Adaptation and resilience in pastoral management of the Mediterranean Bedouin social–ecological system in the northwestern coastal zone of Egypt

On the basis of the results of the ELVULMED, MOUVE, and CLIMED research projects, this chapter presents a long-term analysis of the Bedouin society in the northwestern coastal zone (NWCZ) of Egypt, especially the resilience of the Bedouin social–ecological system facing global change. Located along the Mediterranean coast, the NWCZ is bordered by Libya to west, the hinterland of the Nile Valley to the east, and the northeastern Sahara to the south. Settled by Bedouin tribes, the NWCZ is a typical case study of the North African pastoral area. Global change in this arid region is characterized by frequent droughts and water scarcity, structural deficit in food security, strong demographic growth, rural exodus, new social demands, especially from the youth, and serious social challenges currently linked to the Arab Spring. The first part of this chapter presents some elements relevant to the history of the NWCZ, from the Roman period until the beginning of the twentieth century, to give a better understanding of the context of the establishment of the Bedouin society. Many of these elements are not specific to the NWCZ, and they concern the entire North African and western Asian region. The second part describes the major events that have occurred during the twentieth century in the NWCZ, with the objectives to better define the main phases of the Bedouin social–ecological system and to understand the drivers of long-term change and, consequently, define possible key factors for sustainable development in the face of the new context of global change, including rangeland recuperation and management. The third part considers the Bedouin strategies in the face of global change, especially the 15-year drought from 1995 to 2010, and the changes in the socioeconomic context linked to the building of infrastructures for water supply, tourism development, information and communication technologies, the new demands of the local society, mainly the youth, and more recently the