Sub-Saharan Africa
Getting the Right End of the Stick: Participatory Monitoring and Evaluation in an Organizational ContextBackgroundThis chapter documents the process by which CARE Zambia institutionalized a learning approach to their internal management and a participatory model of monitoring and evaluation as well as the results of this transition, using a food security project as a case study. CARE Zambia used seven principles to turn themselves into a 'learning organization': 1) thrive on change, 2) facilitate learning from the surrounding environment, 3) facilitate learning from staff, 4) encourage experimentation, 5) communicate sucesses and failures, 6) reward learning, and 7) promote a sense of caring. Open access copy available |
Abreha Weatsbeha Community Ethiopia: Equator Initiative Case Studies. Sustainable Development Solutions for people, nature and resilient communitiesBackgroundThis report from UNDP is intended to "the the full story ofhow (innovative sustainable developments solutions) evolve,the breadth of their impacts (and) how they change over time" through the case study of Abreha we Atsbeha in Ethiopia. Out of 800 contestants, the community in Abreha we Atsbeha was awarded the Equator Prize in along with US$20,000 in 2012 in recognition of their tremendous work on the restoration of degraded land and subsequent increases in food security, nutrition, and local livelihoods. Open access copy available |
Contributions of agroforestry to ecosystem services in the miombo eco-region of eastern and southern AfricaBackgroundThe article discusses the functional benefits of agroforestry to the miombo region of eastern and southern Africa, which includes the following countries: Democratic Republic of Congo, Angola, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Tanzania, and Mozambique. Open access copy available |
Financial Analysis of Agroforestry PracticesBackgroundThe analysis of economic of agroforestry is more complicated than annual crops because it involves trees and crops and because there is usually a period between establishment and when impact can be measured. This chapter analyses the financial returns of farmers in three practices: fodder shrubs (Calliandra calothyrsus) in Kenya were established to increase mil production; rotational woodlots in Tanzania were implemented to provide firewood (Acacia crassicarpa) and improved fallows (Sesbania sesban) were established in Zambia to increase fertility. Open access copy available |
Dominant species' resprout biomass dynamics after cutting in the Sudanian savanna-woodlands of West Africa: long term effects of annual early fire and grazingBackgroundGiven widespread anthropogenic disturbance and land degradation across the Sudanian savanna-woodlands of West Africa, these researchers examined the impacts of early annual fire and grazing on 6 dominant plant species in terms of: shoot mortality, height and girth. Though rather unoriginally, they hypothesized that forest biomass reconstitution is affected by disturbances such as fire and grazing. Open access copy available |
Charaterization and Impact Assessment of Water Harvesting Techniques: A Case Study of Abreha Atsbeha Watershed, Tigray, EthiopiaBackgroundThis report gives a comprehensive overview of water harvesting techniques in a community called Abreha we Atsbeha in Tigray, Ethiopia. This community was awarded the UN Equator Prize for their restoration work in 2012. In addition to providing a detailed historical, demographic, ecological, and hydrological description of the site, the authors also detail the major water harvesting techniques employed, including: bench terracing, stone bunds, stine bunds with trenches, soil bunds with trenches, semi-circular stone bunds, percolation ponds check dams, shallow wells, diversion heads, and hand dug wells. Open access copy available |
Gender Inequality in Malidino Biodiversity Community-based Reserve, Senegal: Political Parties and the 'Village Approach'BackgroundThis research examines some of the less visible, and ongoing social dynamics in a World Bank-funded conservation site in central Senegal. The goal of the World Bank project was to create a decentralized and community-based participatory forest management program that would re-structure the political economy of the charcoal industry, give more rights and autonomy to the local community, emphasize improved gender equity, and provide technical assistance to NGOs and community-based organizations. Open access copy available |
Local ecological knowledge of trees on farms, constraints and opportunities for further integratino in Tigray Region, northern Ethiopia: A Case Study of smallholder farmers in Abreha Wa Atsbeha and Adi GudomBackgroundThe paper compared two Ethiopian sites with differing levels of on-farm tree adoption: Abreha we Atsbeha (high adoption) and Adi Gudom (low adoption). The author used a knowledge-based systems approach involving participatory rural appraisal, focus group discussions, and semi-structured interviews. In both sites, farmers planted trees on their holdings for income generation, user rights, and direct benefits, and they planted trees on communal lands to comply with government policies, improve soil fertility and water harvesting, improve land for redistribution, and improve aesthetics. Open access copy available |
300,000 Hectares Restored in Shinyanga, Tanzania — but what did it really take to achieve this restoration?BackgroundOpen access copy available |
Community-based mangrove forest management: Implications for local livelihoods and coastal resource conservation along the Volta estuary catchment area of GhanaBackgroundThe author of this paper recognize that there has been limited research into the primary motivators for motivating long-term community-based mangrove restoration and management on local scales. In order to fill this gap, this paper aims to assess management practices of community-based mangrove restoration projects in the Volta River estuary in Ghana, paying close attention to the ecological and economic incentives for community-based mangrove forest management (CBMFM). The site was evaluated between 1974 and 2011 and the authors used participatory mapping and orthophotos. Available with subscription or purchase |
