WP1: Scenarios of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services
Leads: Drs. Ingolf Steffan-Dewenter (University of Würzburg) and Katja Poveda (Cornell University)
Concept: Land use change threatens the biodiversity and ecosystem services upon which agroecosystems depend. Some agroecological practices may buffer the negative impacts of simplification on biodiversity and ecosystem services.
Objective: To examine and model how agroecological practices, such as legume intercropping, composting and botanical sprays, can buffer against the loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services across multiple scales and under different scenarios of land use change. Identify breakpoints of landscape-level use of agroecological practices above which biodiversity and ecosystem services are maximally retained.
Data Collection:
Assess biodiversity and ecosystem services on 50
farms, as well as land cover within a 3 km radius of each farm, using
participatory methods with team of ecologists, geographers, and trained
farmer-researchers. Utilize participatory Geographic Information Systems to collect
land cover data.
Measure multiple dimensions of biodiversity,
including taxonomic, functional, and phylogenic diversity of bees, birds, and natural
enemies (parasitoid wasps and ground-dwelling arthropod predators). Assess
ecosystem services of pest suppression, pollination, and crop yield.
Survey birds with six point counts per year and
capture bees and parasitoid wasp on all farms, during and immediately following
the growing season.
Perform replicated exclosure experiments to
measure pollination deficits.
Measure yield of each field to identify yield
gap on farms as compared to maximum tield measured across all farms.
Analysis and Scenario Modeling:
Use statistical models to determine primary
drivers of biodiversity, ecosystem services, and any observed yield gap.
Determine the land cover around each farm. The
amount of agroecological practices will vary across the landscape, allowing us
to determine if there are breakpoints in biodiversity and ecosystem service
provision based on the proportion of area where agroecological practices are
used within multiple scales of each farm.
Model a range of ten land use change scenarios
reflective of realistic rates of change over the next 25 years and assess
likely impacts of that change on biodiversity and ecosystem services across the
studied region. We will assess how the outcomes change according to the use of
agroecological practices in the region, as well as the economic impacts from
using these practices.
Expected Results and Use:
Ten modeled scenarios of land use change over
the next 25 years.
Guidelines to inform policy makers and
communities on where breakpoints of biodiversity and ecosystem services likely
exist, providing clear recommendations.
Anticipated minimum of 2 peer-reviewed
publications in conservation or ecology journals, 1-2 publications in
multidisciplinary journals, and reports prepared for the Government of Malawi.
With funding from Avaaz, SFHC did a major distribution of food and hygiene supplies this August. These supplies are critical for families affected by the pandemic. According to local request, we delivered… – 25, 000 cloth face masks–… Read More
We’re proud to feature in the prominent food systems newspaper, Civil Eats, in an article discussing the failure of U.S. investment in African industrial agriculture. The article explores the promise of African agroecology as an alternative: offering new,… Read More
SFHC has been busy during May. In order to reduce risk of COVID-19 transmission, SFHC has divided the staff into several teams who work on various SFHC projects independently at the SFHC office. Teams only come in once… Read More
WP1: Scenarios of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services
Leads: Drs. Ingolf Steffan-Dewenter (University of Würzburg) and Katja Poveda (Cornell University)
Concept: Land use change threatens the biodiversity and ecosystem services upon which agroecosystems depend. Some agroecological practices may buffer the negative impacts of simplification on biodiversity and ecosystem services.
Objective: To examine and model how agroecological practices, such as legume intercropping, composting and botanical sprays, can buffer against the loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services across multiple scales and under different scenarios of land use change. Identify breakpoints of landscape-level use of agroecological practices above which biodiversity and ecosystem services are maximally retained.
Data Collection:
Analysis and Scenario Modeling:
Expected Results and Use:
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Avaaz funds major hygiene and food distribution for COVID-19 affected families
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With funding from Avaaz, SFHC did a major distribution of food and hygiene supplies this August. These supplies are critical for families affected by the pandemic. According to local request, we delivered… – 25, 000 cloth face masks–… Read More
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