24 research outputs found
Formulation dâun Programme National du Secteur Rural robuste au Burkina Faso : Quelles thĂ©matiques nouvelles issues du processus des scĂ©narios socio- Ă©conomiques et climatiques?
Dans le cadre du partenariat initié en 2015 entre le
Programme de recherche du CGIAR sur le Changement
Climatique, lâAgriculture et la SĂ©curitĂ© Alimentaire
(CCAFS) et le Secrétariat Permanent de la Coordination
des Politiques Sectorielles Agricoles (SP-CPSA), en
collaboration avec dâautres programmes et centres de
recherche du CGIAR, une analyse du Programme
National du Secteur Rural (PNSR) fondée sur les
scénarios socio-économiques et climatiques du CCAFS a
pu ĂȘtre menĂ©e avec la participation effective des parties
prenantes du secteur rural du Burkina Faso. Les 22
recommandations qui en sont issues devraient permettre
une prise en compte effective des facteurs socio-
Ă©conomiques, environnementaux et climatiques
plausibles dans le futur proche et lointain, et ainsi aider Ă
rendre le PNSR II plus robuste face aux incertitudes
futures liées au changement climatique, aux dynamiques
mondiales, aux évolutions socioéconomiques, aux
changements des normes et valeurs, etc. En outre, un
exercice avec lâensemble des acteurs impliquĂ©s a
consisté à traduire lesdites recommandations en actions
et thématiques nouvelles à prendre en compte lors de la
formulation du PNSR II. Les Ă©changes entre acteurs ont
Ă©galement fait ressortir la nĂ©cessitĂ© dâune implication
transversale de la recherche dans la mise en Ćuvre des
activitĂ©s de cet important outil politique quâest le PNSR I
Formulation of a Robust National Rural Sector Program in Burkina Faso: What new themes have emerged from the socio-economic and climate scenarios process?
Under the partnership initiated in 2015 between the CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS) and the Permanent Secretariat for Coordination of Agricultural Sector Policies (SP-CPSA), in collaboration with other CGIAR research programs and centers, an analysis of the National Rural Sector Program (PNSR) based on the CCAFS socio-economic and climate scenarios was conducted with the effective participation of rural sector stakeholders in Burkina Faso. Twenty-two (22) recommendations were made to allow for the effective mainstreaming of plausible socio-economic, environmental and climatic factors in the near and distant future, that will make PNSR II more robust to face future uncertainties related to climate change, global dynamics, socio-economic changes, changes in norms and values, etc. In addition, an exercise with all the stakeholders helped in translating the said recommendations into new actions and themes to be taken into account when formulating PNSR II. Discussions between the stakeholders also underscored the need for crosscutting involvement of research in the implementation of the activities of PNSR II
A scenario-guided strategy for the future management of biological invasions
Future dynamics of biological invasions are highly uncertain because they depend on multiple socialâecological drivers. We used a scenario-based approach to explore potential management options for invasive species in Europe. During two workshops involving a multidisciplinary team of experts, we developed a management strategy arranged into 19 goals relating to policy, research, public awareness, and biosecurity. We conceived solutions for achieving these goals under different plausible future scenarios, and identified four interrelated recommendations around which any long-term strategy for managing invasive species can be structured: (1) a European biosecurity regime, (2) a dedicated communication strategy, (3) data standardization and management tools, and (4) a monitoring and assessment system. Finally, we assessed the feasibility of the management strategy and found substantial differences among scenarios. Collectively, our results indicate that it is time for a new strategy for managing biological invasions in Europe, one that is based on a more integrative approach across socioeconomic sectors and countries
Estimation of parameters in complex N-15 tracing models by Monte Carlo sampling
The most widely used method to quantify gross N transforination rates in soils is based on N-15 dilution and enrichment principles. To identify rate parameters, N-15-tracing experiments are analysed by models that are linked to algorithins that try to minimize the misfit between modelled and observed data. In Currently available N-15-tracing models optimization algorithms are based oil the Levenberg-Marquardt method that is suitable for the determination of small number of parameters. Therefore, these models are restricted to a few processes. Methods based on Monte Carlo sampling have the potential to overcome restrictions on parameter numbers but have not been tested for application in N-15-tracing models. Here, for the first time, we use a Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) method with a tracing model to simultaneously determine the probability density functions (PDFs) of the whole set of parameters for a previously published data set [Muller, C., Stevens, R.J., Laughlin, R.J., 2004. A N-15 tracing model to analyse N transformations in old grassland soil. Soil Biology & Biochemistry 36, 619-632]. We show that the MCMC method can simultaneously determine PDFs of more than 8 parameters and demonstrate for the first time that it is possible to optimize models where transformations are described by Michaelis-Menten kinetics. Setting the NH4+ oxidation rate to Michaelis-Menten kinetics reduced the misfit by 19%. Together with monitoring diagnostics for parameter convergence, the MCMC method is a very efficient and robust technique to determine PDFs for parameters in N-15-tracing models that Contain large number of N transformations and complex process descriptions. (c) 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. [References: 29
Leaky nitrogen cycle in pristine African montane rainforest soil
Many pristine humid tropical forests show simultaneously high nitrogen (N) richness and sustained loss of bioavailable N forms. To better understand this apparent upregulation of the N cycle in tropical forests, process-based understanding of soil N transformations, in geographically diverse locations, remains paramount. Field-based evidence is limited and entirely lacking for humid tropical forests on the African continent. This study aimed at filling both knowledge gaps by monitoring N losses and by conducting an in situ 15N labeling experiment in the Nyungwe tropical montane forest in Rwanda. Here we show that this tropical forest shows high nitrate (NO3â) leaching losses, confirming findings from other parts of the world. Gross N transformation rates point to an open soil N cycle with mineralized N nitrified rather than retained via immobilization; gross immobilization of NH4+ and NO3â combined accounted for 37% of gross mineralization, and plant N uptake is dominated by ammonium (NH4+). This study provided new process understanding of soil N cycling in humid tropical forests and added geographically independent evidence that humid tropical forests are characterized by soil N dynamics and N inputs sustaining bioavailable N loss
Higher body mass index is associated with increased lung stiffness and less airway obstruction in individuals with asthma and fixed airflow obstruction.
Higher body mass index (BMI) is associated with less severe airway obstruction in older asthma patients with fixed airflow obstruction. This is potentially mediated through BMI-related mechanisms that increase lung stiffness (i.e. reduce lung compliance). https://bit.ly/3jBwCNy