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ATTAINING SUSTAINABLE SERVICES FROM ECOSYSTEMS THROUGH TRADE OFF

SCENARIOS

Photo by Erwin Palacios (CI Colombia) © The Economist

Photo by Erwin Palacios (CI Colombia)

Our main goal

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To explicitly quantify the linkages between the natural ecosystem services that affect – and are affected by – food security and nutritional health for the rural poor at the forest-agricultural interface

Links between ecosystem services, benefits, food security and well-being

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OUR STUDY AREAS: MALAWI, PERU AND COLOMBIA

High forest coverLow deforestation

High forest coverHigh deforestation

Low forest coverLow deforestation

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The study areas on the forest transition curve

Natural land use transition Forest replenishment period

La Pedrera - Leticia

Pucallpa

Zomba Plateau

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The Social Sciences Component

PARTICIPATORY RURAL APPRAISAL

HOUSEHOLD SURVEYS1ST WAVE

FOOD DIARIES

1ST ROUND

HOUSEHOLD SURVEYS2ND WAVE

FOOD DIARIES

2ND ROUND

Qualitative methods:•Portrayals of livelihoods•Perceptions of change

in land-use, food security and NR stocks.•Assessments of food

security and insecurity.•Natural resource

governance.Quantitative information:• Socio-demographics• Living conditions• Income • Expenditure•Anthropometric

measures•Consumption of NR.

Quantitative information:• Amount of daily food

intake.• Individual

consumption within household

• Food sources. Quant. data for seasonal variation in:• Income • Expenditure•Nutrition•Consumption of NR.Additional information:• Social Capital •Cultural Services

Quantitative information for seasonal variation in:• Daily food intake.• Individual

consumption within household

• Food sources.

A LONGITUDINAL MIXED-METHODS APPROACH

National

Long-Term

Regional

Medium-Term

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Crises and Tipping PointsTheme 2

Environmental Impacts

Food Security

Health Impact

Economic Impacts

Policies relating to e.g. economics, sector-specific,

environmentalTheme 3

BowTie: risk management / mitigation

Theme 3

Food Security and HealthThemes 1 and 2

Ecosystem ServicesThemes 1 and 2

Setting of targets/ priorities

Drivers / Pressures

State Impacts

FeedMe

Socioeconomic surveys and PRA

Response

ARIESEcosystem service flows to

beneficiaries

Economic modelling

ES modelling

Local

Short-Term

Methodological FrameworkThe framework integrates the modelling tools and the DP-SIR approach to evaluate drivers, pressures and impact on ES over multiple spatial and temporal scales.

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The value of PRAA collaborative learning process…

using visual techniques …

that lead to critical representations of complex issues…

helping informants to better understand their situation and possibly facilitating collective action efforts.

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Participatory Rural Appraisal

Livelihoods and Land

Use

Food Security

Ecosystem Services

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Standard procedure

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ES and local livelihoods Livelihoods are heavily ES-dependent:

Slash and burn agriculture (no fertilisers, rain-fed). Fishing and hunting. Collection of wild-fruits Production of handicrafts for sale

Domestic activities are also ES-dependent Timber and thatch as construction materials Firewood for cooking River / ravines as main water sources. Extended use of medicinal plants

Locals do not consider themselves poor. The worse-off lack human capital (e.g., elderly).

COLOMBIA

Livelihoods are less ES-dependent: Rain-fed agriculture (subsidised fertilisers). Livestock rearing (among better-off). The worse-off depend mainly on casual labour (farm and non-farm)

Domestic activities feature heavy ES-dependency Mud bricks as construction materials Firewood for cooking Boreholes as main water sources. Extended use of medicinal plants.

Most are considered “poor” in relation to lack of assets and stable monetary income.

MALAWI

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Local ecosystems are key food sources: Farmland: staple food (cassava and beans) Home garden: spices and fruits. River / ravines: fish. High forest: game Low forest: wild-fruits.

Key advantages of natural sources: Variety Availability throughout the year Accessibility Volume Part of local culture

COLOMBIA

Markets are considered as important as natural sources: Farmland : staple food (maize and beans) Home garden (fruits) Wetlands (rice)

Advantages of the market : Availability throughout the year Volume Variety

Advantages of natural sources: Costs Exchangeability (into cash or goods)

MALAWI

Food sources

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No significant deforestation in the past decade. However, perceived decrease in…

palm trees and river fish stocks (substantial change) game stocks, timber and fertile land availability

Not all trends are negative. Stocks of fruit trees and medicinal plants are reported to be stable. Key adaptations: shorter fallow, use of manufactured

construction materials and greater consumption of non-native food.

