People and animals. Traditional livestock keepers: guardians of domestic animal diversity

The present variety of farm animal species and breeds is the result of centuries of local knowledge-based selection by traditional livestock keepers. However, domestic animal diversity is being lost at an alarming rate as local livestock breeds are crossed or replaced with higher-yielding animals. Furthermore, the native habitats of pastoralists and their animals are steadily disappearing, relinquishing their domain to agriculture, protected nature reserves and industrial activities. This trend is further encouraged by existing formal policy, short-term profit opportunities and a decreasing appreciation of the value of local breeds. <br /><br />In this book, the FAO, in collaboration with livestock communities, research centres, universities, governmental and non-governmental organisations (NGOs), identifies and documents how communities manage their local animal genetic resources. <br /><br />Specifically, 13 case studies on traditional livestock farming systems using local breeds are compiled in order to understand and establish: <br /> how communities manage local animal genetic resources local knowledge and good practices how animal genetic resources interact with their environment how communities cope with threats to their local animal genetic resources long-term solutions and sustainability of strategies <br />Each chapter briefly describes the challenges faced by livestock keepers in a specific ecosystem, while the case studies illustrate how communities have dealt with these challenges. <br /><br />The main lessons to be drawn from the case studies presented are: technical and political decision-makers are often unaware of the far-reaching impact of their decisions on the conservation and sustainable use of livestock genetic diversity; consequently, raising awareness and teaching are essential elements communities in general have identified the challenges they face in making their farming systems profitable enough to support their livelihoods. Such knowledge, it is argued,&nbsp;should be consolidated by decision-makers, who have huge potential to contribute to solving problems related to the loss of livestock diversity faced by farming communities connecting people with others who have already addressed, or are addressing, similar problems generates new ideas and solutions. This&nbsp;also empowers people to formulate solutions serving both their own and common situations and to take appropriate action <br /><br /><br />