Developing knowledge and tools for climate change mitigation and adaptation with multi­functional urban green infrastructure – kick-off symposium of the multidisciplinary project “Maximizing the carbon sequestration in urban trees (CliMax)”

Das interdisziplinäre Forschungsprojekt CliMax ist eine Kooperation des Julius Kühn-Instituts und der Technischen Universität Braunschweig. Das Projekt erforscht die Grundlagen für effizientere Entscheidungshilfen für Städte und Kommunen, mit deren Hilfe nicht nur der Status Quo des Beitrages des Stadtgrüns zur Kohlenstoffsequestrierung geschätzt, sondern auch die Klimawirksamkeit des Stadtgrüns maximiert werden kann. Die Berücksichtigung der Multifunktionalität des Stadtgrüns bezieht dessen positive Effekte in eine Entscheidungsmatrix mit ein und unterstützt dadurch die Integration des Klimaschutzaspektes bei Pflanz- oder Pflegeentscheidungen. Zum Anlass des Auftaktsymposiums berichten wir hier von den Projektvorhaben.The interdisciplinary research project CliMax is a cooperation between the Julius Kühn-Institute and the Technische Universität Braunschweig. It provides information on the status quo of the contribution of urban green spaces to carbon sequestration and aims for the development of decision-support tools for maximizing the climate effectiveness of urban green. Considering the multifunctionality of urban green spaces, such tools must incorporate many effects of urban green space into a decision matrix and thereby support the integration of the climate mitigation aspects in planting or maintenance decisions. On the occasion of the kick-off meeting, we report here on our plans for the project

Pinus roxburghii stand dynamics at a heavily impacted site in Nepal: Research through an educational fieldweek

The fieldweek associated with the 4th Asian Dendrochronological Association Conference was an excellent opportunity for education, networking, and research. The participants and group leaders worked together for five days in an area that was new to some of the group leaders and new to some of the participants which enabled us to learn about forest ecology around Kathmandu and Nagarkot, Nepal. The fieldweek was an excellent networking opportunity and the group leaders and participants bonded which strengthened international research in dendrochronology and continues to foster new research collaborations. All of the group leaders and participants had the opportunity to learn about tree-ring formation in Pinus roxburghii at 1500 masl elevation, to explore its wood anatomy, and to examine specific research questions in our field area. In the end we developed a better understanding of the stand-age structure of a stand of trees in Nagarkot, explored the erosion history from exposed roots, and investigated tree health issues on closely related sites. We found that P. roxburghii poses some dating issues with false and micro rings at this elevation, but we were still able to develop a tree-ring chronology from this species and make preliminary assessments of stand dynamics and health

Pinus roxburghii stand dynamics at a heavily impacted site in Nepal: Research through an educational fieldweek

The fieldweek associated with the 4th Asian Dendrochronological Association Conference was an excellent opportunity for education, networking, and research. The participants and group leaders worked together for five days in an area that was new to some of the group leaders and new to some of the participants which enabled us to learn about forest ecology around Kathmandu and Nagarkot, Nepal. The fieldweek was an excellent networking opportunity and the group leaders and participants bonded which strengthened international research in dendrochronology and continues to foster new research collaborations. All of the group leaders and participants had the opportunity to learn about tree-ring formation in Pinus roxburghii at 1500 masl elevation, to explore its wood anatomy, and to examine specific research questions in our field area. In the end we developed a better understanding of the stand-age structure of a stand of trees in Nagarkot, explored the erosion history from exposed roots, and investigated tree health issues on closely related sites. We found that P. roxburghii poses some dating issues with false and micro rings at this elevation, but we were still able to develop a tree-ring chronology from this species and make preliminary assessments of stand dynamics and health. (C) 2016 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved