Prof. Dr. Suzanne Jacobs
Theme A: Coping with Climate-related Extremes
10.10.2025 09:45 – 10:30
Conference Hall #1
Moderator: Andreas Haarstrick
With a background in environmental science and hydrology, Dr. Jacobs pursued a PhD in hydrology through field-based research on water and nutrient flows in the Mau Forest in western Kenya. She has been doing research on the effect of land use on water quality and flows in East Africa’s “water towers” for more than 10 years using a combination of in situ sensors, traditional laboratory analysis and citizen science. More recently, she expanded the geographical scope of her research to Latin America and Germany. After working as a research associate at the Centre for International Development and Environmental Research (ZEU) at the Justus Liebig University Giessen, Dr. Jacobs now holds the Chair of Land Use Systems with a Focus on Agroforestry at the same university. Through her research, Dr. Jacobs aims to generate knowledge to support evidence-based decision-making in land and water management, and to contribute to increasing the resilience of communities and agriculture in the face of climate change.
Image © F. Mitze
Abstract
Water, science and society on the southern slopes of Mt. Kilimanjaro
Sustainable transformation requires a holistic approach, including both scientific knowledge and stakeholders’ perspectives and knowledge. Through the application of the social-ecological systems and the Nature’s Contributions to People framework, the Kili-SES project aims to understand interactions and inter-dependencies between people and nature at Mt. Kilimanjaro (Tanzania) under land-use, climate, and governance change.
Mt. Kilimanjaro is characterised by large gradients in temperature and precipitation and, therefore, supports a range of unique ecosystems. It is also home to the Chagga people, who have established a diverse, multilayered agroecosystem alongside a complex furrow irrigation system. Other agricultural activities include commercial coffee plantations as well as intensive maize production in the lowlands. Key stakeholders in the region are villagers (i.e. local communities), nature conservationists and tour operators. When asked about the importance of water for their wellbeing, the three groups showed slight differences. Where nature conservationist considered water availability more important, villagers were more concerned about water quality in relation to health. Water quality analysis indicated that turbidity in irrigation canals and the presence of E. coli in all water sources are the main contributors to poor water quality in the region. Nature conservationists mostly perceived a decrease in water availability and quality over the past 10 years, whereas villagers and tour operators frequently mentioned a perceived increase. Increases in water availability and quality were mostly attributed to water management, while decreases were attributed to climate change and human activities, respectively. As next step, human-water system trajectories will be co-developed with the different stakeholder groups to predict the future of water on the southern slope and identify the most promising interventions to achieve transformation.
The different perspectives and values of water quality and quantity among stakeholders highlight the need to include stakeholders’ opinions and local knowledge in the development of strategies to achieve a nature- and people-positive, sustainable and just future of the mountain, its ecosystems and people.