Grasslands are one of the world's most widespread vegetation types, covering nearly 20% of the land surface and represent a major source of production of agricultural products. However, grassland vegetation across the Mediterranean region is changing at an unanticipated rate. These changes are the result of climatic and socio-economic changes.

The current project has sought to assess i) the potential of agricultural biodiversity-focused PES to serve as a cost-effective and socially equitable domesticated diversity conservation incentive scheme, as well as ii) how economic incentive mechanisms such as PES can be designed to build on and complement local institutions of collective action. Results are presented from pilot Payment for Agrobiodiversity Conservation (PACS) schemes and framed field experiments implemented in the Bolivian and Peruvian Andes aimed at sustaining diversity within quinoa, a traditional Andean grain.

Climate change impacts food production systems, particularly in locations with large, vulnerable populations. Elevated greenhouse gases (GHG), as well as land cover/land use change (LCLUC), can influence regional climate dynamics. Biophysical factors such as topography, soil type, and seasonal rainfall can strongly affect crop yields. We used a regional climate model derived from the Regional Atmospheric Modeling System (RAMS) to compare the effects of projected future GHG and future LCLUC on spatial variability of crop yields in East Africa.

Small landholders can implement a range of climatesmart agricultural (CSA) practices and technologies, in order to minimize the adverse effects of climate change and variability, but their adoption largely depends on economic benefits associated with the practices. To demonstrate the potential economic benefits of CSA practices, we conducted a study with smallholder farmers in the Indo-Gangetic Plains (IGP) of India.

Se presenta informacion preliminar acerca del proceso y las causas de sucesion de sabanas de Trachypogon vestitus y de Paspalum pectinatum despues de quema y pastoreo, en Carimagua, Colombia. En varios expt. en los cuales se aplicaron diferentes tasas de carga a parcelas con y sin quema, se observo que la cobertura de plantas tendio a ser mayor en las parcelas con quema, a la mayor tasa de carga y al inicio y al final de la epoca seca. La quema y el pastoreo no afectaron el no. de plantas emergentes. Despues de la quema y con tasa de carga baja, T. vestitus predomino en la sabana de P.

Seedlings of Artemisia herba-alba grown in glasshouse were watered with differing salinities (0, 150, 250 or 350 mM NaCl) and watering frequencies of 3, 7, 14 or 21 days for a period of 6 weeks. At the end of the study, plant survival, dry matter yield, biomass allocation (shoot and root), leaf area, relative growth rate (RGR), net assimilation rate (NAR), specific leaf area (SLA) and leaf area ratio (LAR) were recorded. When watered with 0 mM NaCl, Artemisia herba-alba plants had similar (P> 0.9) final dry matter weight and 100% survival regardless of watering frequency.

Recovering energy from waste offers dual benefits – a) improved waste management, and b) provision of reliable energy to households, institutions and commercial entities. In this report, we present a socioeconomic assessment of three energy business models (briquette manufacturing, on-site (public toilet) energy generation, and agro-waste electricity generation) based on feasibility studies carried out in the city of Kampala, Uganda.