Welcome to the Centre for Wetlands, Environment and Livelihoods.
The Centre undertakes research, training and consultancies in support of the sustainable management of wetlands and other environmental resources. Through this work the Centre assists governments, NGOs and rural communities in improving people's livelihoods.
The Centre’s work is undertaken in collaboration with universities and NGOs based in the European Union and in developing countries. The Centre also collaborates with international agencies concerned with wetland and forest issues and with international conventions on desertification and wetlands.
Funding is obtained from the European Commission, several bilateral and multi-lateral donors, as well as charitable institutions.
One of the main foci for the Centre’s work is the search for the sustainable management of wetlands. In many parts of the world, wetlands are increasingly being developed by local communities and are becoming subject to degradation and desertification. This is particularly serious in eastern and southern Africa where wetlands have become the new agricultural frontier. Along with climate variability and deforestation, wetland destruction is having a major impact on the hydrological regime of the region’s rivers. The Centre provides research and training which can help achieve sustainable wetland use and thereby maintain environmental functioning and meet community needs.
A wide range of techniques have been developed by the Centre for its work. These include a number of specific PRA methods and tools for institutional analysis at different levels from national to local government level and within communities.