual and participatory cooperation and learning among different stakeholders (Reid et al. 2005;Tengö et al. 2007). ...
Besides modern and exogenous knowledge, traditional and Indigenous knowledge of local communities are also needed for proper management and conservation of marine resources. This study aimed at assessing the knowledge of Indigenous Turkmen fishers of Gorgan Gulf which is a conservation priority coastal ecosystem in Caspian Sea, Iran. To do so, an in-field participatory research was done in five villages adjacent to Gorgan Gulf in 2020 using semi-structured interviews and focused group discussion with 48 knowledgeable Turkmen fishers through snowball sampling method. The result showed that Turkmen fishers carried extensive body of knowledge about fish species, their characteristics (size, weight, morphology, behavior), traditional fishing calendar and factors affecting it (including fish spawning time, weather condition, wind types), fishing location, orientation and navigation in fishing, fishing tools and equipment and methods of net placement. Turkmen fishers also described how the quantity, quality and diversity of fish has drastically decreased over time and they mentioned six main reasons for that including exchange of paddling and rowing boats for motor boats; adoption of galvanized nets which replaced cotton nets; decreased possibility and condition of spawning; degradation of shore habitats and decline in fish food leading to fish migration; destruction of small lakes and wetlands adjacent to Caspian Sea and overfishing. In conclusion, considering the role of small-scale fishers in human well-being and food security, their Indigenous and local knowledge must be taken into consideration for natural resources management and conservation.
Graphical abstract
... Although many of these communities share certain characteristics with Indigenous Peoples (e.g., long histories of placebased living, subsistence economies, and distinct cultural practices), they do not self-identify as Indigenous. The academic literature refers to them as non-Indigenous local communities [e.g., (53,54)]. Consequently, we treat Madagascar separately from all other primate regions in most of our analyses (see below). ...
Primates, represented by 521 species, are distributed across 91 countries primarily in the Neotropic, Afrotropic, and Indo-Malayan realms. Primates inhabit a wide range of habitats and play critical roles in sustaining healthy ecosystems that benefit human and nonhuman communities. Approximately 68% of primate species are threatened with extinction because of global pressures to convert their habitats for agricultural production and the extraction of natural resources. Here, we review the scientific literature and conduct a spatial analysis to assess the significance of Indigenous Peoples' lands in safeguarding primate biodiversity. We found that Indigenous Peoples' lands account for 30% of the primate range, and 71% of primate species inhabit these lands. As their range on these lands increases, primate species are less likely to be classified as threatened or have declining populations. Safeguarding Indigenous Peoples' lands, languages, and cultures represents our greatest chance to prevent the extinction of the world's primates.
... The local faly, meaning forbidden or ''you shall not,'' is a component of the laws inherited from the ancestors. These rules are thus more restrictive than the state rules and sanctioning is much stronger and more efficient (Tengö et al., 2007). ...
... Respect and reverence for the ancestors and other spirits requires the Tandroy to follow the prohibitions of the faly. In southern Androy, analyses were made of taboo forests with strict restriction for human access and use, ala kibory; taboo forests with some restrictions on human use, salata; and public forests with few restrictions on human access and use (Tengö et al., 2007). ...
This chapter reviews the range of policy options available
for the sustainable use of wild species. Four broad and
overlapping categories of instruments are considered:
i) legal and regulatory, ii) economic and financial, iii) social
and information based, and iv) customary and rights based.
Evidence for their effectiveness in supporting the governance
of socio-ecologically sustainable use is evaluated, and key
enabling and constraining conditions determined. This
information is intended to support decision-makers and
society in steering towards a desirable future.
... One alternative to paying heavy investment on protected areas is to support and learn from existing traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) systems of biodiversity conservation and ecosystem services found outside formally protected areas. Outside formally protected areas, management practices of the local people play a crucial role in conserving biodiversity and enhancing ecosystem services that underpin human well-being (Daily 1997;MA 2003;Tengö et al. 2007). ...
Sacred natural sites (SNS) are multi-functional in nature and provide a variety of ecosystem services that contribute to human
well-being and environmental sustainability. Interest in the SNS and their role in biodiversity conservation and ecosystem
services have grown in the Anthropocene. Researchers suggested that, besides having spiritual and religious values for local
community, SNS provide provisioning, regulating, cultural and supporting services. In this study, we identifed and valued
the importance of ecosystem services provided by SNS in the Varanasi district of Uttar Pradesh, India. The methods used
included feld work, in-depth literature review, observations, focus-group discussions (FGD) and interviews. This study
identifed 35 ecosystem services of SNS spanning across four categories including provisioning, regulating, cultural and
supporting services. According to the informants, SNS provide a wide range of ecosystem services, with supporting services
being most valued followed by cultural, regulating, and provisioning services. We recommend that a sustainable management
of SNS should be based on the local people’s participation in policy, planning and decision-making and utilization of hybrid
knowledge system combining modern science and traditional ecological knowledge. Findings of the research contribute to
a growing literature on ecosystem services and provide a basis for future studies to unearth how ecosystem services of SNS
can support the achievement of sustainable development goals (SDGs).
