Completed projects
Kili-SES Phase I
The role of nature for human well-being in the Kilimanjaro Social-Ecological System (Kili-SES) - SP1: Biodiversity and the supply of regulating NCP
| Project details | |
| Duration | 2020–2025 |
| Location | Mt. Kilimanjaro, Tanzania |
| Funding | German Science Foundation (DFG) |
| Principle investigators |
Prof. Dr. Lutz Breuer (PI) |
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A major gap exists in understanding how biodiversity underpins the supply of regulating nature’s contributions to people (NCP). This is especially true in Africa where both biodiversity and NCP are poorly understood and undergoing degradation. In Kili-SES SP1, we will calculate measures of the supply of all major regulating NCP on Kilimanjaro by combining the comprehensive KiLi 1 data with new data collected on the original 65 plots. These NCP are: habitat creation and maintenance, pollination and dispersal of seeds, regulation of detrimental organisms and biological processes, the protection and decontamination of soils and sediments, regulation of climate via CO2 and other greenhouse gases, regulation of hazards including landslides, extreme heat and fire, and regulation of freshwater quantity, quality, location and timing. Where direct measurements of NCP are not feasible, we will support the assessment by model-based evaluation (e.g. for groundwater related NCP). We will also measure the components of biodiversity hypothesized to underpin these NCP, including measures of individual species, their functional traits and aggregate measures of functional diversity. Through the assessment of the supply of regulating NCP to people on Kilimanjaro, we will 1. explore how these NCP vary across climate and land-use gradients, 2. identify which components of biodiversity underpin the supply of NCP, 3. analyse how these NCP are related to each other and to material and non-material NCP, and identify potential synergies and trade-offs among them, and 4. ask how anthropogenic drivers influence these relationships. Our project will provide the foundations for key components of Kili-SES, e.g. in terms of the supply and demand of NCP on Kilimanjaro and its consequences for human well-being, and will give a unique insight into the role that biodiversity plays in the supply of regulating NCP on tropical mountains. For more information: |
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Integrated Nitrogen Studies in Africa (INSA)
WP2: Nitrogen lateral and deposition fluxes
| Project details | |
| Duration | 2020–2025 |
| Location | Africa |
| Funding | EU H2020 MSCA-RISE |
| Principle investigators |
Prof. Dr. Lutz Breuer (PI) |
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The rusty red soil found in many parts of Africa is deficient in nutrients like nitrogen. Replenishing the nitrogen is vital to ensure crop yields do not continue to decline; however too much nitrogen may also be damageable for air, water and soil quality. Improving nitrogen flows and budgets can play a crucial role in agricultural production and in nitrogen release to the environment, since they are used as tools for estimating mining or accumulation. The EU-funded INSA project will create an interoperable platform on nitrogen in Africa, raising awareness of challenges, risks and opportunities for improved nitrogen management. A network of scientists from Europe and Africa will drive a preliminary nitrogen assessment in Africa. This will help in developing innovative aspects of research on targeted questions, to sustain a dialogue between different communities of researchers, to transfer information to the public and to reinforce educational activities. For more information: |
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HydroCrowd
HydroCrowd - Citizen Science in Hydrology
| Project details | |
| Duration | 2022–2025 |
| Location | Ecuador, Honduras, Tanzania |
| Funding | Kurt-Eberhard-Bode-Stiftung |
| Principle investigators |
Dr. Björn Weeser |
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Climate change has a worldwide impact on water availability and the occurrence of extreme weather events like floods and droughts. Reliable weather and water data are urgently needed to inform sustainable water management and develop strategies for climate change adaptation. The involvement of citizens in data collection research, also called ‘citizen science’, is seen as a promising way to increase data availability at relatively low costs, especially in countries where limited resources for data collection are available. By testing different approaches to engage citizens in data collection in Tanzania, Honduras and Ecuador, HydroCrowd aims to strengthen the acceptance of citizen science as a valid data collection approach. For more information: |
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