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Issue 52 December 2009 Farmers in Burkina Faso                            GIS helps preserve A multimedia database use multimedia tools to                            livelihoods and conserve records the biodiversity of                                                      wildlife in Tanzania the Cook Islands teach fellow producers Biodiversity Editorial Contents 2   Editorial Survival of the most Survival of the most adaptable 3   Perspectives adaptable Food security through diversity Cary Fowler Feature 2                                          withstand future environmental changes. 009 is the 150th anniversary of the 4   Farmers teaching farmers                                                                                                   However, many of these wild relatives publication of The Origin of Species, Miep Lenoir                                                                                                               face extinction. Scientists have to                                                                                   in which Charles Darwin outlined his quickly find and collect samples – theory of evolution. In the first chapter, Opinion                                                                                                                        usually seeds – before these species on variation under domestication, he                                                                                                                               disappear forever. says, ‘Variability is the source of all the 7   Eco-efficient agriculture                                                                                                      The International Centre for Tropical choicest productions of the garden’. This Andy Jarvis                                                                                                               Agriculture (CIAT) is now using statement holds true today, as the geographic information systems (GIS) to                                                                                   variation in domesticated crops is still Case studies                                                                                                                   identify locations where these vulnerable used by plant breeders to emphasize species might be found. CIAT then enters desirable characteristics such as drought 8   Pastoralists picture land use                                                                                              the data into GPS devices so that tolerance or pest resistance. Breeding for Massimiliano Rossi and Italo Rizzi                                                                                        collectors out in the field can locate the these traits helps farmers to maintain a                                                                                                                               plants and gather the seeds for storage. productive agricultural system and 9   A balance of life and livelihoods                                                                                              It is not only plants that suffer from provide food security. And, to ensure David Williams                                                                                                            the increased pressures on the land. In                                                                                   that crops can continue to survive the the Elerai region of Tanzania, the Maasai ever-changing environment, ICTs are 10 A base for biodiversity data                                                                                                communities felt their pastoralist now increasingly used to record, Gerald McCormack                                                                                                          livelihood was becoming increasingly monitor, promote and preserve constrained. One option was to give up                                                                                   biodiversity. Q&A                                                                                                                            their traditional lifestyle and turn their Throughout history, food production land over to agriculture. The community has steadily risen to meet the needs of 12 The richest natural resource                                                                                                was reluctant to do this and instead the world’s growing population. Until Kwesi Atta–Krah                                                                                                           sought a way to make use of the variety quite recently, that increase in                                                                                                                               of life around them. They collaborated production came mostly from the with the African Wildlife Foundation expansion of farmland. Then, in the mid (AWF) and used GPS receivers to record 1980s, more than 50% of the increase ICT Update                                                                                                                important land features, such as the came from intensified agricultural location of households, grazing lands, production; using crop varieties that water points and wildlife numbers. provided a higher yield to get more from With an accurate picture of their land the existing land. ICT Update issue 52, December 2009. resources, the Elerai Maasai were able to                                                                                      In the Sissili region of Burkina Faso, work with AWF experts to develop a                                                                                   the Federation of Farmer Organisations ICT Update is a bimonthly printed bulletin with an accompanying web magazine plan for the region. They decided to lease of Sissili (FEPPASI) worked with (http://ictupdate.cta.int) and email newsletter. part of the land for the construction of                                                                                   scientists at the Environmental and Each issue of ICT Update focuses on a specific theme relevant an ecolodge, where tourists can stay to                                                                                   Agricultural Research Institute in  to ICTs for agricultural and rural development in African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries, and includes feature view the wide array of animals that roam Ouagadougou to test fertilization and articles and annotated links to related web resources and the area. The extra income ensures that seed multiplication techniques for a projects. The next issue will be available in January 2010. the Elerai community can continue their number of crop varieties. The research Publisher: CTA Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural traditional way of life and, by making identified the varieties that would be Cooperation (ACP-EU). CTA is an institution of the ACP Group of States and the EU, in the framework of the Cotonou the area a nature conservancy, they have specifically suited to the environment Agreement and is financed by the EU. Postbus 380, helped to protect the movement of                                                                                   around Sissili. 6700 AJ Wageningen, the Netherlands. (www.cta.int) wildlife between a number of other FEPPASI then trained a group of Production and content management: Contactivity bv, connecting parks and farmland areas farmers to use video and digital cameras Stationsweg 28, 2312 AV Leiden, the Netherlands. (www.contactivity.com)                                                                                                       that run across the border between to produce agricultural training Tanzania and Kenya. materials. The group of trainers now use Coordinating editor: Rutger Engelhard / Editor: Jim Dempsey / Copyediting: Tim Woods (English), Patrice Pinguet (French) / Conserving biodiversity helps to                                                                                   the videos and photographic images to  Layout: Anita Toebosch / Translation: Patrice Deladrier / Cover protect livelihoods and can ensure that advise fellow farmers on improved Photo: Wayne Hutchinson / Alamy / Editorial advisory our agricultural systems can adapt and growing techniques for the new crop committee: Peter Ballantyne, Oumy Ndiaye, Dorothy Okello, Kevin Painting remain productive in the future. After all, varieties. Special thanks to Luigi Guarino, senior science coordinator at                                                               as Darwin explained all those years ago, the Global Crop Diversity Trust. Relative loss                              ‘It is not the strongest of the species that Copyright: ©2009 CTA, Wageningen, the Netherlands                                                                            