Leveraging IoT-Enabled Biodiversity Monitoring for Sustainable Livelihoods: An Assessment of Rural Community Adaptation Strategies

Abstract

Rural communities in Turkana County, Kenya, continue to experience the adverse impacts of terrestrial biodiversity variability, resulting in loss of livestock, reduced productivity, and deteriorating livelihoods. In the digital age, Internet of Things (IoT) technologies present promising opportunities for real-time biodiversity monitoring, data sharing, and informed community-based decision-making. The study leveraged IoT-enabled biodiversity monitoring to explore how localized, real-time terrestrial biodiversity data can be communicated and utilized by rural pastoralists to enhance livestock productivity and promote sustainable livelihoods. The study assessed the extent to which rural households have access to IoT technologies, examined how communities utilize IoT-based terrestrial biodiversity data to sustain their livelihoods, and evaluated the effects of employing such data on the adoption of adaptive livelihood strategies. The research was guided by the Innovation Diffusion and Technology Adoption theories to link user adoption, technological practice, and biodiversity data utilization. A mixed-methods approach was employed, integrating quantitative and qualitative data from a sample of 384 households drawn from a target population of 164,519. Data collection tools included questionnaires, focus group discussions, and key informant interviews, while inferential statistics and path analysis were used to determine relationships and variable contributions to leveraging IoT enabled biodiversity monitoring for sustainable livelihoods. The findings revealed that smartphones and radios are the most cost-effective and practical IoT tools for pastoral communities to access real-time biodiversity data and pastoral advisory information. Evidence indicated that IoT-based biodiversity monitoring enhances adaptive capacity, strengthens livelihood assets, and improves long-term sustainability. The study established a framework for developing a request–response IoT- enabled biodiversity monitoring tool illustrating the relationship between biodiversity data utilization and livelihood outcomes. This research adds to the growing discourse on digital sustainability and offers policy recommendations for integrating IoT-enabled biodiversity systems into Kenya’s rural development and climate adaptation frameworks.