Agroforestry as a climate change mitigation practice in smallholder farming:evidence from Kenya

The promotion of agroforestry as a mitigation practice requires an understanding of the economic benefits and its acceptability to farmers. This work examines the agroecological and socio-economic factors that condition profitability and acceptance of agroforestry by smallholder farmers in Western Kenya. We differentiate the use of trees according to the permanence of carbon sequestration, introducing a distinction between practices with “high mitigation benefits” (timber) and practices with “low mitigation benefits” (fuelwood). This study goes beyond the analysis of incentives to plant trees to identify incentives to plant trees that lead to high mitigation outcomes. We show that environmental factors shaping the production system largely drive the choice for planting trees with high mitigation benefits. Most trees in the area are used for fuelwood, and the charcoal economy outweighs economic factors influencing planting of trees with high mitigation benefits. Larger households tend to produce more fuelwood, while high mitigation uses are positively related to the education level of the household head, and to the belief that trees play a positive role for the environment. Where trees contribute significantly to incomes, the norm is that they are owned by men. We conclude that although agroforestry is not perceived to be more profitable than traditional agricultural practices, it plays an important economic and environmental role by supporting subsistence through provision of fuelwood and could relieve pressure upon common forest resources. In areas with high tree cover, it also represents a way of storing capital to deal with risks and cope with uncertainty

Dual Purpose Cowpea for West Africa

Cowpea (Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp. ) is grown as an intercrop with cereals in some 9M ha of West Africa, mostly in the dry savanna. Though grain yields are low (circa 500 kg/ha), it is a nutritious food and dry season fodder. The haulms (leaves and stems) are cut and stored after grain harvest. It aids soil fertility by fixing soil N and returning N via manure from ruminants fed with haulms. Up to the early 1990s, research had focused on developing high grain yielding varieties. Recognition of farmers\u27 appreciation of multiple uses, in particular the fodder value and the increasing importance of crop residues as feed resources in much of West Africa where expansion of agricultural land and intensification mean reduced availability of land for planted forages, led to joint research by ILRI and IITA from 1994 onwards, resulting in identification of dual purpose varieties - with the potential to provide both good grain yields and quality fodder under farmer conditions

On the role of information in decision making: the case of sorghum yield in Burkina Faso

This paper investigates the role of temporal uncertainty and information issues in economic decisions. It shows that the nature of the economic environment (e.g., the production technology) can influence the valuation of information, which in turn affects the choice functions. This is illustrated by an empirical application to sorghum yield response analysis in Burkina Faso. The paper stresses the importance of technology and information valuation in risk behaviou

What is the evidence for the contribution of forests to poverty alleviation? A systematic map protocol

This is the final version of the article. Available from BioMed Central via the DOI in this record.Background: Forests provide an essential resource that support the livelihoods of an estimated 20% of the global population. Forests are thought to serve in three primary roles to support livelihoods: subsistence, safety nets, and pathways to prosperity. While we have a working understanding of how poor people depend on forests in individual sites and countries, much of this evidence is dispersed and not easily accessible. Thus, while the importance of forest ecosystems and resources to contribute to poverty alleviation has been increasingly emphasized in international policies, conservation and development initiatives and investments- the strength of evidence to support how forests can affect poverty outcomes is still unclear. This study takes a systematic mapping approach to scope, identify and describe studies that measure the effect of forest-based activities on poverty outcomes at local and regional scales. This effort builds upon an existing systematic map on linkages between conservation and human well-being in order to make this process more efficient. We will conduct a refined and updated search strategy pertinent to forests-poverty linkages to glean additional evidence from studies outside the scope of the original map. Results of this study can be used for informing conservation and development policy and practices in global forest ecosystems and highlight evidence gaps where future primary studies and systematic reviews can add value. Methods: We build upon the search strategy outlined in McKinnon et al. (Environ Evid 1-25, 2016) and expand our search to cover a total of 7 bibliographic databases, 15 organizational websites, 8 existing systematic reviews and maps, and evidence gap maps, and solicit key informants. All searches will be conducted in English and encompass all nations. Search results will be screened at title, abstract, and full text levels, recording both the number of excluded articles and reasons for exclusion. Full text assessment will be conducted on all included article and extracted data will be reported in a narrative review that will summarize trends in the evidence, report any knowledge gaps and gluts, and provide insight for policy, practice and future research. The data from this systematic map will be made available as well, through an open access, searchable data portal and visualization tool.We are grateful for funding support from the Program on Forests (PROFOR) (SA, SO, SC, RG) and the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture, Hatch Project #1009327 (DM)

Valuing indigenous cattle breeds in Kenya: An empirical comparison of stated and revealed preference value estimates

In this study we compare revealed and stated-preference approaches to value live-stock traits of cattle in Kenya. The premise is that much can be learnt about non-market values of indigenous animal genetic resources (AnGRs) from the use of multi-attribute stated-preference methods, if these compare well with revealed-preference results. The objective is to investigate the performance of choice experiments (CEs) in Maasai cattle trading, by conducting an external test of preference consistency. This involves comparing value estimates for cattle attributes derived from CEs data with those obtained using a hedonic analysis of actual transactions by the same population of traders, in the same markets and over the same period. If CEs perform well, they can be used to investigate values of those genetically-determined livestock traits currently not prominent in pastoralists' populations, but desirable candidates for breeding or conservation programmes (e.g. disease resistance). It is argued that these methods are important in developing countries where livestock are kept for economic reasons and for cultural and risk management functions which are critical to livelihood strategies, but not valued by markets. The results indicate that CEs estimates pass the external test and appear to be adequately precise in estimating values for cattle traits that are relevant in market transactions for Maasai traders. They may be, therefore, a promising tool for valuing phenotypic traits expressed by indigenous AnGRs

Locating poor livestock keepers at the global level for research and development targeting

P.K. Thornton, R.L. Kruska, P.M. Kristjanson, R.S. Reid and T.P. Robinson are ILRI authorsMany research and development agencies are committed to halving the number of people living in extreme poverty by 2015. Knowledge of where the poor are, and what characterises them, is patchy at best. Here we describe a global livestock and poverty mapping study designed to assist in targeting research and development activities concerning livestock. Estimates of the numbers of poor livestock keepers by production system and region are presented. While these estimates suffer from various problems, improvements in global databases are critical to improve the targeting of interventions that can meet the challenges posed by poverty and to chart progress against international development indicators

The effect of self-selected complementary therapies on cancer patients\u27 quality of life and symptom distress: A prospective cohort study in an integrative oncology setting

Objective: To examine the effectiveness of a multifaceted complementary therapies intervention, delivered in a systematic manner within an Australian public hospital setting, on quality of life and symptom distress outcomes for cancer patients. Methods: Adults receiving treatment for any form of cancer were eligible to participate in this study. Self-referred participants were offered a course of six complementary therapy sessions. Measures were administered at baseline, and at the third and sixth visit. The primary outcomes were quality of life and symptom distress. Linear mixed models were used to assess change in the primary outcomes. Results: In total, 1376 cancer patients participated in this study. The linear mixed models demonstrated that there were significant improvements in quality of life and significant reductions in symptom distress over six sessions. Body-based therapies demonstrated significantly superior improvement in quality of life over counselling, but no other differences between therapies were identified. Reduced symptom distress was not significantly associated with any particular type of therapy. Conclusion: A self-selected complementary therapies intervention, provided in an Australian public hospital by accredited therapists, for cancer patients significantly mproved quality of life and reduced symptom distress. The effect of this intervention on quality of life has particular salience, since cancer impacts on many areas of people’s lives and impairs quality of life