Grassland degradation and livestock rearing in Lesotho

This study is written in the context of marked intervention by external agencies, during the last 20 years. This has taken place within the broad concept of ‘sustainable development’, with the stated desire to ‘develop’ Lesotho's livestock economy, and to conserve the country's grasslands. The paper emphasises the need for social scientific analyses to engage with concepts of the natural sciences which underwrite ‘development’ and ‘conservation ‘ projects, if knowledge of ecological processes is to be improved.