A photograph depicting focus group discussions on tree planting in Malawi by Phd student, Seline Meijer, is a finalist in the UCD Images of Research Competition.

Meijer is a PhD student with the World Agroforestry Centre and University College Dublin (UCD) in Ireland. For the past 3 years, she has been based in Malawi with the Centre, working with farmers to understand their perceptions of environmental issues and their attitudes towards tree planting and deforestation in order to better inform policies and projects in the country.

While much of Meijer’s research has focused on the biophysical aspects related to the benefits of agroforestry (largely due to national and international organizations actively promoting agroforestry technologies in the tropics), she has also investigated how farmers perceive trees in the landscape and how they evaluate agroforestry technologies.

Meijer’s photograph is of a focus group discussion with female farmers in central Malawi. Focus groups have been used in her research to better understand perceptions and attitudes towards tree planting. The farmers involved shared their experiences with planting trees on their land and discussed the benefits and challenges.

To see the image, visit: http://www.ucd.ie/research/images/2013/detail/image09.html