Designers Fighting for a Sustainable Planet Through Lemur Extinction.

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DesignStudies1

7 min readMay 2, 2019

Ring tailed Lemur sunbathing. A favourite thing to do.

Designers now play a critical role in achieving a sustainable planet. With the problems that we predicted years ago now becoming a reality, it’s us who need to change it. Climate change, pollution and lack of renewable resources causing increased difficulty for future generations. Albert Einstein explained,

“we cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them”

Many scholars and practitioners agree that to save the planet we must start thinking with a creative mind. It was designers who created innovation, they designed and shaped modern life to use up all our renewable sources, causing climate change and pollution with the need for raw materials. Its time for designers to give back.

Madagascan’s native lemur species have said to be ‘the most threatened primate group on earth’. There are a total of 111 lemur species and subspecies, 105 of these are at the risk of extinction. These cute fluffy primates with pointed snouts and typically long tails are only native to Madagascar and their rainforests. These animals face major threats, mainly deforestation of their rainforest habitats. Caused by illegal logging, ‘slash-and-burn’ agriculture, charcoal production and mining. 90% of the countries orgininal rainforests have been destroyed due to illegal agriculture. When man fist arrived on the island via boat roughly 2000 years ago, they not only brought their culture but farming practices also. With rice paddies from southeast Asia and cattle from Africa. Madagascar has remained a non-industrialized nation meaning farming procedures have remained the same since man first stepped foot on the island.

The after effects of slash-and-burn. Photo by Nirina Rakotoharisoa.

In recent years there have been a new need for the ‘slash-and-burn’ procedure. Burning large areas of the rainforest to make coal that is then used for cooking fuel within the community. The Lemur Conservation Network have stated,

“Now, only 10% of Madagascar’s original forest cover remains, and the devastating effects this has on the wildlife and people of Madagascar continue to grow each day.”

The most obvious effect of agriculture is habitat loss for the primates. But it not just deforestation that causing them to go extinct, it’s themselves. Due to only 10% of the Malagasy rainforests left, lemurs have been left with confined areas. Either causing them to be trapped with mixed species that then leads to mix breading or trapped and not being able to bread at all. The lack of genetic diversity in the lemur population could cause severe damage for the genetically healthy and diverse lemurs of the future. ‘Slash-and -burn’ is nationally affecting the lemurs of native Madagascar but it’s affecting the Malagasy people themselves. Leaving their lands exposed to rain, the soil is taking in more water than is needed, leading to extreme soil erosion. This is a massive problem in the Malagasy peoples fishing industry as soil runs off into the ocean, negatively affecting the fish.

Madagascar Biodiversity Partnership volunteers planting trees. Photo courtesy of MBP.

Madagascar have multiple projects running to plant trees for reforestation. Since 2007 EdenReforestationhave succeeded in planting 77 million dry deciduous and mangrove trees. Madagascar biodiversity partnership reforestation are promoting education about reforestation and deforestations to make the locals aware the damage they are causing. While distributing fuel efficient cook stoves in Northern Madagascar, where the education has been a success.

So, what about designers? We can all plant trees, educate people with new skills and learnings but what could designers do to prevent any further damage. What if product designers and engineers could come up with an efficient solution to abolish the ‘slash-and-burn’ procedure. Designing a product or a procedure that allows them to farm and distribute fuel efficiently with out burning trees. Planting new trees will only lead to natives burning them down again, unless giving a sustainable long-term solution. It’s like what Einstein said, we will not solve our problem of deforestation by simply planting more trees where trees once were, we need to get creative. Think of a solution that solves the issues of ever needing to cut them down in the first place.

Deforestation isn’t the only problem forcing the native primates to near extinction, Madagascar have experienced constant political catastrophe’s for decades. Back in 2009 president Marc Ravalomanana resigned due to stress, leaving the country without a leader till the next election. The Malagasy country was already suffering from severe political instability, that when Ravalomanana stepped down it could only lead to more disaster.

Eastern Lesser Bamboo Lemurs (Hapalemur griseus) killed in northeast Madagascar for bushmeat.

Poaching of lemurs dramatically increased over this period with of no leader, two species that were classified as endangered were down ‘disappearing’ quickly. Belonging to reigns that were highly protected and where poaching had not been seen in years, this was a complete shock to the Conservation International. Of cores this became a major problem and terrible loss to the island, but as soon as they had their political breakdown mafias started to see an opportunity. Leaving the lemurs defenceless in their own habitat due to the lack of money and support the country had with no president, Madagascar no longer had the resources to fund and support reservations where these lemurs were monitored and protected. Stated by, Russ Mittermeier a Conservation International’spresident who is one of the world’s leading authorities on lemurs.

“This is a major consequence of the breakdown in Madagascar. As soon as you have political breakdown, the local mafias come in for timber, then go after whatever else they can get,”

*Dead lemurs. Images courtesy of Fanamby.*

Mafias seen poaching as a large profit, quick and easy money. Although it wasn’t just mafias who trapped the primates but the locals who were now severely struggling with poverty with no organised political house. Evidence of lemurs were uncovered in restaurants across the country where they had been classed as a ‘delicacy’. North Madagascar had a major incident in 2009 where 32 lemurs had been found dead in a restaurant on New Year’s Eve. According to a Madagascar based conservation group, Fanamby, most of the lemurs were found to be Crowned lemurs who are high up the endangered list. In this particular case they had been poisoned rather than the traditional way of setting traps. It was explained by environmentalists that this could have caused harm to the consumers health. So not only are the natives poising these poor fluffy primates but their harming themselves in the process, all this for a bit of meat, a ‘delicacy’.

Another major issue that is occurring all over the island is that lemurs are getting pulled out from their habitat and sold off as pets. Numbers have increased largely in the past 20 years, as an increase demand for unusual pets has sky rocketed. These primates are getting ripped from their families and shipped across the border to high bidding consumers, sellers not caring who or where they are going as long as it makes them some money. Just like this lemur who was purchased at a young age.

My pet Lemus. By Ryan R.

Although designers can not physically stop poaching with their bare hands. We may be able to reduce it, help the Malagasy natives realise what they are doing and what will happen if they do not stop. Due to the country being less developed than we are, we need to think of new creative ways to get our message across. It is possibly harder for them to understand the damage that they are causing with poaching these primates to near extinction as they are less educated. Us as designers who live in an industrialised modern world are used to everything happening at a touch of a button, with adverts popping up in every which way that they can to notify us of our surroundings.

So, here we are as designers thinking about what we can do? It’s all about raising awareness right, so why don’t we get creative while doing it. Think about Einstein’s statement again, re designing more posters in the way that we have for years to try raise awareness won’t work, but surely by now we can see that. The natives won’t pay attention to a small poster stuck on a wall when the political house is a disaster, and why would they. Getting them involved is our only option, allowing the natives to work with the designers to produce a product that will reduce the need deforestation and eliminate poaching.

The Malagasy need help! It’s up to us so called designers to produce a miracle. Help these 111 species and subspecies of ‘the most threatened primate group on earth’ by helping the Malagasy. If they don’t know how much damage that they are causing, how do we ever expect them to change.