survives, nor the most intelligent that All of these new, domesticated crop http://ictupdate.cta.int                                                                                                     survives. It is the one that is the most varieties originally came from wild adaptable to change’. And, without the plants. And these crop wild relatives, as                                                                                                                               rich source of diversity for farmers and they are called, are still a source of the plant breeders to draw on, our future genetic material that will allow for the This license applies only to the text portion of this publication. food security is uncertain. ■                                                                                   development of crop varieties that can ı                       ı 2        December 2009 ICT Update issue 52 There are a small number of               Technology also plays an important scientists around the world who           role in the preservation of crop specialize in breeding crop varieties,    biodiversity. At the Global Crop crossing one variety with another to      Diversity Trust we are now using a                                                                                                                 try to combine them in a way that          combination of technologies to create would make the crop good for farmers      predictive computer models. If we                                                                                                                to grow. This is because the modern       know where a particular variety of Cary Fowler                                                                                                      varieties of most of our agricultural      crop originally came from we can (executivedirector@croptrust.org) is the                                                                        crops have a limited life-span. After a   then predict some of the executive director of the Global Crop                                                                           while they fall prey to pest or diseases,  characteristics of that variety. For Diversity Trust (www.croptrust.org)                                                                             or they don’t do so well in the            example, if the variety comes from an                                                                                                                 environment, or a new, higher yielding     arid area then we could test that for variety comes along. drought tolerance rather than a Food security through diversity W                                                                                                                  Crop yields have increased              sample that came from a very wet or        hen people think of biodiversity, tremendously in the last few decades      tropical country. they usually think of the and that is largely due to plant             Computer modelling also helps us to diversity of species, the range of                                                                                                                 breeders using this diversity to create    make climate change and development animals and plants inhabiting the new varieties. And while I believe that   projections, which can help to pinpoint world. In agriculture, we usually talk of                                                                                                                the world needs a highly productive        varieties that are endangered through crop biodiversity, which is slightly agricultural system, it also needs one    rising water levels or expanding urban different. Farmers deal in domesticated that is resilient and sustainable. The    environments. The models would tell crops, and the raw material for plant variety of crops grown in the field has   us that we have to quickly collect evolution is the diversity within any an impact on the long-term future of      samples from that area. given crop. agriculture, especially if that variety      These are early days for putting ICTs There are, for example, more than needs a lot of water, pesticides or       to use for preserving biodiversity, we 200,000 different varieties of wheat, fertilizer. are only now starting to take and each of them has a unique set of                                                                                                                   But productivity and sustainability are advantage of the technology. In the characteristics. Some varieties have the currently under threat, and agriculture is near future, we will be able to use potential to produce higher yields facing probably the greatest challenge of mobile phones and other others may be resistant to certain pests its history, a history that dates back to communication networks to offer crop and diseases or be able to adapt to                                                                                                                Neolithic times. Twenty years from now,   varieties to farmers in a much more changes in the climate. This diversity as our climate changes, it is very likely targeted way. We can use the within a species, which at its most that we will need new varieties of crops, technology to provide information on basic level is genetic diversity, contains varieties that we don’t have right now. the best varieties for very specific the richness of traits and characteristics There is going to have to be a massive    conditions, and locations to give the that the crop has to offer. It contains effort to locate the genetic diversity in best yield and protection from pests, the ‘options’ that the crop has for our agricultural crops, the traits for    diseases and the changing future development. extreme heat resistance or extreme        environment. drought tolerance, and to move those         I cannot imagine how society is                                                                                                                 into the plant breeding pipeline so that   going to adapt to climate change if Svalbard Global Seed Vault Rex FeAtuReS / MARI teFRe / GlobAl CRop DIveRSIty tRuSt / Rex FeAtuReS Perspectives farmers have them when they need          crops don’t also adapt. I cannot them. imagine how we are going to save the tropical rainforests if we have an                                                                                                                Global solutions                           unproductive agricultural system. I                                                                                                                This, however, is one world problem,       cannot imagine how we can deal with perhaps the only one, that we can         water shortages in the future if we                                                                                                                 solve. The enormous amount of             don’t have a productive agricultural diversity that exists in most             system, since irrigated agriculture agricultural crops is like a gigantic     already uses 70% of the world’s toolkit of options for the future         freshwater supplies. development of agriculture. We know          It is not a solution to every problem, how to conserve that diversity and we     but I think preserving crop diversity have the institutions in place to do it. can solve and certainly contribute There are now a number of important       some answers to many issues affecting seed banks throughout the world that      the planet today. We have the tools and preserve samples of hundred of            raw materials for an agricultural thousands of varieties, and they are      system that will guarantee future food backed up by the Svalbard Global Seed     security, the question is: are we going Vault in the Arctic. to be smart enough to conserve it? ■                                                                                                                                                                                                    3                                                                                                                                                                            http://ictupdate.cta.int W                                                                                     In four years, FEPPASI’s advisors and video cameras, to document the hen FEPPASI, the Federation of                                                                                                           have trained about 2,500 farmers in                                                                 tests of crops varieties in the field and Farmer Organisations of Sissili, innovative production, food processing to create training materials. started its activities in 1998, the methods, marketing skills, the Feature     organization wanted to find out