A total of fifteen universities and research institutes in Germany, Switzerland and Tanzania are involved in the network, coordinated by the Senckenberg Institute in Frankfurt am Main.
The project focuses on the question of how nature - in interaction with social and economic conditions - influences the living circumstances of people in the Kilimanjaro region. Crucial factors here are biodiversity and the ecosystem services it provides, such as clean drinking water and fertile soils. These are being diminished by climate change and, as a result of population growth, also by intensifying land use.
The Bayreuth biologist Dr. Andreas Hemp has been researching the flora of Africa's highest mountain together with partners in Germany, Kenya, and Tanzania for more than 30 years. From 2010 to 2019, he headed the "KiLi" DFG research group in Africa, which for the first time studied the ecosystems of Kilimanjaro on 65 research plots in locations ranging from the savannah to the summit region. As part of the new project, Hemp will also spend several months researching at two scientific stations on the southern slope, together with coordinator Dr. Claudia Hemp of the Senckenberg Institute, who is responsible for African personnel and infrastructure at the research stations. As in previous years, a team of young African researchers is involved in the project.
A particular focus of the research work is Kilimanjaro National Park itself, which covers an area of around 1,700 square kilometres, and has been designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It covers a range of altitude from 1,800 metres above sea level to the 5,895-metre-high peak of Kibo, the main summit of Mount Kilimanjaro. As in 2001, the Bayreuth researcher’s team intends to fly over the entire area and comprehensively map current forest damage. In addition to illegal activities such as logging, charcoal burning, and forest grazing, they are seeking to identify areas at risk of landslide and forest fire. This will provide invaluable information for the further development of the National Park and its use for tourism, from which other national parks in East Africa also stand to benefit.
