ABSTRACT
Morocco has an arid climate which affects 93 per cent of its territory. Atlas serves as a weather system barrier in Morocco running east west and separating the Sahara's climatic influences, which are particularly pronounced in the summer, from the more Mediterranean climate to the north, resulting in dramatic changes in temperature across the range. The Berber identity is usually wider than language and ethnicity and encompasses the entire history and geography of North Africa. The unifying forces for the Berber people could be their Berber language, belonging to the Berber homeland or a collective identification with the Berber heritage and history. The Atlas Mountains comprise a range across the north-western stretch of Africa extending approximately 2,500 km through Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia. The communities that were identified as having promising SLM initiatives and thus selected for the Stimulating Community Initiatives in Sustainable Land Management (SCI-SLM) project are situated in the High Atlas.