which Spreading local practices                 production of organic fertilizers, and crop varieties and production techniques techniques for the sustainable FEPPASI initially trained a group of 20 were most suitable for the specific soil management of natural resources, farmers as advisors, who could then go                       and climate conditions of Sissili using videos, photos and digital on to train and advise other farmers in                       province, in south-central Burkina Faso. presentations. For example, one photo their respective districts. Since the Until then, farmers depended on                                                                                                           stream explains the step-by-step advisors are farmers from the same knowledge and techniques passed on                                                                                                           process of turning yams into flour. area, the trust and acceptance levels orally from generation to generation, According to FEPPASI, the use of                                                                are very high compared to an advisor without having access to new these support materials has considerably from the capital city. This group of                       developments and innovations in the reduced the length of workshops and advisors were subsequently trained in                       sector, and without having the enhanced their impact. There are many basic ICT skills and how to use these to                       opportunity to experiment. success stories to tell. Monitoring and create training materials. Assistance from government evaluation data reveal that the farmers ‘Previously, people fell asleep during extension workers was not suited to                                                                                                           who received training have been able to                                                                 our training sessions,’ says Korotimi the specific conditions of the area, and double and even triple their yields. Barry, a former evaluation officer at                       their information was often outdated. Farmers teaching farmers After researchers in Burkina Faso identified the best crop varieties for the Sissili region, a local organization, FEPPASI, introduced ICTs to inform farmers and explain new growing techniques. As a result, production is up to nine times greater than before. In anonymous questionnaires FEPPASI. ‘With the digital camera, we                       In order to provide farmers with more collected in 2006, 2007 and 2008, can show images of the development in                       relevant information, FEPPASI started farmers expressed the numerous ways the agricultural test fields. In our a research programme in collaboration in which they had benefited. ‘I have meetings with producers, these images with the Environmental and found contacts online to sell almonds allow us to make visual comparisons. Agricultural Research Institute (INERA) and shea,’ said one. ‘I manage the We beam the images and discuss the to test different varieties of crops, production techniques to produce causes of the successes and failures of                       fertilization techniques and seed yellow and white corn,’ said another. the different fields. We also make multiplication techniques. One farmer, who now processes yams videos of the farming techniques and In one research project, for example, into flour, couscous and cake, has show them during the training FEPPASI tested 25 different varieties of                                                                                                           increased his income by adopting sessions.’ corn, of which seven proved better business practices: ‘The products Barry adds that it was difficult to                       particularly suitable to the soil and are better presented through the use of                                                                convince farmers about crop varieties climatic conditions of the province. labels and I sell more.’ An impact study simply by telling them that their They started to promote these seven carried out by INERA revealed that, on                                                                neighbours in the other village varieties to farmers and teach them average, agricultural production had produced more per hectare. Now, with accompanying production techniques. increased from 0.5 tonnes per hectare images, people can visualize the Since 2005, FEPPASI has been testing in 2003 to 4.5 tonnes in 2007. improvements. The images make it                       the potential of ICTs to train farmers Sissili farmers have also used the possible to overcome the limited and to help professionalize their internet to develop techniques to select understanding of certain topics, a                       businesses. In that time, the and improve seeds from the best of                                                                significant problem given the high organization has managed to gradually their crop varieties. For example, illiteracy rate among the population integrate ICTs into its day-to-day producer Moumouni Niébié searched (about 80% of producers in this region                       working processes. They regularly use                                                                                                            online and found an organization in                                                                 cannot read or write). For trainer multimedia tools, such as digital photos Benin that specializes in production Mahamadou Korogho, the use of digital methods for yams. Niébié contacted content has become essential in his them and learned how to produce yam work. ‘During training sessions, I don’t Miep Lenoir (mlenoir@iicd.org) is a knowledge sharing officer                                              seeds from fragmenting yam roots. To                                                                feel at ease anymore without a                                                                                                            further improve the quality of seeds computer,’ he says. ‘When I can show at the International Institute for Communication and used by its members, FEPPASI took pictures of exemplary productions, the Development (www.iicd.org) pictures of several crop varieties and participants applaud.’ ı           ı 4    December 2009 ICT Update issue 52 ReuteRS / luC GnAGo member of an online exchange and However, these courses created selected the best. Niébé’s corn field was news group, putting them in touch expectations regarding equipment and among the fields selected. He said, with other farmer organizations and connectivity that FEPPASI was not able ‘FEPPASI selected a number of                                                                                  federations in the country, and with to meet at that time, as it had a weak producers who applied the new external partners. When necessary,’ he                                         and unstable dial-up internet production techniques well, and guided adds, ‘a farmer in remote Sissili can connection and only two computers them to produce improved seeds, so the contact his colleague in other areas to                                         per centre. other farmers have access to good get correct information on cereals and In 2009, the dial-up internet quality seeds as well.’ other products in only a few minutes.’ connection was replaced by a VSAT FEPPASI’s group of farmer advisors Also, the FEPPASI website and connection in Leo and Boura. As this act as intermediaries between the farmer newsletter ‘Sissili Vala Kori’ (Sissili                                         connection is expensive, FEPPASI communities and INERA. When disease                                                                                   farmers’ voice) have increased the looked to recover the costs by sharing affects a certain crop, for example, the profile of the organization and led to a                                         the connection with several other advisor takes a picture of the plant and greater number of contacts within organizations nearby for a fee. This has sends it by email to the research Burkina Faso and beyond. turned FEPPASI into an internet institute. When similar pictures come While FEPPASI initially wanted to                                         provider, with positive connectivity from different villages, the institute create information centres where results, but at the same time runs the knows there is an outbreak and can take farmers can access relevant content risk of moving the organization away measures to limit the damage. directly, a different model has evolved. from its core objectives. Management                                                                        The telecentres, for example, are used FEPPASI also expanded the by a minority of literate farmers to find telecentre in its headquarters, making