Drivers of land-use change
Understanding the links between the drivers of land use change at global, national and local scales and the opportunities to negotiate and influence agroforestry transformations
The incentives and disincentives that farmers face when deciding to invest and maintain agroforestry systems are defined by policies from the agricultural, forestry and environmental sectors. In some cases, national and local policies designed to protect forests and environmental services actually reduce incentives for agroforestry. Multi-lateral environmental agreements rarely harness the potential of agroforestry to advance environmental objectives.
Through our research, we hope to influence regional conventions, agreements and action plans to better facilitate the contributions of smallholder farmers practising agroforestry. The result will be the realistic use of trees in sustaining livelihoods and critical environmental services in multifunctional landscapes.
Key projects
Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation through Alternative Land uses in Rainforests of the Tropics
The REDD-ALERT project aims to contribute to the development and evaluation of market and non-market mechanisms, and the institutions needed at multiple levels for changing stakeholder behavior, to slow deforestation rates of tropical landscapes and hence reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Research will focus on forest transition and conservation in case study areas in Indonesia, Vietnam, Cameroon and Peru through collaboration with a number of European and developing country research organizations. The outcomes will feed into REDD negotiations as part of post-2012 climate agreements.
Making the Mekong Connected
This project supports connected, multifunctional landscape corridors in the quadrangle areas of China's Yunnan Province, Laos, Myanmar and Thailand along the Mekong River. It aims to protect secondary forests with high conservation value and create stepping stones with agroforestry systems and framework species. The project will have livelihood benefits as well as enhance biodiversity and carbon assets, therefore contributing to sustainable land use practices and policies.
