Abstract

As anthropology turns its focus beyond humans, biodiversity conservation increasingly recognises the necessary incorporation of human dimensions. This must happen with urgency because of the rapid rates of environmental change in the Anthropocene and the ever-increasing pressure on shared resources. Previous research on the connection between local ecological knowledge and the perseverance of wildlife is predominately inside protected areas yet the majority of western chimpanzees, for example, live in unprotected areas suggesting informal protections are playing a continued critical role in biodiverse anthropogenic landscapes. To address this gap, this project looks both inside and outside formally protected areas in Guinea-Bissau and Sierra Leone to identify local ecological knowledge that leads to the intentional or unintentional conservation of wildlife, to explore how this is influenced by changing contexts, and to reflect on how it could be incorporated in formal conservation planning to reduce vulnerabilities for local people and wildlife.

Team