The FEPPASI headquarters in Leo, the market opportunities and communicate seven computers available for capital of Sissili province, and the two with buyers and sellers on national and members. ‘Our connection in Leo is district offices in Boura and Bieha (at                                                                                  international levels. Illiterate members                                          now often better than in Ouagadougou,’ about 50 km west and 30 km east of                                                                                   – the majority – benefit from the                                          says Joseph Dagano, president of Leo respectively) are connected to the centres indirectly through training FEPPASI. According to Dagano, a internet. The three locations function courses. farmer who is a member of their as information centres where members The group of farmer trainers use the organization is less likely to be can use the computers. centres to create and store specific misinformed or taken advantage of. In the first two years of the project, audiovisual content adapted to the ‘With the telecentre in Boura, the FEPPASI trained about 150 farmers in                                                                                  local conditions and based on local district farmer organization is now a basic computer and multimedia skills. 5                                                                                                                          http://ictupdate.cta.int Related links Federation of Farmer Organisations of Sissili FEPPASI provides information and training to develop the skills of farmers, promote technological innovations in agricultural production, and assist farmers in the marketing of agricultural products. ➜ www.feppasi.org Environmental and Agricultural Research Institute INERA specializes in the development, implementation and coordination of environmental and agricultural research in Burkina Faso. ➜ www.inera.bf International Institute for Communication and Development IICD is an international organization specializing in enabling people in developing countries to make use of ICTs to improve their livelihoods and their quality of life. IICD works in the sectors of agriculture, health, education, governance and citizen participation. ➜ www.iicd.org FeppASI research. At the moment, however,      four years. Joseph Dagano understood     taken from network partner Sahel there is no central storage system for the importance of ICTs long before        Solidarité. all the training materials produced. many others in the sector. When they        Agricultural advisors from Trainers are reluctant to share their  started to work with ICTs in 2005,        government agencies in the capital city own materials with colleagues or       farmers, as well as donors, did not       did not know the specific conditions of                         online. FEPPASI will need to develop   immediately see the advantages. An       the area. FEPPASI decided to invest in                        an institutional policy on knowledge    old anecdote that is often repeated in    its own research and ICT training, and management that encourages, as well    the organization concerns a donor who     create its own training materials. The as guides, trainers and extension      once said: ‘Farmers need food, not        organization’s advisors look the same workers to process and share their     computers!’ Dagano knew where he          as the farmers, speak the same content. wanted his organization to go, and       language, with the same accent, and Although the farmers are now        initial resistance did not stop him. tell their own stories. Farmers are more growing the new crop varieties, their     FEPPASI was able to integrate ICTs     inclined to adopt new production increased production does not          at its own pace, gradually exploring      techniques from someone they feel is                         automatically lead to increased         the possibilities and learning how to     like them. Through improved research incomes. For that, FEPPASI also uses   exploit them for maximum advantage. and training courses facilitated by                        ICTs to improve marketing and sales. In The project objectives set at the        fellow farmers, Sissili producers are the last few years, they have assisted beginning evolved over time as            improving the quality of their seeds farmers to collect data on their       increased confidence gave way to new      and growing new crop varieties that production, their costs, and revenues. ambitions. This would not have been      best suit their province’s climatic and Having worked with ICTs for four    possible from the start; the              soil conditions. years, the next step is to create a    organization needed time to                  These lessons show that the database that can aggregate the data   incorporate the technology, build skills, successes the farmers of Sissili have collected in that time to make         and discover how ICT tools can best       enjoyed through FEPPASI’s work were projections and calculations of crops  suit their interests. not purely a result of technology. It                        and productivity throughout the            Networking with local ICT training     was about having a clear vision of                         province. Based on these data, FEPPASI partners and other organizations has      what the organization wanted to                         will be able to access credit for its   also been crucial for FEPPASI, enabling   accomplish and how ICTs could members through gathering and selling  them to get technical advice, and share   facilitate this, taking into account the their products in larger quantities. challenges and ideas. For example,       importance of local trainers, locally they recently started organizing nightly developed content, local support, and Leadership                             events in villages to provide more        the freedom to gradually change There are several lessons that can be  information on their work, using a        objectives according to new drawn from FEPPASI’s work in the past  beamer and a generator, a concept         insights. ■                     ı            ı 6      December 2009 ICT Update issue 52 Eco-efficient agriculture Our food system is built on the traits contained in crop wild relatives. Researchers are now using geographic information systems to help protect this valuable genetic resource. A                                         species samples that have been collected ll the domesticated crops grown in                                                                                                                        Related in the wild. But the sad truth is that farms around the world today have resources many species have not been collected, evolved from wild plant species. But Opinion                                                  or are facing extinction in the wild due very few people give much thought to                                                                                                                     Gap Analysis of Agricultural to the loss of natural habitats. We                       these crop wild relatives, even though Biodiversity therefore need to make a concerted they are critical to our global food The Gap Analysis project is                                                                  effort to ensure that we do not lose security. developing a system that will allow these vitally important traits, which can The peanut (Arachis hypogaea), for people collecting information on                                                                  help humanity produce more and better example, was domesticated somewhere species diversity to know which crop harvests. in the border region of Paraguay, areas around the world, traits and Argentina and Bolivia by local Efficiency                                        taxa are still unrepresented among indigenous groups around 3,000 years target CGIAR genebank collections. At the International Centre for Tropical ago. The new crop arose from the ➜ http://gisweb.ciat.cgiar.org/ Agriculture (CIAT), we are now using fortuitous crossing of three wild species, gapanalysis/ geographic information systems (GIS) to                       each providing traits that were predict where important species might favourable for cultivation and human be found. Collectors can then use global consumption. Almost every crop we                                                                  positioning systems (GPS), loaded with cultivate across the world has a similar the data, to locate the vulnerable species story. and collect their seed. The CIAT analyses Crop wild relatives are the foundation                                            harvests. They include natural enemies have helped to raise the profile of crop of our agricultural system. And we still                                             to agricultural