Abstract
In this paper, we review the potential of biocultural heritage in biodiversity protection and agricultural innovation in sub-Saharan Africa. We begin by defining the concept of biocultural heritage into four interlinked elements that are revealed through integrated landscape analysis. This concerns the transdisciplinary methods whereby biocultural heritage must be explored, and here we emphasise that reconstructing landscape histories and documenting local heritage values needs to be an integral part of the process. Ecosystem memories relate to the structuring of landscape heterogeneity through such activities as agroforestry and fire management. The positive linkages between living practices, biodiversity and soil nutrients examined here are demonstrative of the concept of ecosystem memories. Landscape memories refer to built or enhanced landscapes linked to specific land-use systems and property rights. Place memories signify practices of protection or use related to a specific place. Customary protection of burial sites and/or abandoned settlements, for example, is a common occurrence across Africa with beneficial outcomes for biodiversity and forest protection. Finally, we discuss stewardship and change. Building on local traditions, inclusivity and equity are essential to promoting the continuation and innovation of practices crucial for local sustainability and biodiversity protection, and also offer new avenues for collaboration in landscape management and conservation.
Highlights
A high proportion of biodiversity resides outside of protected areas
In many African settings environmental debates are still centred on the assumption that local practices of fire management, cultivation and/or grazing cause degradation
Building on and reinvigorating such local practices is important given that the effects of climate change are accelerating and climatic insecurity and its effects on food production and security are increasingly pertinent issues [26,27,28]
Summary
Incentives for biodiversity protection, must be built and fostered amongst diverse stakeholders, in areas where biodiversity and communities co-exist [1,2] In keeping with this principle, biocultural heritage is an emerging concept drawing on local knowledge, land-use practices and heritage values to define sustainability and resilience from the perspective of local inhabitants [3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10]. As will be exemplified here, local low intensity and customary practices may hold the key to strengthening, adapting and re-innovating forms of land-use that accommodate biodiversity and cultural heritage and promote adaptive management and resilience [25]. At the same time, ongoing competition for land from industrial agriculture, biofuel production, carbon off-setting projects and conservation initiatives make local communities increasingly vulnerable to both climate change and socio-economic transformations that are detrimental to particular livelihood traditions [29,30,31,32,33]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
