Record Display for the EPA National Library Catalog

RECORD NUMBER: 28 OF 142

Main Title Environmental Change in Lesotho An Analysis of the Causes and Consequences of Land-Use Change in the Lowland Region / [electronic resource] :
Type EBOOK
Author Maro, Pendo.
Publisher Springer Netherlands,
Year Published 2011
Call Number GE300-350
ISBN 9789400718814
Subjects Environmental sciences ; Geography ; Landscape ecology ; Environmental law ; Environmental management ; Sustainable development ; Human Geography
Internet Access
Description Access URL
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-1881-4
Collation X, 192 p. online resource.
Notes
Due to license restrictions, this resource is available to EPA employees and authorized contractors only
Contents Notes
Introduction -- The Wealth of Knowledge: Drivers and Consequences of Land-Use Change -- Lesotho: Macro to Micro Perspectives of Land-Use Change -- Village Perceptions of Land-Use Change.-Village Patterns of Land-Use Change -- Discussing Causes and Consequences of Land-Use Change in the Lowland Region -- Conclusions: So What? -- Index. The aim of this book is to identify and analyze the drivers of land-use change and the consequences of these changes on the livelihoods of rural land-users/managers. To accomplish this, a combination of tools from the social sciences and environmental fields were developed to identify causes and consequences of land-use change at selected levels, using a 'nested' approach. These methods were then applied to a case study of villages in Maseru and Mohale's Hoek districts in the Lowland region of Lesotho. Based on the research findings, key proximate drivers of land-use change in the Lowland villages were established. These were drought, lack of water, land mismanagement, HIV/AIDS and 'dependency syndrome'. These were acted on by underlying and other drivers to bring about major changes in land-use. The book offers an understanding of the actions of local land-users and managers, and their responses to biophysical, social-political, environmental, HIV/AIDS and other stresses, giving an insight into a household's decision-making behaviour, degree of vulnerability and hence their resilience and adaptive capabilities and mechanisms. This book is directed at the wide scientific and non-scientific audience including environmental and social science experts, researchers, decision-makers, and development/aid workers interested in understanding the intricate human-environment relationship as it relates to land-use change in a changing biophysical, socio-economic, political and institutional context, coupled by HIV/AIDS, changing demographics, local perceptions and what is termed here 'dependency syndrome'.