Olga Laiza Kupika is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Wildlife Ecology and Conservation in the School of Wildlife, Ecology and Conservation, Chinhoyi University of Technology. She completed her PhD at the Chinhoyi University of Technology  in 2017 and her research work was titled “Climate  change, Green Economy and Conservation: Implications for livelihoods and wildlife policy in the Middle Zambezi Biosphere Reserve, Zimbabwe” which was funded by the European Union under the Delivering Innovation and technology through the Reinforcement of Agricultural and Multidisciplinary (DREAM) research capacity for the benefits of small-scale farmers in Trans frontier Conservation Areas project. The study was conducted in the framework of the Research Platform “Production and Conservation in Partnership”. Olga is a Climate Impact Research Capacity and Leadership Enhancement (CIRCLE) programme cohort 1 (2015) post-Masters Fellow. The programme was funded by the Department for International Development (DfID). She was hosted by University of South Africa under the Exxaro Chair in Business and Climate Change.  Olga’s area of research interest is climate change adaptation, ethnobotany, biodiversity conservation and livelihoods. She is currently supervising 1 MPhil student who is working on ethnobotanical assessment of indigenous plants to promote drought resilience in a semi-arid savannah.  Olga has presented her research findings at several conferences and workshops and done more than 14 peer-reviewed articles in reputable academic journals. Apart from teaching, she is also involved in research and mentoring several undergraduate and 5 postgraduate students.

Project – Building adaptive capacity to cope with effects of climate change on riparian based ecosystems and livelihoods in semi-arid areas of Zimbabwe

This transdisciplinary study aims to explore the impact of climate change on riparian based ecosystems and livelihoods dependent on two perennial river systems, in the south eastern Lowveld, Zimbabwe. The project will adopt a case study approach whereby two study communities located along the margins of the rivers in drought prone districts will be selected to collect data using smart-mobile phones. The project addresses the following thematic areas: Impacts, information, and translation, communication focusing on enhanced added-value in sub-seasonal to seasonal predictions across the areas of water, biodiversity conservation, and agriculture and disaster mitigation. The study will be conducted in collaboration with local communities, government departments, local communities, civic organizations and other NGOS.  Findings from the study will contribute towards documentation of ecosystem and community-based strategies used by communities to cope with changes in the flow regime of perennial river systems and packaging of possible interventions to manage and restore riparian ecosystems and livelihoods dependent on perennial rivers.