Linking the conservation of culture and nature: A case study of sacred forests in Zimbabwe

This paper examines the role of traditional religious beliefs and tradition al leaders in conserving remnant patches of a unique type of dry forest in the Zambezi Valley of northern Zimbabwe. We examined aerial photographs spa nning more than three decades, interviewed and surveyed local residents and mel with communities to learn about the environmental history of the fores ts and the factors that have affected land use in the area. Our results sho w that forest loss is dramatically less in forests that are now considered sacred or were in the past connected to sacred forests. This supports our h ypothesis that traditional spiritual values have influenced human behavior affecting the forests, and have played a role in protecting them until now. We also found that rates of forest loss have been much higher in an area w here traditional leaders are relatively disempowered within the post-indepe ndence political system compared to an area where traditional leaders have move power. These findings lead us to conclude that a strategy that links t he conservation of culture and nature is likely to be more effective in con serving forests than a strategy that ignores traditional beliefs, values, a nd institutions,