Doctoral candidate
Semi-desert and rangeland ecology
lena.michler@uni-hohenheim.de
Research Interests
· Rangeland, arid and semi-arid ecology
· Pastoralism, human-wildlife interactions
· Protected area management
In many semi-arid and arid regions worldwide semi-nomadic pastoralism is practiced since millennia as an adaptation to temporal and spatial environmental variability. Often pastoralism is practiced in areas of high biodiversity but overall low biomass productivity. These biodiverse areas are often located in close vicinity to protected areas leading to interactions between livestock and wildlife. I am interested in the interface between people, wildlife and natural resources in and around protected ecosystems.
In my PhD project I focus on the biological and cultural diversity in the Dzungarian Gobi desert in Mongolia. My study site is the Great Gobi “B” Strictly Protected Area, where nomadic pastoralists have herds of goats, sheep, cows, horses, camels and yaks. Those nomads share the natural resources with the reintroduced Przewalski’s horse, previously extinct in the wild, and other wild ungulates. My research interest ranges from shared pasture resources between livestock and wildlife, their movement patterns over a vast land area and the traditional nomadic herding management influenced by changes and challenges of our modern times. My socio-ecological research approach is very practice oriented ranging from field observations, laboratory experiments to collecting interview data. In my position as Project Lead Socio-Economy at the International Takhi Group I can directly support the protected area management to implement some of my research outcomes (www.savethewildhorse.org).
In South Africa, I enquired similar research questions during my Master thesis. There, the Richtersveld National Park is the only National Park in the country where local pastoralists are allowed to use the natural resources inside the protected area. The cultural and political backgrounds in those two countries are quite different but the challenges semi-nomadic pastoralists are facing are relatable.
The way pastoralists live in and with nature fascinates me and I am committed to contribute to the discussion how traditional livelihoods can be practiced in regions worth protecting.
Publications
Michler LM, Kaczensky P, Ploechl JF, Batsukh D, Baumgartner SA, Battogtokh B, Treydte AC (2022) Moving toward the greener side: environmental aspects guiding pastoral mobility and impacting vegetation in the Dzungarian Gobi, Mongolia. Rangeland Ecology & Management 83:149-160
Michler LM, Treydte AC, Hayat H, Lemke S (2019) Marginalised herders: Social dynamics and natural resource use in the fragile environment of the Richtersveld National Park, South Africa. Environmental Development 29:29-43