COLOMBIA

MALAWI

Substantial deforestation in the past, some tree planting (woodlots and fruit trees) today . vegetation). Other dimensions show key negative trends:

Decrease in soil fertility Decrease in the volume and flow of river Decrease in wildlife in fish and crab stocks Erratic rainfalls

Most common adaptation: greater reliance on waged (casual) labour.

Key changes in ES

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Population growth Erratic rainfalls Land erosion Overuse of farmland Over-exploitation of forest / river resources Limited regulation for access and use of ES Impact of market and commerce Local conservation efforts: community + NGOs + international development agencies + government

MALAWI

COLOMBIA

Population growth Urban expansion River pollution Markets expansion. Technological change Changing practices and preferences Changes in seasons’ length Local conservation efforts: community + NGOs

Key drivers of change in ES

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Natural resource governance

TERRITORYFOREST

WATER

An integrated management of “territory” as compared to more specialised division of roles A community-centred management approach as compared to one more relying on aid. Regional indigenous organisations as compared to mainly village-level actors (committees). Both sites considered public agencies as secondary actors in the management of resources. Research institutions are not considered central to management activities.

COLOMBIA MALAWI

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• Less available land.• Deforestation.• Loss of soil fertility.• Diminishing water volume.

• Few farm inputs.• Unable to rear livestock.• Poor infrastructure.• Family instability.

• Erratic rains.• Frequent

droughts

• Population growth.

• Deprivation • Unstable income.

ENVIRONMENTAL ANDSOCIO-ECONOMIC

DRIVERS AND PRESSURES

ECOSYSTEM

SERVICES

LIVELIHOODS

FOOD (IN)SECURIT

Y

The (very) poor (two in three):• Casual farm labour• Cultivate rain-fed farmland.• Consume wild-vegetables.• Crabs and fish from river.• Use and sell firewood.• Drinking water is obtained

from pumps and river.

• Destitution.• Regular hungry season.• Malnutrition / Illnesses / HIV.• Competition / conflict• Depletion of nat. resources.

IMPACTS

• Gov. subsidies for seeds and fertilisers.• Forest reserves allow firewood and wild-food

collection.• Development interventions on forestry, agriculture

and irrigation.

RESPONSES

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Measuring poverty and food security Samples in Malawi and Peru, census in Colombia. Two 6-month waves per study site. Standard demographic, expenditure and income estimates BUT…

Includes use of natural resources for basic wellbeing dimensions: health, housing, food, agricultural and business inputs, etc.

Subjective assessments of well-being Anthropometric measures for children < 5.

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Sample size: 156 households (85% of all households) The average number of household members is 5.2 More than half the rural population of La Pedrera is 19 or younger (56%) The population distribution indicates important migration among young adults. Greater proportion of males (55%) as compared to females (45%).

COLOMBIA: Preliminary results

Male Female

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COLOMBIA: ES dependency

Livelihoods: mainly agriculture and fishing. A third of households hunt. Medicinal plants were used to treat around

a third of all illnesses reported in the last 4 weeks.

Houses are predominantly made of wood. Drinking water comes from rivers or rain Cooking is almost universally dependent on

firewood

n = 156

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COLOMBIA: Food insecurity

Around a third of the households reported having faced some kind of food insecurity problem in the past 6 months.

Worried about running out of food

Food did not last and lacked the means to get more

Lacked the means for a varied and rich diet

Half of the food insecure households reported spending more time foraging food from the forest (visiting deeper forest areas)

Other key strategies: reducing frequency or amount

of food borrowing food

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Food diaries

Sub-sample of 50 randomly selected households

All household members participate (if over 2 years of age)

Food and drinks recorded and weighed Detailed recipes recorded Information on source of each food item /

meal ingredient

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The challenges ahead

To integrate qualitative and quantitative data in order to assess ES contributions to human wellbeing (within and across study sites): Assess ES contribution to food intake. Relate nutritional health (among children <5) and ES. ES-informed expenditure estimates. ES-informed income estimates. Relate ES and quality of life (subjective wellbeing indicators).

To translate social research outcomes into information that is meaningful and useful to the local population.

To integrate social sciences data into modelling techniques. To integrate and compare results with other study areas across the world.

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THANK YOU

This presentation was produced by ASSETS (NE-J002267-1), funded with support from the Ecosystem Services for Poverty Alleviation Programme (ESPA). The ESPA programme is funded by the Department for International Development (DFID), the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) and the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), as part of the UK’s Living with Environmental Change Programme (LWEC). The views expressed here are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of the funders, the ESPA Programme, the ESPA Directorate, or LWEC.

@espaassets

espa ASSETS

www.espa-assets.org