Adaptation by herders on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau in response to climate change and policy refroms: the implications for carbon sequestration and livelihoods

There are changes in livelihood strategies of five Tibetan herder communities in the face of climate change and government policies such as adjustments to use rights and restricted herder mobility. Data collection relied on a mixedmethod approach, including household surveys and rural rapid appraisals (PRA). Results indicated that yak husbandry is the main source of livelihood and households have a restricted range of livelihood activities. Major coping strategies varied with production system and resource availability and options for mobility of herds. The perception of a majority of respondents was that land tenure reforms had led to creation of more bureaucracies, forced sedentarization, livelihood insecurity, collapse of pastoral adaptation, poverty, resource use conflicts and hindrance to long-term planning and permanent developments. There is need to amend strategies that threaten the environment and instead promote integration of community best practices initiatives in proven concepts of adaptation to climate change and livelihood vulnerability.Haiying Feng and Melissa Nursey-Bra

In the Shadows of the Himalayan Mountains : Persistent Gender and Social Exclusion in Development

Climate change in combination with socioeconomic processes and opportunities have an especially severe impact on people living in remote mountain areas of the Hindu Kush Himalaya. What is less well known is how changes in climate will affect in the quality of lives, livelihoods, and resources of diverse groups of people of the region. The chapter argues that it is not only important but also necessary to link climate science and climate interventions with relevant contextual experiences of the different groups of people due their differential experiences and vulnerabilities. The chapter provides illustrative cases studies to demonstrate the differential experiences and vulnerabilities of women and men as a result of the dynamics of gender relations in the context of climate change

(Blue) Growth accounting in small-scale European Union fleets

Fisheries account for one-third of the total jobs in the global ocean economies. Small scale fleets (SSF) fisheries are the main segment from the number of jobs point of view, and in the EU, SSF account for over 40% of employment in the fisheries sector. Given this marine employment source, it is important to analyse SSF's productivity growth. This was done using Total Factor Productivity (TFP), which is dened as the portion of output not explained by the traditionally measured inputs of labour, energy and capital used in production. TFP calculation is relevant to understand the technology evolution in fisheries and as a reference for management assessment. TFP was calculated for SSF in two EU main sea areas, the Mediterranean (FAO area 37) and the North-East Atlantic (FAO area 27). Constant elasticity production functions were used to analyse the intensity of the use of production factors and how these are substituted or complemented when producing. Additionally, TFP was corrected by stock evolution indexes to evaluate the EU conservation policy. Results showed how the TFP presented signs of stagnation when stocks status were considered. This implies a low technological evolution and that the use of production factors is to be reduced in the following years. It was concluded that in the North-East Atlantic the EU conservation policy is obtaining the objective of restoring fish stocks and contributing to maintaining the productivity. In the Mediterranean, the stocks are not being restored, therefore not contributing to growth as a production factor. Finally, it is concluded that in neither areas the conservation policy is enough to provide positive productivity trends.JRC.D.2-Water and Marine Resource