Northern Tanzania is an important and diverse ecological and cultural region with many protected lands. This book, Protected Areas in Northern Tanzania, brings to the forefront research on significant issues and developments in conservation and management in national parks and protected lands in northern Tanzania. The book draws attention to issues at the intersection of conservation, tourism, and community livelihood, and several studies use geospatial technologies—Geographic Information Systems and remote sensing data and techniques—to study land use and land cover conversion. With contributions from professors at the Mweka College of African Wildlife Management located at the foot of Mount Kilimanjaro and other Tanzanian researchers, the book provides important perspectives of local experts and practitioners. Protected Areas in Northern Tanzania provides a significant contribution in research and technological advancement in the areas of wildlife conservation and protected land management throughout this critical region.

The consequences of human activities through territorial occupation, resource extraction, and waste deposition, all characteristics of the Anthropocene, have severely impacted biodiversity. In some countries, passing and enforcing environmental legislation to protect the environment has proven to be a major challenge. Various types of terrestrial protected areas have been established to safeguard, manage, and utilize the biodiversity of non-human species and anthropocentrically-defined natural resources, cover approximately 14.7% of the earth's surface, according to the World Bank (n.d) and IUCN (2008). With 38% of its land dedicated to protected areas, Tanzania exceeds the global average, but not without controversy. Critics of conservation practices in Tanzania claim that they fail to consider local livelihoods, which results in marginalization and further degradation of lands and livelihoods. This paper will assess three case studies that are directly involved with the conflict between local communities and conservation development by focusing on communities of Maasai pastoralists in Northern Tanzania as they attempt to renegotiate land access to support rapidly growing populations. Case studies include Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Longido District Maasailand, and Ngerengere River Eco Camp (NGERIV). Through these case studies, this paper examines how conservationists have worked with communities to develop multipronged solutions that promote social, cultural, and economic incentives for conservation, as well as analyzes the spatial and historical limits of protected areas.

This book describes the interrelationship between the spectacular geology of an area of East Africa that includes a branch of the rift valley, as well as giant freestanding ice-capped mountains and extraordinarily toxic, alkaline lakes, and some of the greatest concentrations of wildlife on Earth. It suggests that geological processes that have shaped the iconic landforms, including active volcanoes, may also be responsible for the unusually diverse speciation which characterises the region. Moreover, it is not a coincidence that important palaeoanthropological discoveries have been unearthed in the region. National parks and conservation areas have tremendous potential for geotourism and the book assists both tour guides and visitors in this regard. In addition, the book may provide a better understanding to management of the importance of geology for sustaining wildlife.

Presents 26 papers given at a workshop held to determine future policy towards community-based conservation in Tanzania. Papers cover a range of topics including the relevance of traditional practices, and of land, village, and wildlife laws and policies; case studies of different projects in Tanzania; and an overview of community-based conservation initiatives in five other African countries.