The workshop titled Sustainable Use and Conservation of Natural Resources was supported by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD with funds from Germany’s Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).
Highlights included:
• Contributions from the Michael Succow Foundation, who received the Right Livelihood Award in 1999. Niko Malazonia, a thematic expert on protected areas and bioreserve presented his work on Biosphere Reserves and World Heritage Sites
• Insights from FSC International: Former ZEF researcher Girma Kelboro Mensuro shared perspectives on forest stewardship, certification systems, and community-based sustainability practices.
The 15 PhD researchers presented innovative work on biodiversity governance in the Middle East and North Africa, climate-smart and regenerative agriculture in Kenya, Togo, Mexico, and Brazil, and sustainability challenges in Ethiopia, Mongolia, Zimbabwe, and Lebanon. In addition, they presented work on political ecology and conservation—from pangolin protection in the Philippines to human–wilderness relations in the African Great Lakes and peri-urban wetland governance in India—alongside studies on carbon project governance, extractive-sector dynamics, and water management transformations.
Together, these contributions highlighted the varied socio-ecological pathways through which communities navigate environmental change and pursue more just, resilient futures.