The biological importance of the Eastern Arc Mountains and Coastal Forests of Tanzania and Kenya is well recognized. There have been a considerable number of biodiversity investigations and conservation efforts in this hotspot during the last three decades. Despite this investment, there are significant gaps in our biological knowledge. There are also important opportunities for the further application of conservation science, particularly with respect to forest fragmentation. The major threats to the hotspot arise from the needs of impoverished local people, rather than from any large-scale developmental projects or corporate ventures. These considerations have led to a definition of the CEPF niche that builds on previous work through a focus on people and science.
The people focus will be on the interface between biodiversity and development and will address ways in which local populations can benefit from and contribute to, biodiversity conservation in the hotspot. The science focus will be on opportunities for improving connectivity in fragmented forests and on gaps in our biological knowledge of the hotspot. In each case, projects funded by CEPF must have a positive effect on at least one of the 333 threatened species and/or the 160 sites identified in this profile. Building local human capacity is the major element in the sustainability strategy. No matter how global the world becomes, it will be local actions that will largely determine the future of biodiversity hotspots. The prospects for the hotspots will be greatly improved if these local actions are motivated by conservation concerns and guided by good science.
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