pests and diseases, wild relatives and ensure that greater need them. They grow in the fields and                                               which reduce crop losses. They include attention is paid to their conservation. the natural ecosystems that we see                                                   wild berries and fruits that can There are, for example, a total of 69 every day, but often go unnoticed. More                                              provide communities with nutrition in                                                                   species of crop wild relatives that are in                        recently, however, some people have                                                   difficult times. Yet we are losing a                                                                  some way related to the cultivated started to take notice. great number of important species at a                                                                  peanut. Of these, 17 species are under Crop breeders use wild relatives when                                             rapid rate. significant threat of extinction from the crossing plant varieties to bring in novel                                              CIAT have also been using GIS to                                                                   expansion of agriculture in Brazil, traits that might, for example, introduce                                            look at how climate change might Paraguay, Argentina and Bolivia. Our greater resistance to pests and diseases,                                            cause increased rates of extinction of                                                                   analyses have demonstrated that a                        or provide resistance to extreme climate                                              these species, and the results are grim. further 15 species are significantly conditions. The breeders use seeds from                                              We predict that over the next 40 threatened with extinction from climate   years, climate change alone could change. mean that we will lose as much as                                                                     These alarming figures have brought     20% of all species – one in five wild attention to the problem and encouraged   species. a number of national and international       So what can we do about it? CIAT is                                                                  initiatives. The urgent need to conserve  working to develop eco-efficient species has led to the establishment of a agriculture. This is a vision for number of projects to collect seeds from  agriculture where it continues to be                                                                   species under threat, and to include       productive and provide food and these species in conservation plans for   nutritional security to all, including national parks and other protected areas. the world’s poorest, but at the same Crop wild relatives provide a unique   time is efficient in the use of inputs opportunity to show the great value of    (less fertilizer, fewer pesticides) and conserving biodiversity. Our entire food  provides environmental sustainability. system is built on the unique traits that    We need a productive agricultural they contain. For other plant and         system to provide enough food and animal species, our analyses are          nutrition, and we need to conserve the showing similar threats. We are losing    wild species upon which continued natural ecosystems at a rapid rate, and   productivity depends. It isn’t easy, but many important wild species are being     we need to learn to value biodiversity. Andy Jarvis (a.jarvis@cgiar.org) is programme leader, decision    lost. In doing so, we will ensure that our These species include insect species and policy analysis, at the International Centre for Tropical                                                domesticated crops will have the that provide a service to agriculture by Agriculture (www.ciat.cgiar.org)                                                                             resources to adapt and survive future pollinating crops and increasing our      environmental changes. ■                                                                                                                                                        7                                                                                                                              http://ictupdate.cta.int Pastoralists picture land use A team of researchers combine maps, satellite images and participatory mapping techniques to develop an accurate picture of land use among pastoralists in southern Ethiopia T                                         balances on which their livelihoods are he amount of land given over to                                                                  based. growing crops has dramatically Drawing a sketch map to show the increased in the last few decades, Case study                                                                                                         Related resources of an indigenous community leading to a reduction of available resources became an important contact point grazing land in many places. between local knowledge systems and Pastoralists are restricted to grazing Enhanced Livelihoods in the the scientific world. This is particularly their livestock in smaller pastures, Mandera Triangle important because traditional which results in overgrazing and added The ELMT programme supports the relationships with the environment pressure on the land. Inevitably, some people living in arid and semi-arid have been so poorly understood and plants and animals can no longer areas of southern Ethiopia to move neglected in recent times. When survive in these areas. And, as the away from a dependency on                                                                  working with pastoralists, for example, species disappear, valuable knowledge emergency relief to long-term the outlines gave researchers a better of the local fauna and flora is also lost. economic development. understanding of local perceptions In an effort to better understand ➜ www.elmt-relpa.org about the status and quality of                       changing land patterns and preserve pastures, rangelands, water sources, indigenous knowledge, researchers are livestock types, the movement of                       using participatory mapping people and their relative pressures on                       techniques. Spatial visualization tools, the local ecosystems. such as three-dimensional modelling, But subjectivity and inconsistency in                       rural appraisal community maps,                                                       maps and satellite images. Women in                                                                  spatial representation, especially when printed maps and even screen-based                                                   particular showed a great ability and considering a large area of land, meant computer planning exercises with                                                     accuracy for locating features such as                                                                   that these maps were only of limited communities, can help to give an                                                     cultivated land and private enclosures. use when they were used outside the overview of natural available resources                                              Men were more reliable in pointing out original village or read by non- and how they are shared among the                                                    administrative boundaries, while the pastoralists. The question, therefore, various land users. young livestock scouts could quickly was how to translate symbols on a                          Although these community maps                                                      recognize migration routes. piece of paper in a way that could be                       were often little more than lines drawn                                                  By combining the input of the understood by everyone. One solution in the sand, or sketches on paper, they                                              different groups, the team was able to                                                                   was to involve the communities in the played a key role in giving                                                          gather complete and accurate interpretation of high resolution communities the chance to express                                                    information on infrastructure, the satellite images. their needs and understand the delicate                                              locations of wet and dry grazing areas, livestock migration routes, water Recognition                               sources and administrative boundaries, The Lay Volunteer International           as well as