Especially during the last decades, the natural forests of Ethiopia have been heavily disturbed by human activities. Some forests have been totally cleared and converted into fields for agricultural use, other suffered from different influences, such as heavy grazing and selective logging. The ongoing research in the Shashemane-Munessa-study area (Gu 406/8-1,2) showed clearly that, in spite of interdiction and control, forests continue to be cleared and degraded. However, it is not yet sufficiently known, how and why these processes are still going on. Growing population pressure and economic constraints for the people living in and around the forests contribute to the actual situation but allow no final answers to the complex situation. Concerning a sustainable management of the forests there is to no solid basis for recommendations from the socioeconomic and socio-cultural view. Therefore, a comprehensive analysis of the traditional needs and forms of forest use, including all forest products, is necessary. The objective of this project is, to achieve this basis by carrying out intensive field observations, the consultation of aerial photographs, satellite imagery and above all semi-structured interviews with the population in the study area in order to contribute to the recommendations for a sustainable use of the Munessa Shasemane forests.
Comprehension of belowground competition between plant species is a central part in understanding the complex interactions in intercropped agricultural systems, between crops and weeds as well as in natural ecosystems. So far, no simple and rapid method for species discrimination of roots in the soil exists. We will be developing a method for root discrimination of various species based on Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR)-Attenuated Total Reflexion (ATR) Spectroscopy and expanding its application to the field. The absorbance patterns of FTIR-ATR spectra represent the chemical sample composition like an individual fingerprint. By means of multivariate methods, spectra will be grouped according to spectral and chemical similarity in order to achieve species discrimination. We will investigate pea and oat roots as well as maize and barnyard grass roots using various cultivars/proveniences grown in the greenhouse. Pea and oat are recommendable species for intercropping to achieve superior grain and protein yields in an environmentally sustainable manner. To evaluate the effects of intercropping on root distribution in the field, root segments will be measured directly at the soil profile wall using a mobile FTIR spectrometer. By extracting the main root compounds (lipids, proteins, carbohydrates) and recording their FTIR-ATR spectra as references, we will elucidate the chemical basis of species-specific differences.
Almond in California represents an agroecosystem pollinated solely by a single species, the European honey bee, a species that is becoming increasingly difficult and expensive to manage due to substantial, unpredictable mortality. Therefore, sustainable and high output production require a more integrated approach that diversifies sources of pollination. For this purpose, detailed data of our understanding how diversity can stabilize pollination are required. The project will identify alternative wild pollinator species and collect high quality data contributing to our understanding of how diversity (pollen and insects) can bolster honey bee pollination during stable and unstable climatic conditions. The research will be carried out on almond orchards in Northern California known to be either pollinator species rich (up to 30 species) or depauperate (honey bees only). The replicated extremes in pollinator diversity represent a unique opportunity to study the effects of diversity on pollination in real agroecosystems combined with laboratory and glasshouse experiments. The overall goal is to provide basic research that is essential for our general understanding of how insect diversity can affect high-quality pollination under land use and climate change.
Die aktuelle politische Lage erfordert eine Überprüfung und eventuelle (Neu-) Justierung der Politik. Im Juni 2023 hat die deutsche Bundesregierung zudem erstmals eine nationale Sicherheitsstrategie vorgestellt. Der darin integrierte breite Sicherheitsbegriff umfasst den Schutz der natürlichen Lebensgrundlagen als einen elementaren Pfeiler. Die Aktivitäten, Maßnahmen und Ziele des Umweltressorts sind, auch mit und neben anderen Akteuren, im Ressortkreis wie auch auf europäischer/internationaler Ebene somit relevant für die Sicherheit und die Umsetzung der Strategie. Hieraus ergibt sich Forschungsbedarf, um z.B. eine umweltgerechtere, nachhaltige Sicherheitspolitik bzw. eine krisenpräventivere Umwelt- und Entwicklungspolitik zu gestalten und konkrete Möglichkeiten zur Umsetzung der Ziele der nationalen Sicherheitsstrategie und des immanenten breiten Sicherheitsbegriffes durch die Umweltpolitik in Deutschland aufzuzeigen. Die Analyse von drei noch auszuwählenden Themenfeldern wird abklären, in welchen konkreten Bereichen welche nationalen politischen Maßnahmen in Hinblick vor allem auf die Zuständigkeiten des BMUV auf internationaler Ebene am effektivsten verhindern können, dass 1) Konflikte zu Umweltzerstörung beitragen, 2) Umweltzerstörung zu Konflikten beiträgt und 3) Umweltschutzmaßnahmen zu Konflikten beitragen. Die Erkenntnisse und Herausforderungen sollen mit den Akteuren reflektiert und deren Austausch ermöglicht werden, um eine kohärente Politikgestaltung im Hinblick auf die Ziele zu fördern. Dabei sollen auch gute und schlechte Praxisbeispiele erfasst werden und in die Prozesse einfließen.
