Human-Wildlife Conflict under Climate Change
Publisher: Science
Author(s): Briana Abrahms
Date: 2021
Topics: Climate Change, Conflict Causes, Livelihoods, Renewable Resources
Human-wildlife conflict—defined here as direct interactions between humans and wildlife with adverse outcomes—costs the global economy billions of dollars annually, threatens human lives and livelihoods, and is a leading cause of biodiversity loss. These clashes largely stem from the co-occurrence of humans and wildlife seeking limited resources in shared landscapes and often has unforeseen consequences. For example, large carnivore species like leopards may prey upon livestock and disrupt human livelihoods, leading to retaliatory killings that can drive wildlife decline, zoonotic disease outbreaks, and child labor practices. As dire as these conflicts have been, climate change is intensifying human-wildlife conflict by exacerbating resource scarcity and forcing people and wildlife to share increasingly crowded spaces. Consequently, human-wildlife conflict is rising in frequency and severity, but the complex connections among climate dynamics, ecological dynamics, and social dynamics contributing to the heightened conflict have yet to be fully appreciated.