detailed information on the Association (LVIA) tested this            sharing of natural resources across methodology for the first time in Moyale  multiple territorial units. and Miyo woredas (districts) of southern     The team manually entered all the Ethiopia at the beginning of April 2009. data they had collected into a GIS The project used the same idea as         (geographic information system) community maps, but substituted a piece   program. They then produced a number of paper with geo-referenced maps and     of posters and maps which they took remotely-sensed imagery. back to the communities to verify the LVIA identified four woredas, spread   details. over more than 2,300 km2, and used           The study area still has a wide 1:25,000 scale maps to carry out a        variety of animal and plant species. series of participatory exercises with 15 Because of this, the government has different groups of pastoralists. In      designated a large part of the study combination with high resolution          region as a protected area, and it could satellite images, the community           soon be established as a reserve. While members were asked to identify a          the main focus of the research was to Massimiliano Rossi (lvia.ethiopia@ethionet.et) is the project      variety of features on the maps. preserve indigenous knowledge and the leader and Italo Rizzi (progetti@lvia.it) is a project office        The team discovered that after only     pastoralists’ way of life, the results will a few minutes of explanation, the coordinator at Lay Volunteer International Association                                                       also improve understanding of the pastoralists could consistently and (www.lvia.it)                                                                                                needs of all land users and help to                                                                   accurately interpret features on the       maintain a rich diversity of life. ■                   ı            ı 8    December 2009 ICT Update issue 52 A balance of life and livelihoods Faced with difficult choices, a Maasai community in Tanzania was able to get an accurate picture of their land resources with the help of conservationists and GPS receivers. S                                           The project began in 2004, and an                            ituated at the foot of Mount                                                  develop an ecolodge in the Elerai initial priority was to find out exactly Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, and just                                            Conservancy, in an effort to provide what resources were available on the 10 km south of Kenya’s Amboseli                                                   sustainable income from tourism. The Case study                                                 land, how they were being used, and to                       National Park, Elerai has a lot to offer                                           ecolodge also gave the community an                                                                 identify possible areas of conflict tourists. The region’s woodlands and                                              interest in protecting the wildlife and between the wildlife and the local savannah are home to lions, cheetahs,                                             the habitat. The lodge operators pay population. To achieve this, AWF leopards, antelope, buffalo and giraffe,                                          an annual rent to the community, plus worked with the community and plus a wealth of birdlife. The land is                                            conservation and overnight fees for technicians from local NGOs and owned by the Elerai Maasai                                                        every visitor. Under the lease government authorities to conduct a                      community, who live and tend their                                                 agreement, all unskilled labour will be                                                                 resource mapping survey. This involved livestock throughout the 5,000 acres. sourced from the Elerai community, collecting data on the existing But with less access to open,                                                  and if there are any skilled positions, infrastructure and assessing undeveloped lands for grazing, the                                                they will get first consideration. community land use needs. Elerai community face a difficult                                                    With the creation of the Elerai AWF trained community members to                      problem: do they continue with their                                               Conservancy, the growing communities use handheld GPS (global positioning                      traditional pastoralist livelihood, which                                          avoided a future of farming dwindling                                                                 system) receivers to record the exact is increasingly constrained, or, like                                             plots of marginal land. Instead, they location of households, water points, many Maasai, do they reluctantly turn                                             are keeping most of their land open for grazing lands, wildlife sightings and the land over to agriculture? wildlife tourism and their traditional other significant features. By                      Fortunately for the Elerai community,                                              pastoralist way of life. combining their local knowledge with there was an alternative: create a way Corridor advanced mapping tools, the resource to benefit from the wildlife they live mapping teams efficiently collected a                      alongside. By itself, Elerai could not sustain large wealth of data in a relatively short The people of Elerai worked with the                                           wildlife populations; the site is not big space of time. In fact, more than 95% African Wildlife Foundation (AWF) to                                              enough to be a viable conservation area of the mapping was conducted in                      develop an ecotourism model for their                                              on its own. But the region’s high about six days. land, and turn Elerai into a                                                      density and diversity of wildlife depends At the end of each mapping day, conservancy. This included an                                                     on the ability of the animals to move AWF staff downloaded the data onto improved land management strategy                                                 between a network of adjoining land laptop computers and compiled the that has allowed the community to                                                 units. Although relatively small, Elerai results with GIS (geographic                      keep their land open for both livestock                                            has added an important piece to a                                                                 information system) software. Using and wildlife. matrix of public and private A3 printers, they printed large maps    conservation lands that span the border for the resource mapping teams to       between Kenya and Tanzania. review the next day. Community             Elerai now forms part of AWF’s members helped to annotate GPS          Kilimanjaro Heartland, which links observations and identify gaps for      neighbouring national parks, privately- further mapping. owned land and community-owned land into a conservation network of                                                                Choices                                  more than 7,600 km2. This larger-scale Following the completion of the         conservation area, one of nine AWF survey, AWF collated and analyzed the   Heartlands, secures critical wildlife data to present to the community. The   habitats and movement routes, and community used the information to       introduces opportunities for a more develop a land use plan, featuring      sustainable tourism sector that respects management zones that will meet their   regional cultural heritage. future land needs while also securing      Perhaps more importantly, Elerai valuable habitats for conservation. The served as a conservation model that plan contained guidelines for the       AWF has since replicated elsewhere. effective management of the zones,      The success in Elerai has proved that which included wildlife and tourism,    this approach, of combining wildlife cultivation and settlements, and        conservation with the preservation of David Williams (dwilliams@awf.org) is the director for           livestock grazing areas. community livelihoods, is a viable Armed with a detailed overview of conservation geography with the African Wildlife Foundation                                              