Changing Climates, Changing Conflicts: Understanding the Relationship Between Climate Change and Human-Wildlife Conflicts in East and Southern Africa 

When climate change intensifies competition for resources among humans, livestock, and wildlife, it can fuel human-wildlife conflicts such as livestock attacks by lions and crop raiding by elephants. Wanting to explore this relationship further as a Laidlaw Scholar and member of the Morally Contested Conservation project based at the University of Oxford’s Wildlife Conservation Research Unit, I wrote a literature review in summer 2023 on the role climate change plays in amplifying human-wildlife conflicts in East and southern Africa. My findings suggested that these conflicts can threaten food security, financial well-being, and overall livelihood, highlighting the need for initiatives that promote human-wildlife coexistence. 

In summer 2024, I traveled to Tanzania’s Burunge Wildlife Management Area (WMA) to expand on my preliminary findings. Along with a team of five Tanzanian research assistants, we administered an oral questionnaire to over 300 smallholder farmers across three villages in Burunge: Olasiti, Minjingu, and Mwada. My study sought to understand past experiences and future predictions of human-wildlife conflicts, temperature, and rainfall to determine if there is a correlation between perceptions of the three. 

I am returning to Burunge in June 2025 to report my findings to WMA chairmen, village chiefs, and community members, as well as to community-based organizations (e.g. Honeyguide) and NGOs (e.g. World Wide Fund for Nature) that are designing initiatives to improve human-wildlife coexistence in rural communities. Though decisions on international wildlife conservation are largely driven by Western countries, it is the people in seemingly-distant places who often bear their greatest burdens. The knowledge disseminated through this project may help to not only inform conservation decisions in the Burunge WMA that prioritize community members’ perspectives, but also to raise awareness among residents of the Global North of the impacts of wildlife on rural livelihoods.

Like most students, I entered Cornell with preconceived notions of what wildlife conservation looks like in practice. My interest in studying controversial conservation only grew when I began to learn about the benefits of trophy hunting for rural African communities in Namibia, the ability for climate change to indirectly drive wildlife poisonings in Uganda, and the potential role of militarization in advancing conservation goals in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Today, that fascination continues to propel me to research complex conservation issues and make my findings accessible to people who, much like my younger self, are presented with narratives that miss much of the nuance.

My own research focuses on how climate change amplifies negative interactions between people and wild animals, or human-wildlife conflicts. My interest in climate change stems from my upbringing: I am from Texas, where consistent daily summer temperatures above 40°C force many of us to remain inside for several weeks while the sun shines, while winter storms every February cause my neighbors to lose power for upwards of ten days each year. Experiencing these increasingly severe problems firsthand piqued my curiosity about strategies for climate change mitigation, adaptation, and resilience. When I soon discovered a second love for wildlife conservation and began to take Swahili classes for fun, I realized that my interests in climate, conservation, and multilingual conversation could come together rather serendipitously. From there, my Laidlaw research was born! 

To be a Laidlaw Scholar means to find community among some of the most inspiring students I know. I am continually amazed by Scholars who, despite working across diverse disciplines, unite in their desire to change the world. I’ve cherished my bonds with Scholars at Cornell and internationally, especially with my Near Peer Group. Shoutout to Vaibhav Pramode Nair, Sophia Waseem Khan, Batool Zaidi, Oliver Pugh, Phoebe Woo, and Lucia Santos for keeping our annual conversations alive!

Beyond relationships, the Laidlaw Scholarship has opened doors for me to research issues that I likely couldn’t have studied otherwise. The opportunity to research conservation at Cornell and internationally, present findings to diverse audiences, and obtain mentorship from leaders in this discipline has transformed my trajectory as a social science researcher and shaped my graduate school aspirations. I have the Laidlaw Scholarship to thank for ultimately solidifying my interest in conservation and agriculture, and for introducing me to lifelong friends and mentors. 

The leaders who inspire me the most are all women I know personally. Dr. Anke Wessels, Director of the Center for Transformative Action and former professor of mine, amazes me for her commitment to advancing a more socially just and environmentally sound future. Dr. Amy Dickman, Director of Oxford’s Wildlife Conservation Research Unit, has gracefully responded to immense backlash from individuals whose perspectives on wildlife conservation differ from her own, built relationships of trust and reciprocity with rural communities, and turned her ambitions into impact through her leadership at Lion Landscapes. 

Francine Barchett, a Cornell PhD Candidate studying trophy hunting, first sparked my interest in wildlife conservation while giving a guest lecture in one of my first-year classes. However, whether serving on the Council of Advisors of the World Food Prize Foundation, successfully advocating for free menstrual products in New York prisons, or running a 100-mile race in the Alaskan winter, her impact extends far beyond the conservation sphere. From the day I met her, Francine has taught me to challenge my preconceptions and to ask difficult questions that are often swept under the rug. She, Dr. Wessels, and Dr. Dickman are leaders in the truest sense of the word.

I envision a future where reciprocity triumphs over greed, where people communicate respectfully across differences, and where kindness toward both people and the environment is the norm.

My friends surprised me with a delicious home-cooked dinner — I have been feeling warm and fuzzy ever since!