The Global Landscapes Forum, in collaboration with Wageningen University and Research, addresses the critical need for informed policy decisions in the agriculture and environment sectors through a comprehensive six-module course. Specifically targeting government and technical experts capable of influencing policy, this initiative focuses on Mainstreaming Biodiversity across Agricultural Sectors, aligning with the Food and Agriculture Organization’s (FAO) goals for a sustainable and diverse environment.
Tag: biodiversity
Learning pathway: Course flows & blueprint
This course is a pivotal contribution to FAO’s vision of fostering a Better Environment, particularly focusing on Biodiversity for food and agriculture. Aligned with FAO’s strategic initiatives, the course is fortified by the approval of the FAO Strategy on Mainstreaming Biodiversity Across Agricultural Sectors and the 2021-23 Action Plan, emphasizing the importance of targeted policies and practices for sustainable use, conservation, and restoration of ecosystems.
Module 1: Biodiverse Agriculture in Landscapes
This course targets a diverse group of participants, including environmentalists, agricultural professionals, students, and policymakers. Whether one is looking to deepen their understanding of sustainable practices, aiming to implement changes in their work, or simply passionate about biodiversity and agriculture, this course will offer valuable insights and practical skills.
Module 2: Integrating Biodiversity In Agriculture
This course is designed to target participants interested in the nexus of agriculture, biodiversity, and sustainable development. It is ideal for environmentalists, agricultural professionals, students, policymakers, and anyone keen on understanding and contributing to sustainable agricultural practices that promote biodiversity.
Criteria and indicators for assessing the sustainability of forest management
The need for new criteria and indicators for the assessment of biodiversity conservation as part of sustainable forest management of tropical forests has been identified as a priority by many international organisations. Those biodiversity criteria and indicators which formed part of a much broader initial assessment by the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) (Prabhu et al. 1996) were found to be deficient. This Working Paper contains specific proposals for biodiversity criteria and indicators. These proposals originated from a workshop of experts, and are intended to be adapted and refined for use in specific situations. Criteria and indicators need to be applied at the forest management unit level and those for biodiversity are just one part of a package that includes socio-economic and other categories. Biodiversity is an extraordinarily broad concept and, given the huge diversity of life in tropical forests, it is impossible to make rapid direct assessments of biodiversity in forests in anything other than a superficial manner. It is likely that there will be limited skilled human resources and time for biodiversity assessment in any system of criteria and indicators, so it is important that we design tools that do not require expert application and interpretation. The usefulness of “indicator groups”, “keystone” species and other concepts is still argued among biologists and their utility is questionable. This paper suggests that, in contrast to more traditional approaches to assessing taxonomic diversity, it may be possible to assess the effects of management practices on biodiversity by examining the state of those processes that generate or maintain biodiversity. The indicators and verifiers that we have suggested examine the state of these processes. We recommend that for each indicator, quick and easy verifiers, which we designate “Primary” verifiers are used first, and more sophisticated (“Secondary”) verifiers are used only if clear results are not obtained from Primary verifiers. This paper is merely a first step in creating a suitable framework for applying a proposed a set of forest biodiversity indicators and verifiers. The framework and the indicators and verifiers require field testing, and we fully expect there to be changes resulting from the field trials, which will be reflected in major improvements in their effectiveness. For the sake of brevity we have not discussed the advantages and disadvantages of the verifiers in full. While changes are expected, the approach taken is powerful in that it recognises the relationship between interventions and consequences, and it demonstrates that some indicators are more widely valuable than others.
Estimating sample size for inference about the Shannon-Weaver and the Simpson Indices of species diversity
A framework for a priori estimation of the expected sampling variances of the Shannon-Weaver and the Simpson indices of species diversity is developed by the introduction of the most probable relative species abundance distribution (MOPSAD). MOPSAD gives the prior probability of a species’ relative abundance. The beta distribution is used here as the prior for MOPSAD. Sample sizes needed for efficient statistical inference and hypothesis testing about the two indices are provided for 16 distinct beta priors for MOPSAD. Shannon-Weaver and Simpson’s diversity indices in plant communities expected to have a `U’-shaped or a J-shaped MOPSAD will have large sampling variances. For the same statistical resolution the Simpson index requires about nine times as many samples as the Shannon-Weaver index. The impact of a positive or negative spatial association among species on the variance of the diversity indices was also assessed. In general, spatial association had little impact on the variance of the indices; it suffices to increase the sample size by about 5% as a safeguard against variance inflation due to spatial associations.
White Paper: Needs Assessment & Repository
The white paper outlines a needs assessment and repository for a Blended Learning Programme on Biodiversity in Agriculture, aligning with FAO goals and the Global Biodiversity Framework. Tailored for policy professionals in agriculture, forestry, fisheries, and the environment, the methodology includes expert input, multi-stakeholder dialogues, CBD glossaries, and analysis of FAO’s Biodiversity Action Plan, ensuring a comprehensive approach.
Mistletoes and their diversity in the Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, Uganda
Relatively little is known about the diversity, distribution, and community ecology of parasitic plants in the forests of equatorial Africa. We examined mistletoes in the mountain forests of the Bwindi Impenetrable National Park in Southwestern Uganda. We recorded 1,496 individual mistletoes in 64 0.1-ha plots (6.4 ha total), evenly distributed between open (forest-edge) and closed (forest-interior) locations and spanning an elevation range of 1160 to 2607 m above sea level. These mistletoes included 21 species, seven genera and two families and were recorded on 542 host trees comprising 45 tree species. Overall, mistletoes were more common in open than in closed conditions (356 ha-1 versus 129 ha-1). The most abundant mistletoe species was Englerina woodfordioides (Schweinf. ex Engl.) Balle (328 records) followed by Viscum fischeri Engl. (316 records). Six mistletoe species were recorded just once. Harungana madagascariensis Lam. ex Poir. hosted the greatest diversity of mistletoes with nine species, while Maesa lanceolata Voigt hosted eight. Chao’s estimator indicates that mistletoe species richness across the whole forest likely exceeds 40 species which would be over ten percent of the mistletoe taxa known from the continent. The overall diversity and density of mistletoes appears high when compared to reported surveys from elsewhere. Mistletoes add significant botanical diversity in this forest and likely make a substantial contribution to its ecology.
Plant diversity and composition vary with elevation on two equatorial high mountains in Uganda: baselines for assessing the influence of climate change
We describe the distribution and diversity of vascular plants at high elevations (3980–4570 m above sea level) in the Rwenzori Mountains and Mount Elgon National Parks in Uganda. These were the first target regions of the “Global Observation Research Initiative in Alpine Environments” (“GLORIA”) on the African continent. In each target region, four summits spanning elevations from the treeline ecotone up to the limits of vascular plant life were selected and assessed in July and August 2011 using the standardised GLORIA protocol. Few vascular plant species were present on high elevation summits, particularly in Rwenzori, where many sub-plots had little or no vascular plant cover. Observations from Rwenzori include 26 vascular plant species, and from Mount Elgon 47, of which 10 and 15 species, respectively, were endemic. In contrast, non-vascular plant cover greatly increased with elevation. The lowest sites showed considerable diversity and were floristically dissimilar to the highest summits. Subsequent resurveys, repeating the GLORIA protocol, will be critical in the assessment of ongoing dynamics and change.
The Global Biodiversity Standard: Manual for assessment and best practices
This manual describes in detail the Global Biodiversity Standard (TGBS) methodology required for TGBS certification, including the application form, remote sensing and field survey, as well as the assessment process and scoring system. This manual is divided into nine sections, each of which addresses a different aspect of the TGBS and its implementation.