Sustainable Rangelands Initiative
Sustainable Rangelands Initiative
In northern Tanzania, 92 percent of available wildlife habitat consists of places where people and wildlife interact. The Sustainable Rangelands Initiative works to keep these critical areas open and flourishing for the long-term benefit of rural communities and wild animals.
Through regular data collection, assessment, information sharing, and active management, volunteer rangeland monitors—selected in conjunction with local leaders—use a mobile-based reporting system to provide updates on pasture quality to their community networks. The project is generating visible results, including increased grass height, reduced areas of bare ground, and the return of important plant and wildlife species to community-managed grazing areas.
HOW THE SUSTAINABLE RANGELANDS INITIATIVE WORKS
Step One
Each participating community receives comprehensive training from APW staff in sustainable rangeland management.
Step Three
The team gathers data such as grass height, the percentage of bare ground, and presence of invasive plant species.
Step Five
The grazing committee meets with the local government to decide where and when community members can graze their livestock.
Step Two
A team of community volunteer rangeland monitors allocates plots in local pastures for assessment.
Step Four
The team transmits the rangeland data to the community grazing committee via a mobile-based reporting system.
Step Six
Critical habitats regenerate, leading to the return of important plant and wildlife species.
HOW THE SUSTAINABLE RANGELANDS INITIATIVE WORKS
Step One
Each participating community receives comprehensive training from APW staff in sustainable rangeland management.
Step Two
A team of community volunteer rangeland monitors allocates plots in local pastures for assessment.
Step Three
The team gathers data such as grass height, the percentage of bare ground, and presence of invasive plant species.
Step Four
The team transmits the rangeland data to the community grazing committee via a mobile-based reporting system.
Step Five
The grazing committee meets with the local government to decide where and when community members can graze their livestock.
Step Six
Critical habitats regenerate, leading to the return of important plant and wildlife species.
“Pastures that used to be bare now have grass growing. We also have transport assistance that allows us to monitor and manage areas that were difficult to reach before.”
YOHANA LESIRKON, GRAZING COMMITTEE MEMBER
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