Wildlife ranching and the green economy:
the role of evidence-based policy
Michael ‘t Sas-Rolfes
Focus on your game? Know the rules of the game!
Who makes the rules?
•of prod
Biodiversity Economy Strategy (BES): 7 key objectives
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Conservation of biodiversity and ecological infrastructure
Sustainable use of indigenous resources
Fair and equitable beneficiation
Socio-economic sustainability
Incentive driven compliance to regulation
Ethical practices
Improving quality and standards of products
Or do these guys make the rules?
Look at the messaging!
Some common claims
Legal wildlife trade fuels illegal wildlife trade and poaching
Farming / commercial ranching of endangered species won’t save them –
it will hasten their demise
Trophy hunting is not sustainable and does not contribute to conservation,
nor does it contribute significantly to national economies or rural livelihoods
We must reduce / stop supply and demand for harvested wildlife products
Where is the evidence to support these claims?
Contested facts and figures
Fake news
Stop killing lions for their bones to make bogus aphrodisiacs
The export of lion skeletons to China for use in 'aphrodisiac'
wines threatens the survival of the king of the beasts, says
Richard Schiffman
The Good News
SA Government supports the Biodiversity Economy
Minister Molewa:
‘We need to step up our efforts to utilise our biodiversity sustainably and
economically to support livelihoods of all South Africans including present
and future generations’
SA Government also supports evidence-based policy
What is evidence-based policy-making?
Evidence-Based Policy Evidence-based policy-making (EBPM) helps policy
makers and providers of services make better decisions, and achieve
better outcomes, by drawing upon the best available evidence from
research and evaluation and other sources.
- DEA / UCT October 2014
http://www.dpme.gov.za/keyfocusareas/evaluationsSite/Evaluations/Wha
t%20is%20EBPM%2014%2010%2013_mp.pdf
Drucker: Measure and manage!
What is wildlife ranching?
Minister Molewa:
Wildlife ranching industry is
‘characterised by an interesting combination of agriculture, eco- tourism
and conservation characteristics.’
(& trade!)
“The biodiversity economy (wildlife ranching)
has not reached its full potential
It remains:
unrecognised, underdeveloped and untransformed
To achieve its full potential, we require a
strategic partnership
between
the state, private sector and communities.”
Some questions about wildlife ranching
What is its current contribution to economic development?
What is its current contribution to socio-economic transformation?
What is its current contribution to conservation?
What are the industry’s ethics?
What is the unrealised potential?
&
How do we realise it?
Standard criticisms / concerns wrt wildlife ranching
Elitist – ‘rich white farmers’ (not contributing to transformation)
Unethical – animal exploitation (welfare); illegal activity; reputational risk
Conservation impacts of intensification:
Loss of wildness (Red-List issue) / ‘no conservation value’
Selective breeding – unnatural / bad genetics
Fences – habitat fragmentation
Predator control
Target areas of concern: rhinos, lions, colour variants
Lots to measure!
What do we know?
What do we not know?
How do we fill the gaps?
BES: Research and development currently insufficient
– research budgets are limited
– very little new data is collected
– research efforts are uncoordinated
– access to this research outputs are also limited
“Official statistics and supporting research are required for:
– quantifying the relevant industry baselines
– appropriate target setting and short, medium and long term
planning of a variety of intermediate objectives within the BES.
Statistical and other research outputs are required also for quarterly
monitoring, answering various policy questions and tracking trends.
First requirement: develop a research strategy for the wildlife sector:
prioritise research requirements, identify existing research capacity and
new capacity requirements, data and data sources and funding
requirements.”
It’s not so simple! Lion example
Captive lions: Do they threaten wild lions?
‘No conservation value’ – can’t reintroduce into wild
- Hunter et al (2013)
Canned hunting / bone trade controversies
US decision to ban trophy imports from captive lions:
- No contribution to wild lion conservation
Lion bone trade – zero quota?
Not so fast!
Bauer et al (2015):
Wild lions declining in all but four (southern) African countries
South Africa is the only country in which all wild populations are increasing
South Africa is the only country with large-scale captive breeding
Do these facilities threaten wild lions?
or
Do they play an important ‘buffer’ role?
A general research question:
Wilding the farm?
or
Farming the wild?
- Carruthers (2008)
Two hypotheses:
Wildlife ranching:
Reduces biodiversity,
Undermines conservation objectives,
Reduces ‘wildness’
or
Enhances biodiversity (including ecosystem services),
Supports conservation objectives,
Rewilds
Conservation (& other) contributions may be:
• Direct
• Indirect (economic; second-order effects)
• Counterfactual (ask the ‘what if’ questions)
Need interdisciplinary research that understands complex dynamic
systems, ecological – economic interactions!
Bottom line
We need more / better data (and sound analysis)!
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Habitat conserved
Animal numbers, species distribution and genetic conditions
Fences; predator control; movement control / fragmentation
Economic data: quantities traded & prices; production costs
Consumer preferences
Financial and economic contributions (size and distribution)
Impacts of regulations
Data (evidence-based) uses:
Influence policy and regulation
Certification / industry self-regulation
Better management (individual and collective)
Outreach
Peer-reviewed articles
Popular articles
Social media / sound-bites
Research project examples
Lions – market dynamics (SANBI / SAPA)
Categorisation of wildlife ranching activities (SANBI)
Rhinos – trading system; productive capacity (PROA)
Recommendations
To ensure its future, the wildlife ranching industry needs to come of age:
Formalize, set standards, be more accountable
Be pro-active in research arena – help to set the agenda!
Work with government (e.g. SANBI) and credible academic institutions
Build in data protection mechanisms to address business confidentiality
and security concerns (PROA, SAPA models)