Managing Climate Change, Biodiversity Loss and Conservation Challenges in Lope National Park: An Integrated Approach
Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: Lope national park, a UNESCO world heritage site located in central Gabon, is increasingly challenged by the intersecting pressures of climate change, land-use transformation, biodiversity loss and socio-political complexity. This study presents a comprehensive analysis of the park’s conservation landscape, examining key dimensions such as sustainable resource use, climate-induced vegetation shifts, biodiversity monitoring, flagship species conservation, trophic cascades, invasive species dynamics and fire regime management. These ecological pressures are compounded by evolving community dynamics, livelihood dependencies and fluctuations in international funding and policy alignment. Drawing on interdisciplinary evidence and recent case studies, this article proposes an integrated, adaptive management framework that balances ecological integrity with socio-economic resilience. By contextualizing Lope within broader regional and global conservation challenges, the study offers targeted recommendations including participatory fire planning, climate-informed habitat zoning, co-management models and technology-enabled biodiversity surveillance to strengthen the park’s long-term sustainability and institutional stability.
Authors: Noor Zulfiqar, Muhammad Waqas, Fawad Inam
Language: English
Subfield: Global and Planetary Change
Field: Environmental Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
SDGs: Life on land, Climate action
Open Access status: diamond
OpenAlex ID: W4413850980