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65 Rodney Sibuye, Marie-Tinka Uys, Gino Cocchiaro and Johan Lorenzen
Map of the Kruger to Canyons Biosphere Reserve.
This article briefly outlines the context
in which the members of Kukula practice
their healing, and the challenges they are
facing. It then discusses the meetings in
which the traditional healers of Bushbuckridge decided to develop a BCP – and the
inclusive process by which they prepared
it, with the full participation of all
members. It concludes with a summary of
the BCP process and looks at some of the
impacts the BCP is already having.
Background
Spanning more than four million hectares,
Kruger to Canyons (K2C) UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, is one of the largest
Biospheres in the world.4 Its area encompasses key biodiversity hotspots, including
the Kruger National Park (KNP) and Blyde
River Canyon Nature Reserve. The area is
rich in both biodiversity and culture.
Biosphere Reserves participate in
UNESCO’s Man and the Biosphere
Programme and seek to find and demonstrate innovative solutions in reconciling
biodiversity conservation and sustainable
development. The process to achieve recognition by UNESCO is government-led but
must include community engagement.
K2C is a non-profit company and its vision
is to achieve a better life for all through
partnerships.
The Bushbuckridge communities live in
the southern portion of the K2C Biosphere
in Mpumalanga Province. Bushbuckridge
municipality is bounded by the Orpen road
to Kruger National Park in the north, the
Sabie River in the south, the Drakensberg
escarpment in the west and the westernmost boundaries of KNP and Sabie-Sand
Game Reserve in the east. While much of
this area is government-managed, the
majority is communal grazing land.
With 150 people per square kilometre
4 UNESCO is the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation. See
www.kruger2canyons.org for more on K2C.