... Although some sub-regions had the same perception of what constitutes informal institutional processes, many other informal institutional processes were conceived differently across the sub-regions (Table 4). Despite these variations, the informal processes in SSA are unified in their grand objective of promoting sociocultural and ecological benefits (Luoga et al., 2005;Nkemnyi et al., 2016;Tengö et al., 2007;Yeboah-Assiamah et al., 2019). ...
With growing concerns linked to the (un)sustainable management of forest resources, the role of institutions as mediators increasingly gains relevance in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). This is particularly so, as formal and informal institutions virtually compete for dominance-a yet-to-be-resolved colonial hangover. A large body of scientific knowledge exists on the role of institutions in regulating forest access, use, and management in SSA, albeit fragmented. Sub-regional variations in research on this subject further nuances our understanding of the breadth of conceptual and methodological issues in this field. This raises a central question: How can we advance knowledge on forest management institutions in SSA to enhance forest governance amidst the critical role of forests in addressing current global environmental challenges? We contribute answers to such interrogation by systematically reviewing more than three decades of scientific literature on institutions in forest use and management. Through a structured review of 100 empirical articles (involving 374 cases studies), and guided by the socio-ecological co-evolution framework, we derived two lessons. First, the conceptualization of forest-linked institutions is more skewed towards institutions as processes, than as structures. Second, the major determinants of institutional compliance are economic, ecological, political, socio-cultural, demographic, and geographical in nature. However, the weight of each determining factor varies in specific sub-regions. For instance, in East Africa, economic, ecological, socio-cultural, and geographic factors dominate while economic, demographic, and political factors dominate in Central Africa. Therefore, in crafting forest institutions in SSA, sub-regional disparities in factors that influence compliance (or otherwise) should be critically considered and addressed to improve effectiveness. Methodologically, qualitative approaches (e.g., key informant interviews and focus group discussions), conducted within short time spans, have been prioritized. However, observed knowledge fragmentation on the subject, including inconsistencies or mismatches, calls for combined, long term qualitative analyses with quantitative ones, in a robust mixed-methods approach. Future research should prioritize this methodological approach, with a focus on sub-regional, country-level specificities, to better inform understanding of forest-linked institutional dynamics.
... It remains to be seen whether hunting pressure on these species has diminished during the last few years or whether previous records had assumed lower occurrences of these species than is really the case. At some sites, such as at Ebelo, "sacred forests" protected by the community remain strongholds for biodiversity conservation (e.g., Bodin et al., 2006;Tengo et al., 2007;Ferguson et al., 2013Ferguson et al., , 2014, though the safeguarding effect of these forests vary (e.g., Nopper et al., 2017). Issues to be followed up concern the identification of Lepilemur and some conservation problems. ...
In April 2000, the Masoala forest was devastated by a very intense category 4 cyclone, called Hudah. Studies were carried out on the impacts of this natural disaster on the population of the diurnal lemur Varecia rubra which were carried out one year (2001) and four years (2004) after its passage in a site named Antsahamanara, located on the east coast of the Masoala peninsula, the region most affected by this cyclone. This study is conducted in 2018 at the same site, during the same season and applying the same data collection methods as those used during the previous studies. It consists in determining the variations on the demographic and habitat parameters, the time budget and the availability of food eighteen years after the passage of Hurricane Hudah. From this study, changes in these parameters were reported suggesting an adaptation strategy of Varecia rubra to the degradation of its habitat despite its vulnerability.
... It remains to be seen whether hunting pressure on these species has diminished during the last few years or whether previous records had assumed lower occurrences of these species than is really the case. At some sites, such as at Ebelo, "sacred forests" protected by the community remain strongholds for biodiversity conservation (e.g., Bodin et al., 2006;Tengo et al., 2007;Ferguson et al., 2013Ferguson et al., , 2014, though the safeguarding effect of these forests vary (e.g., Nopper et al., 2017). Issues to be followed up concern the identification of Lepilemur and some conservation problems. ...
... These beliefs lead to myths, taboos, folklore, and other practices that protect the species of interest [69]. In Madagascar, taboos against the degradation of sacred forests in the Androy region helped maintain the ecological integrity of the forest [70]. Local communities around the Muni lagoon in Effutu Municipality believed that mangroves could "heal" the lagoon water around which they grow, thereby allowing fish to increase. ...
