Environmental Change in Lesotho, 2011 An Analysis of the Causes and Consequences of Land-Use Change in the Lowland Region

Environmental Change in Lesotho identifies and analyzes the drivers of land-use change and the consequences of these changes on the livelihoods of rural land-users/managers. To accomplish this, a combination of tools from the social sciences and environmental fields were developed to identify causes and consequences of land-use change at selected levels, using a ?nested? approach. These methods were then applied to a case study of two villages in the Lowland region of Lesotho. This book is directed at environmental and social science experts, researchers, decision-makers, and development/aid workers interested in understanding the intricate human-environment relationship as it relates to land-use change in a changing biophysical, socio-economic, political and institutional context, coupled by HIV/AIDS, changing demographics, local perceptions and what is termed here ?dependency syndrome?.

This Lesotho case study discusses HIV/AIDS and ‘dependency syndrome’ in the context of human geography Contributes policy-relevant knowledge for decision-making on sustainable land use Challenges some commonly-held myths about land-use change