Project background  The Limpopo River Basin is a complex transboundary system that supports more than 18 million people across the riparian states of Botswana, Mozambique, South Africa, and Zimbabwe. Most of this population is rural and poor, and heavily dependent on subsistence agriculture. The basin is an important agricultural area, has extraordinary mineral resources, is exceptionally rich in biodiversity, supports a significant tourism industry, and contains major urban and industrial centres. The system comprises biophysical and human sub-systems and drivers, all of which interact to present a composite picture of vulnerability. As the Limpopo River Basin approaches water resources closure [...]

Project background  The Limpopo River Basin is a complex transboundary system that supports more than 18 million people across the riparian states of Botswana, Mozambique, South Africa, and Zimbabwe. Most of this population is rural and poor, and heavily dependent on subsistence agriculture. The basin is an important agricultural area, has extraordinary mineral resources, is exceptionally rich in biodiversity, and supports a significant tourism industry. More than 60% of Botswana’s population resides in the Limpopo and it contains some of South Africa’s major urban and industrial centres. The system comprises biophysical and human sub-systems and drivers, all of which interact [...]

Understanding the social and environmental impacts of multiple drivers of global and local change in Africa requires systemic and longitudinal place-based research. Landscapes provide the ‘ideal’ unit for this purpose, as well as for applying sustainable solutions that tackle complex—sometimes wicked—development and environmental challenges. Through a landscape approach, it is possible to explore the interaction between multiple sustainable development goals (SDGs), enabling understanding of the impacts of change and risk on biodiversity, ecosystem services, and livelihoods, as well as the implementation of locally appropriate and integrated response options. Indeed, landscape approaches have been widely promoted by government agencies, NGOs, and [...]