Building a biodiversity intactness index for Africa
Project name:
Building a biodiversity intactness index for Africa
Project partners:
South African National Biodiversity Institute, 200 experts in African biodiversity across 39 countries
Funders:
Oppenheimer Generations Research and Conservation
Project period:
2020 to 2023
Project outputs:
Website: https://bii4africa.org/; Mobilising Africa’s biodiversity experts to put nature on the decision-making map article in Africa Geographic
Project Description
Africa is known for its iconic biodiversity on which people depend for essential services, such as food, water and clean air. The continent is also currently experiencing the most rapid development of any region. The upcoming decade is therefore critical for African countries to navigate development in ways that do not surpass a boundary of biodiversity loss, beyond which human well-being is negatively affected. This requires a measure of what biodiversity remains, where, and how the loss of biodiversity influences human well-being across different ecosystems and land uses. The “bii4africa” project is addressing this knowledge gap by developing a Biodiversity Intactness Index for Africa, through an Africa-wide collaboration of 200 biodiversity experts.
A map of biodiversity intactness, co-produced by 200 experts in Africa’s fauna and flora