Background and Objectives: The project area is located in the Ashanti Region of Ghana / West Africa in the transition zone of the moist semideciduous forest and tropical savannah zone. Main land use in this region is subsistence agriculture with large fallow areas. As an alternative land-use, forest plantations are under development by the Ghanaian wood processing company DuPaul Wood Treatment Ltd. Labourers from the surrounding villages are employed as permanent or casual plantation workers. Within three forest plantation projects of approximately 6,000 ha, DuPaul offers an area of 164 ha (referred to as Papasi Plantation) - which is mainly planted with Teak (Tectona grandis) - for research purposes. In return, the company expects consultations to improve the management for sustainable timber and pole production with exotic and native tree species. Results: In a first research approach, the Papasi Plantation was assessed in terms of vegetation classification, timber resources (in qualitative and quantitative terms) and soil and site conditions. A permanent sampling plot system was established to enable long-term monitoring of stand dynamics including observation of stand response to silvicultural treatments. Site conditions are ideally suited for Teak and some stands show exceptionally good growth performances. However, poor weed management and a lack of fire control and silvicultural management led to high mortality and poor growth performance of some stands, resulting in relative low overall growth averages. In a second step, a social baseline study was carried out in the surrounding villages and identified landowner conflicts between some villagers and DuPaul, which could be one reason for the fire damages. However, the study also revealed a general interest for collaboration in agroforestry on DuPaul land on both sides. Thirdly, a silvicultural management concept was elaborated and an improved integration of the rural population into DuPaul's forest plantation projects is already initiated. If landowner conflicts can be solved, the development of forest plantations can contribute significantly to the economic income of rural households while environmental benefits provide long-term opportunities for sustainable development of the region. Funding: GTZ supported PPP-Measure, Foundation
Forests play a relevant role in mitigation of climate change. A major issue, however, is the scientifically well founded, transparent and verifyable monitoring of achievements in forest carbon sequestration through reduction of deforestation and forest degradation, and through fostering sustainable forest management. Monitoring is particularly difficult in diverse and inaccessible humid tropical forest areas. The proposed research will contribute to the improvement of forest carbon monitoring under the challenging conditions of humid tropical forests. Sample based field observations and model based biomass predictions will be linked to area-wide satellite remote sensing imagery (RapidEye) and to strip samples of LiDAR imagery. Techniques of linking these data sources will be further developed and analysed with respect to (1) precision of carbon estimation and (2) accuracy of carbon regionalization. The proposed project implies research on methodological improvements of both sample based forest inventories (resampling techniques for biomass, imputation of non-response) and remote sensing application to forest monitoring (regionalization, sample based application of LiDAR data). At the core of this research is the analysis of the error variance components that each data source brings into the system. Such error analysis will allow identifying optimal resource allocation for the efficient improvement of forest carbon monitoring systems.
Traditional Indonesian homegardens harbour often high crop diversity, which appears to be an important basis for a sustainable food-first strategy. Crop pollination by insects is a key ecosystem service but threatened by agricultural intensification and land conversion. Gaps in knowledge of actual benefits from pollination services limit effective management planning. Using an integrative and agronomic framework for the assessment of functional pollination services, we will conduct ecological experiments and surveys in Central Sulawesi, Indonesia. We propose to study pollination services and net revenues of the locally important crop species cucumber, carrot, and eggplant in traditional homegardens in a forest distance gradient, which is hypothesized to affect bee community structure and diversity. We will assess pollination services and interactions with environmental variables limiting fruit maturation, based on pollination experiments in a split-plot design of the following factors: drought, nutrient deficiency, weed pressure, and herbivory. The overall goal of this project is the development of 'biodiversity-friendly' land-use management, balancing human and ecological needs for local smallholders.
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