Understanding research for planning purposes
Expanding settlements, dependency on land-based resources, land-degradation, drought and water shortage, disease and climate change are some of the factors threatening the livelihoods of much of the rural population of the Limpopo. Knowing the future would help to better plan in these areas.
Scientific insights are useless unless appropriately translated, understood and implemented by the relevant stakeholders. This was one of the discussion topics by the Limpopo Living Landscapes (LLL) project team who met at Wits Rural Facility during the week of 17-22 August 2016 to reflect on lessons learned, successes and failures of the three-year LLL project under the Science Partnerships for Complex Earth Systems (SPACES) consortium.
To further investigate science/policy/planning challenges and to share research insights of the project, the LLL team hosted a Public Stakeholder Day on 19th August to engage with key stakeholders from the Department of Environmental Affairs, Department of Agriculture, the South African Earth Observatory Network (SAEON) and the Kruger to Canyons Biosphere Reserve.
The Limpopo Living Landscapes project aims to understand and predict effects of land use and climate change processes. To obtain a holistic understanding of the situation on the ground to better inform policy intervention strategies that support and develop sustainable rural livelihoods, the LLL project comprised of four subprojects focusing on the following areas: Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services; Rangeland Ecology and Management; Landscapes and Remote Sensing; and Crop Management and Agronomy.
Research insights of LLL subprojects
The subproject on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services – led by Prof Peter Taylor from the University of Venda – highlights the ecosystem services provided by natural predators and pollinators. “As one example, an avoided costs model demonstrated that bats provide a service of R38 million annually to macadamia farmers through their control of stinkbug pests. This economic benefit is roughly equivalent to the annual estimated damage caused by stinkbugs. The message is simple – lose bats and the costs of pest control to macadamia farmers would double,” explains Taylor.
The subproject on Rangeland Ecology and Management was presented by Dr Simon Scheiter from Senckenberg Research Institute, who presented model results of the Adaptive Dynamic Global Vegetation Model (aDGVM), and Dr Anja Lindstaeter from Cologne University who presented results from a two year drought and grazing field simulation experiment carried out at the University of Limpopo’s Cyferkuil experimental farm. According to findings, droughts are expected to increase in frequency in the future, and southern Africa is currently experiencing a severe drought. From both the model and field results, a strong policy message emphasised the need to rest rangelands for a year following drought to prevent rangelands from becoming degraded and dominated by annual grasses at the expense of perennial grasses, that is better for food for cattle. The rest period should not be longer than two years after which the vegetation becomes moribund and unproductive.
The subproject on Landscapes and Remote Sensing was presented by Prof Barend Erasmus of the Global Change and Sustainability Research Institute (GCSRI) at Wits University. As demonstrated by the results of the subproject, remote sensing has many applications in rangeland, cropland and biodiversity management. At the same time, livelihood questionnaires conducted by the subproject allowed a better understanding of the social ecological systems (SES) in rural villages in the study area of the project in northern Limpopo. Results demonstrated both the rapidly changing socioeconomic dynamics of rural communities as well as the value of natural resources as a safety net for rural communities, echoing much of the research undertaken in the Bushbuckridge area.
The subproject on Crop Management and Agronomy was reported by Prof Kingsley Ayisi of the University of Limpopo. Once again, model results were supported by field and climatic data. APSIM crop models allow simulations of predicted crop yields under different conditions (e.g., fertiliser input). The model results for the study were validated from field measurements from rural croplands and performed well. Field data revealed the poor state of soils in many of these areas and the need for better crop management and extension services to communities. Crop trials on experimental farms at University of Venda and University of Limpopo involved crops such as ground nuts and canola, allowing practical recommendations to farmers about planting dates and different crop varieties, all of which can be translated into useful mitigation strategies for local farmers to cope with predicted impacts of future climate change.
Looking ahead
Following the subproject presentations was a breakaway session with stakeholders which centred around strategies for researchers to best engage stakeholders and decision makers.
This session also provided a platform for stakeholders to provide feedback, insight on potential workable models that could be incorporated into LLL research projects, and potential areas of collaboration. Barney Kgope of the Department of Environmental Affairs, for example, highlighted priority areas of climate change research where LLL could make useful contributions for future planning in relation to predictive models, data on land degradation, the fuelwood economy, biochar in croplands and drought.
According to Prof Erasmus (GCSRI) the challenge facing some researchers is that research is sometimes relegated to being utilised solely for publishing purposes, or for discussion amongst peers. As shown by the LLL project, research insights can be used to inform policy interventions that will assist and develop sustainable rural livelihoods. To do this more strategic engagement sessions are needed to build relations with stakeholders so science can better inform planning and policy.
This LLL workshop concluded a successful 3-year project under the SPACES consortium, and researchers hope that the research insights will be utilised by key decision-makers to help alleviate poverty in the region. Looking ahead, researchers are investigating the possibility of launching a second phase project – with an extended collaborative network – to build on insights gained so far.