Sustainability and livelihood diversification among the Maasai of northern Tanzania

Maasai people in East Africa are attempting to craft new sustainable livelihoods in response to increasing population pressure, a fluctuating livestock population, reductions in grazing areas, and a modernization process that places increased emphasis on a monetary economy. The adoption of cultivation by pastoral Maasai living in northern Tanzania over the last 40-years has been the most significant step in this livelihood diversification. The rapid social and economic changes that have accompanied diversification have challenged current attempts to integrate people into conservation efforts, especially in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area and the newly proposed Wildlife Management Areas of Tanzania. This paper examines the addition of agriculture to the livestock-based economy of Maasai people in northern Tanzania, how this relates to the literature on sustainable livelihoods, and the implications for conservation policy.