alternative to the subdivision, fencing their land, the Elerai community chose (www.awf.org)                                                                                            and expanding cultivation of lands to work with a safari operator to       seen in similar settings. ■                                                                                                                                                   9                                                                                                                          http://ictupdate.cta.int GeRAlD MCCoRMACk / Cook ISlAnDS nAtuRAl HeRItAGe tRuSt A base for biodiversity data For the last 20 years, the Cook Islands Natural Heritage Trust has been collecting the details of the country’s fauna and flora in one multimedia database. T                                                                               regularly receives 1,000 visitors a                            he Cook Islands, a small island     biodiversity database, probably because week, mainly from people in developed developing state (SIDS), has an    there has been little international countries. The Trust also published the online database designed to record      support for making such information Case study                                                                                        database on interactive CDs for schools details of its biodiversity: marine and available in SIDS. But in 1990, the in the Cook Islands, which have limited terrestrial species, indigenous and     Cook Islands government supported a                                                                                                        or expensive web access. introduced species, mammals and         proposal to develop an electronic, The database presently records 4,500 plants, fungi and bacteria. multimedia-focused database to make species out of an estimated total of                         The country consists of fifteen small information on local plants and around 7,000 socially or biologically islands covering only 240 km2, but it is animals available, including related significant species in the country. spread over an area of about 2 million  traditional and community knowledge. About 2,500 species (55%) on the km2 in the central South Pacific. Since then, the government has database have one or more images to                      Agriculture, mainly horticulture, brings invested more than NZ$ 1 million into aid recognition. The main challenge is                      in approximately US$ 15 million a        the Natural Heritage Trust to run the to identify and photograph species in                      year, around 5% of its GDP. project. The Trust has one professional the field, which is where the public will No other small developing country is staff member responsible for collecting encounter and hopefully recognise known to be creating a comprehensive    and collating information on local them. plants and animals. The Trust’s primary goal was to                                                               Recognition                             tabulate data on the social and Gerald McCormack (gerald@nature.gov.ck) is director of the                                             biological significance of a species and It took many years of fieldwork, but Cook Islands Natural Heritage Trust. Visit the Cook Islands                                            then list key identification features the database, which is hosted at the Biodiversity Database at http://cookislands.bishopmuseum.org                                           along with a detailed image. This data Bishop Museum in Honolulu, USA, is reasonably comprehensive for the finally went online in 2003 and ı           ı 10   December 2009 ICT Update issue 52 TechTip Searching the Cook Islands species or taxa by name in one larger or otherwise conspicuous Biodiversity Database search terrestrial species, but the lack of                                                       • users can search across taxa for available biologists to input data has socially and biologically significant meant that the detailed information is                                                          The search page on the database allows groups, such as medicinal use often inadequate for many groups. the user to find a species by typing the • default results are displayed as There is still an immense amount of                                                             first part of one of its names in Latin, thumbnail images, which presently basic fieldwork required on Cook                                                                English or Mãori. The species are arranged cover about 60% of the species Islands biodiversity. in a hierarchical system of taxonomy and • the thumbnail zoom enlarges images Although it is not the purpose of this                                                       higher taxon names are also searchable. to allow more detailed comparison database to record the location of all                                                          Users can input multiple names with on the results page collected specimens, it increasingly                                                            semi-colon separators to find multiple • primary images are of live specimens refers to a few specimens or                                                                    species or higher taxa, or allow for to assist with field identification. photographs for each island to vouch                                                            spelling uncertainties. And, although for the claimed presence of a particular                                                        Cook Islands Mãori is often written with Weaknesses: species. In the future, collection points                                                       standard letters only, there is a character • users cannot find species by listing will be georeferenced and displayed on                                                          input function on the site to enable or selecting their features active maps. searches using orthographically correct • voucher data is not georeferenced to  The database entry for each species                                                           Mãori. enable active GIS displays includes an image to aid identification • users cannot currently contribute and, where possible, supporting                                                                 Searching for the taxonomic group – images and other information. secondary images, videos and audio                                                              butterfly or mammal, for example – works files. The image files are as small as                                                          well for most users trying to identify an                                                        From the lessons learned in developing possible so that they load rapidly in a                                                         unknown animal. In contrast, many large the database, the Trust will launch a web browser, but can still be viewed                                                            groups, such as the 1,200 local flowering new, improved version in 2010. well on a screen and when printed to                                                            plants, are not easily divided into Registered editors will be able to edit show the main species features. subgroups by the public. In the future, the data online and general users will be Database videos are also small, under                                                           Trust will develop a system so that users able to add information at the bottom 20 seconds in duration, to make it                                                              can find the species by easily observable of each species page, with the possible for users to download them on                                                          features, such as leaf shape and flower possibility to upload images and other a dial-up or slow broadband internet                                                            colour. data directly into the database, connection. although these will be moderated        Currently, however, it is the advanced More input                                             before appearing online. search criteria that are perhaps most The new database will be a major     useful for the general public. These menus The database had the advantage of                                                       advance in the management, retrieval,    enable the user to search for habitat, growing slowly, which provided time display and editing of data. It is based distribution, threatened status, medicinal to experiment with many data options on open source software and the         usefulness or biosecurity significance. For and to develop the search menus for application supports editing via        example, a student on the island of Atiu different user groups, from compatible web browsers on a variety    can find the