Migration and Conservation in the Bale Mountains Ecosystem

The document examines how migration, particularly in the Harenna Buluk district, accelerates deforestation and biodiversity loss in Ethiopia's Harenna Forest. It identifies political pull factors and the introduction of profit-oriented crop farming as key drivers of ecosystem degradation. The brief recommends regulating informal land markets, strengthening species protection, leveraging water conservation narratives, and developing sustainable livelihoods like tourism to protect the ecosystem.

• Migration into the Harenna Buluk district of the Harenna Forest has been driven by a combination of push factors, such as limited economic opportunities in areas of origin, and pull factors, most notably the desire of political elites to increase the district's population by promoting migration.
• Migrants in Harenna Buluk have introduced profit-oriented crop farming, including the cultivation of khat, which local residents have rapidly adopted, shifting away from traditional pastoralism.
• While deforestation, habitat loss, and biodiversity loss are occurring across both the Harenna Buluk and Delo Mena districts due to livelihood diversification and intensification, these processes are happening at a faster rate in Harenna Buluk due to migration pressures.
• Current forest management bylaws in Harenna Buluk and Delo Mena are ineffective because penalties for infractions consist of minor, symbolic fines that do not act as deterrents.

APA

Wakjira, D. T., d’Udine, F., & Crawford, A. (2015). Migration and Conservation in the Bale Mountains Ecosystem. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/migration-conservation-bale-mountains-ecosystem-policy-brief.pdf

Chicago

Wakjira, Dereje Tadesse, Floris d’Udine, and Alec Crawford. Migration and Conservation in the Bale Mountains Ecosystem. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2015. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/migration-conservation-bale-mountains-ecosystem-policy-brief.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Wakjira |first1=Dereje Tadesse |last2=d’Udine |first2=Floris |last3=Crawford |first3=Alec |title=Migration and Conservation in the Bale Mountains Ecosystem |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=August 2015 |url=https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/migration-conservation-bale-mountains-ecosystem-policy-brief.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{wakjira2015migration, author = {Wakjira, Dereje Tadesse and d’Udine, Floris and Crawford, Alec}, title = {{Migration and Conservation in the Bale Mountains Ecosystem}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2015}, month = aug, url = {https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/migration-conservation-bale-mountains-ecosystem-policy-brief.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }