Conservation-based tourism development, climate change, inclusion of locals, and post-human-wildlife co-existence conflicts: A case study of Gonarezhou National Park

Abstract

There is a growth in knowledge on complex interaction between people and parks. However, conservation-based tourism development, climate change, local inclusion, and post-human-wildlife co-existence conflicts in African Transfrontier Conservation Areas, is still limited especially as joint field. The study area is described and presented using maps and cartographic illustrations to picture territorial boundaries. The discussion upholds evidence on symbiotic linkage between the effects of climate change and communities whose livelihoods are impacted by these effects. The increase in population and migration into lands close to national parks has led to humans encroaching on wildlife habitats, exacerbating human-wildlife co-existence conflicts. On the other hand, conservation-based tourism development initiatives are perceived by locals as only involving elite communities, excluding many. The COVID-19 pandemic and lockdowns have exacerbated the impact of the above-raised factors. There is a paucity of information about this complexity from the perspective of the human behavioural lens. In this context, effects, challenges, trends, opportunities, and solutions/practices are yet to be explored. This chapter aimed to fill the gap by assessing trends and patterns in research-based knowledge, with Gonarezhou National Park, Zimbabwe, as a case study while setting a research agenda for the research community in post-COVID-19 health crisis. A critical-scoping review analysis was used while following Creswell qualitative analysis framework to analyse research data from Google Scholar, Scopus, Web of Science, Science Direct and Sabinet databases between 2000 and 2023. Based on maps, and cartographic illustrations, there are territorial changes over the period as society (territorial boundaries, activities, cultures and learnt behaviours of people), environment (climatic changes, and composition of biodiversity) and COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown measures propelled a 'cause-effect' for human-wildlife co-existence conflicts (illegal hunting of wildlife and over-harvest of herbs and wood included). Within this context, the study unveiled four areas, namely: (i) limited evidence on local community/household (stakeholders) engagement; (ii) a paucity of human-behavioural focused models/theories in post-human-wildlife conflicts; (iii) limited knowledge of the nexus between the topics under consideration and multi-disciplinary research; and (iv) the need to document theory-in-practice, strategies, potential opportunities, and solutions to challenges. The study assessed the trends and patterns prevailing in conservation-based tourism development, climate change, local inclusion, post-human-wildlife co-existence conflicts and effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown measures in communities around Gonarezhou National Park, Zimbabwe. There are changes in vegetation, land use as well as the composition of biodiversity. Conservation authorities should balance perceived value on the wellbeing of communities and biodiversity in initiatives aimed at conserving the biodiversity in the Gonarezhou National Park. The study derived insights that can be used to establish actionable strategies for local community participation and involvement in conservation-based tourism, empowerment and alternative livelihoods that brings resilience and better conservation and preservation of biodiversity using indigenous knowledge systems (community intelligence) while mitigating climatic changes and effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdowns. The study recommends future in-depth empirical research on the complexity of interactions between conservation-based tourism development, climate change, local inclusion, and post-human-wildlife co-existence conflic