birds that are native and taxonomists to biosecurity staff to                                                       of devices, including desktop            endangered in the Cook Islands and that home gardeners. Over the last 20 computers, laptops, PDAs and            exist on Atiu. years, the Cook Islands Natural smartphones. The system can also be Heritage Trust has learned some delivered as a stand-alone application  Since most of the islands are a long way valuable lessons and discovered some from a computer hard disk, USB thumb    from each other, the names for many important strengths and weakness in                                                       drive or CD/DVD. plants and animals evolved independently. their biodiversity database. The main work in the future, as in   The database records and maintains Strengths:                                             the past, will be finding, identifying,  these differences, and gives users the photographing and uploading             opportunity to select species names • all biological groups are available information on unrecorded species. But  according to region. For example, on  within a single database with more people able to contribute,    Rarotonga, the White-tailed Tropicbird is • searches are available for Latin, thanks to the new database              the Rãkoa, while on other islands it is the English and Mãori names, and names developments, the load should become    Tara, Pirake, Pirake or Tavake Mokomoko. of higher taxa much lighter. ■ • users can search for more than one An alternate results page consists of                                                                                                one line of text per species to provide a concise list. The list includes the scientific, English and national Mãori names, along with the family name and a                                                                                                concise English descriptor, such as wasp, fern, seaweed. The group descriptor is                                                                                                particularly useful for interpreting the diverse taxa found using the advanced search criteria menus. GeRAlD MCCoRMACk / Cook ISlAnDS nAtuRAl HeRItAGe tRuSt 11                                                                                                                 http://ictupdate.cta.int Q&A Can those farmers help to conserve through breeding and biotechnology and biodiversity? Is the preservation of                                                                also through the age-old processes of                                                                                                                 biodiversity purely for scientists and selection by local farmers, is based on                                                                                                                international institutions, like Bioversity agricultural biodiversity. International? What are the biggest threats to                ➜ Farmers, especially small farmers, are biodiversity? And why is it important Dr Kwesi Atta–Krah                                                               crucial to conserving biodiversity. We                                                                that we do something to conserve (k.atta-krah@cgiar.org) is                                                       already know that small farmers conserve biodiversity now? deputy director general of                                                       more biodiversity than was previously ➜ It is very difficult to give a single Bioversity International                                                         believed. What they need is a good reason ranking for ‘threats to agricultural (www.bioversityinternational.org)                                                to do so, one that can counter the promises biodiversity’ because so much depends on       made by big seed companies and the specific circumstances. In some places     government ‘experts’. The efforts of farmers in conserving biodiversity need to be supported and The richest natural resource                                                                                    complemented by national agriculture research programmes and gene banks, and also by organizations such as Bioversity International. Why is agricultural biodiversity            habitat destruction and conversion There is often conflict in many important? threatens crops and the wild relatives of                                                                                                                countries between conservation and existing crops. Drainage, for example, or                   ➜ Agricultural biodiversity is a key natural agriculture. Is it possible, through irrigation, can displace the biodiversity that resource in the provision of food, fuel, promoting biodiversity, that the two used to thrive in those places. In other fibre, pharmaceuticals and much more. could exist side-by-side? places, the spread of new varieties, often Agricultural biodiversity also regulates the product of advanced breeding               ➜ Conservationists have tended to see environmental variability, supports programmes, displaces traditional and          farmers as the enemy, with a ‘fence important ecological functions, such as soil more reliable landrace varieties that          everyone out’ attitude. But the fact is that formation and water cycling, and is an                                                                farmers have depended on. By the time the      farmers, pastoralists, forest dwellers and essential component of cultural identity farmers discover that the old varieties may    others manage a sizable portion of the and diversity. have been more reliable and resilient,         Earth’s surface, and it would be much more All crop and livestock improvement, both they’re gone, unless they’ve been conserved    constructive to work together so that somewhere. Development and growing             farmers can conserve biodiversity. In this urbanization can also be major threats to      way, farmers will help to conserve other life biodiversity. forms and ecosystems too. I’ve heard it said that intensive agriculture with fertilizers Why is it important to conserve the            and other high tech solutions would leave biodiversity of crops in ACP countries? more ‘wilderness’ for conservation. But ➜ Some crop species are simply unknown         what will the effect of intensive agriculture elsewhere. Fonio (Digitaria exilis) is peculiar be on the wilderness and on the to the drier parts of the Sahel. In the        environment in general? Caribbean, there are hot peppers (Capsicum                                                                                                                Could genetically modified crop                                                                 species) that are adapted to the conditions varieties solve the problems of                                                                there, and often you find more different productivity and climate change we                                                                varieties in a single home garden in many might face in the future? ACP countries than in a whole country elsewhere in the world. These regions are      ➜ I do not believe that genetically particularly rich in agricultural biodiversity. modified organisms have the capacity to                                                                                                                solve the problems of productivity and Should small-scale farmers in ACP              climate change on their own. Our genetic countries be concerned about                   resources provide the basis for how we                                                                 biodiversity? adapt to the effects of climate change and ➜ In the simplest case, a farmer may grow      other global challenges. Therefore, we need two varieties of sorghum; one in the           to ensure that these resources are being bottom lands where it gets adequate water,     used appropriately today, and also one at the top of the valley where it gets     conserved for tomorrow. Where will the less water. Maybe sometimes it rains too       raw materials for modifying varieties come much, and the lower one is washed away. from if not from conserved agricultural The upper one thrives. Or there may be a       biodiversity? If just a little bit of the money drought, and the upper one fails. Replace      and commitment that currently goes into those with a single variety that is supposed   genetic modification went into research to be grown in both places, and the crop is    into the better use of agricultural at risk from both floods and droughts. biodiversity, I believe that we would be well Having several varieties, and several crops,   on the way now to truly sustainable food is a form of insurance policy. security. ■               ı            ı 12 December 2009 ICT Update issue 52