Biotechnologizing Jatropha for local sustainable developments

This article explores whether and how the biotechnologization process that the fuel-plant Jatropha curcas is undergoing might strengthen local sustainable development. It focuses on the ongoing efforts of the multi-stakeholder network Gota Verde to harness Jatropha within local small-scale production systems in Yoro, Honduras. It also looks at the genomics research on Jatropha conducted by the Dutch research institute Plant Research International, specifically addressing the ways in which that research can assists local development in Honduras. A territorial approach is applied for analysis employing a three domain concept (local sustainable biotechnological development) of territory, technology and re-territorialization. The article suggests that, although the biotechnologization process (through genomics) of Jatropha within the socio-technical framework of the institute and multi-stakeholder networks is an ongoing process¿¿and different trajectories are, therefore, still open - the process can, nevertheless, strengthen local sustainable developmen

Landgebruik, klimaat en biogeochemische cycli: feedback en mogelijkheden voor de reductie van uitstoot

Abstract niet beschikbaarThis report describes a study that has tried to understand the coupling between the main driving forces of land use change and the emission of greenhouse gasses in the context of coupled land surface climate models. Studies related to investigating the main driving forces of land use change in Europe and assessing the budgets of the main greenhouse gasses in Europe were combined with sensitivity studies of land use change and climate at regional and global scale. These were linked to an integrated assessment model and selected economic analysis. Full integration of the parallel studies proved difficult in the timeframe of the project. The individual studies yield insight into the main driving forces of land use in Europe, the size of the biospheric GHG budget, the sensitivity of regional and global climate to land use change, and the global effects of trade in GHG mitigation control.SG-NO

Beyond NDVI: Extraction of biophysical variables from remote sensing imagery

This chapter provides an overview of methods used for the extraction of biophysical vegetation variables from remote sensing imagery. It starts with the description of the main spectral regions in the optical window of the electromagnetic spectrum based on typical spectral signatures of land surfaces. Subsequently, the merit and problems of using radiative transfer models to describe the relationship between spectral measurements and biophysical and chemical variables of vegetation are described. Next, the use of statistical methods by means of vegetation indices for the same purpose gets attention. An overview of different types of indices is given without having the ambition in being exhaustive. Subsequently, an overview is provided of the biogeophysical vegetation variables that can directly be estimated from optical remote sensing observations, with emphasis on using vegetation indices. These vegetation variables are: (1) chlorophyll and nitrogen, (2) vegetation cover fraction and fAPAR, (3) leaf area index, and (4) canopy water. Finally, an outlook for a major research direction in the near future in this context is provided