Indigenous Affairs 1-2/08: The Threat Posed by Climate Change to pastoralists in Africa

Desert ecosystems receive little rainfall, and are characterized by sparse vegetation and simple food webs. Around the desert edge and across many sub-tropical parts of the world are found semi-arid and sub-humid lands, which support unique species of plants and animals and a larger human population than deserts themselves are able to sustain. In parts of Africa, the Middle East and Asia, these peoples include pastoralists who, for centuries, have met the challenge of how best to survive in the harsh environments of these dry land areas. Yet today, the dry lands are in many places the scene of much acute distress, and even of tragic famine.