In the anthropocene, loss of biodiversity is a major global concern alongside climate change, desertification, ocean acidification, and ozone layer depletion among others. Biodiversity conservation is critical to the sustainability of global biodiversity. However, in a world where some academics and policy makers view development and conservation as inherently incompatible, the phrase ‘urban biodiversity’ can easily pass for an oxymoron. Urban biodiversity is simply the variety and variability of life forms in urban contexts. While it is true that urbanization impacts biodiversity, governance – the sum of many ways that individuals and institutions (public and/or private) manage their common affairs – is critical in minimizing negative impacts. Thus, urban biodiversity is a function of governance. Curiously, much of the existing literature on governance within the context of urban biodiversity is disproportionately focused on Global North cities. Literature on Global South cities is few and far between. Even more scant is literature on cities in Africa. Why is this the case? Do cities in Africa prioritize urban biodiversity? What governance arrangements exist in such cities? How about governance actors? What insights for ongoing global debates around urban biodiversity? This preliminary study attempts to answers these questions through case study methodology, document analysis, and digital photography. It examines urban biodiversity in Kisumu during 2000-2018 period from a governance perspective.
Results/Conclusions
The study establishes that governance for urban biodiversity and ecosystem services does happen in Kisumu city even though it is hardly ever framed using such language. It also finds change and continuity to be defining features of governance in the city during the study period. It argues that the aforementioned disparity in availability of governance literature is attributable to at least two factors namely: a misguided but pervasive perception that in the Global South, biodiversity is rural-based; and a mainstream global biodiversity conservation discourse that predominantly frames biodiversity conservation in less developed regions of the world in rural terms. Less studied contexts such as Kenya’s lakeside city of Kisumu – a United Nations’ millennium city – hold significant and useful insights for the future of biodiversity conservation in an urbanizing and globalizing world.