Ecology and Conservation Science in Resolving Human–Wildlife Conflicts of Sustainability

Dear Colleagues,

Human–wildlife conflict (HWC) has a history that predates the development of human civilization. Several conservation projects exist which focus on monitoring biodiversity loss and wildlife development. These activities have resulted in international agreements, new policies, rules, and pieces of legislation. Although HWC is an age-old phenomenon, its complexity, and growing severity has elevated it to the forefront of wildlife management concerns. Several variables are associated with the increase in severity, including the extension of human activities into wildlife habitats, the recovery and growth of a number of wildlife species, and significant environmental changes. This phenomenon currently presents significant environmental concerns for humans. The developing world is particularly susceptible to this issue because of its biogeographical and sociological traits. Globally, ecologists, wildlife biologists, and wildlife managers are becoming much more interested in the HWC due to the extensive effects it has on the conservation of species, the management of protected areas, and sustainable livelihoods.

Despite being a priority concern worldwide, HWC agreements and laws frequently fall short of the anticipated results because of poor strategies or incorrect approaches, inadequate public education or poor knowledge transmission, and a lack of public acceptance of environmental protection measures. To understand the historical patterns at work and establish future goals, it is crucial to have an understanding of the historical trajectories of HWC. Developing public awareness of the value of protecting biodiversity would help to spur progress in solution-oriented ecology and conservation science in other areas to handle the issue of HWCs and sustainability. The inclusion of critical stakeholders, integrated approaches, models, and adequate knowledge transmission are important steps to achieving co-existence between people and wildlife. We invite scholars to submit articles on ecology and conservation science on environmental sustainability to this Special Issue, the focus of which will be on the human–wildlife conflict. Topics that address environmental protection, biodiversity monitoring, sustainable consumption and/or livelihood, public environmental awareness, biodiversity and human development are encouraged. The required focus of these topics is that they must address human–wildlife interaction and must develop a plan on how to resolve the relevant conflicts.

Dr. Christian Madu
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• biodiversity
• co-existence
• human–wildlife interaction
• environmental sustainability
• biodiversity monitoring
• ecology
• conservation science