Human-lion conflict is arguably the biggest threat to lions in Namibia, and elsewhere in Africa. There is need for proactive management of human-lion conflict to ensure the long-term conservation of the species. In 1998, Dr. Philip Stander started a 10-year intensive research project on the desert lions, termed the Desert Lion Project. The aim was to collect sound ecological data, address human-lion conflicts, and to develop a national lion conservation strategy.

Applied research and sound scientific data on lion movements and dispersal, and the ecological mechanisms that regulate the population are fundamental to this process. Lions are fitted with radio collars and are tracked with a light aircraft on a weekly basis to plot their movements. Aerial locations are followed-up with ground observations to record group compositions, reproduction, mortality, and behaviour. Lions over the age of two years are marked or radio collared, and individual records are kept of all lions in the population.

Emphasis is placed on monitoring lions that disperse and occupy new habitats, and on those that live near local communities. Human-lion conflict is addressed by developing localised conflict management plans.