Land Use

Self-restoration of post-agrogenic soils of Calcisol–Solonetz complex: Soil development, carbon stock dynamics of carbon pools

Background

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Carbon sequestration and biodiversity of re-growing miombo woodlands in Mozambique

 

Background

This study aims to determine how slash-and-burn agriculture impacts soil and vegetation carbon (C) stocks and biodiversity on an area of miombo woodland in Mozambique. The study hypothesized that C stocks in vegetation and soils of abandoned agricultural plots (machambas) would be lower than in woodland plots and that C stocks would accumulate more rapidly after abandonment in vegetation than in soils.

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A Strategy for Scaling-Up Intensive Silvopastoral Systems in Colombia

Background

In Latin America cattle ranching is extensive and is often cultural, yet the dominant practice usually involves low denisty ranching in bare environments. These systems have emerged largely due to policies that politically and economicaly encourage the practice. Conducted in Colombia, this study explores the role of an alternative practice, intensive silvopastoral systems (ISPS) in landscape-scale restoration and addresses the barriers that would prevent a practice shift and the scaling-up of ISPS in Colombia. 

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Initial performance and reforestation potential of 24 tropical tree species planted across a precipitation gradient in the Republic of Panama

Background

Panama has experience significant forest loss due to the conversion of forest lands to agriculture and pasture, causing significant negative effects on ecosystems. Since natural regeneration is slow, the country has recently turned to plantation forestry in order to restore these degraded. Yet, many of these initiatives simply use a few exotic species. This study explores the performance of a range of species, including both native and exotic, in order to better ensure the success and adoption of diversified reforestation strategies.  

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The Humid Tropics Cattle Ranching Complex: Cases from Panama Reviewed

Background

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The logic of livestock and deforestation in Amazonia

Background

In the late 1970s through the early 1990s, a majority of Latin America's would be tranformed to pasture lands, causing a multitude of social, economic, and ecological issues from the local to international scale. This article aims to examine why this transformation has occurred. It specifically analyzes the logic and economics of pursuing livestock in Amazonia and the financial gains that can be made through the land and natural resources. The author reviews common explanations and then provides an integrated approach to slow and even halt this trend. 

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Livestock and Deforestation Central America in the 1980s and 1990s: A Policy Perspective

Background

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Linking forest conservation and food security through agroecology

Background

This chapter, found in Forest Landscape Restoration: Integrated Approaches to Support Effective Implementation, focuses on Forest Landscape Restoration (FLR) in the tropics. Specifically, the authors examine agroecology as an integrated approach for both gaining food security and restoring agro-forest landscapes in post-conflict Colombia.

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Consequences of the Armed Conflict, Forced Human Displacement, and Land Abandonment on Forest Cover Change in Colombia: A Multi-scaled Analysis

Background

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Forests in the Time of Violence: Conservation Implications of the Colombian War

Background

While there has been extensive attention paid to the social, economic, and political effects of the decades of conflict in Colombia, there has been limited research that seeks to understand the environmental side. This is critical since Colombia ranks among a select few "megadiversity" countries in the world. This article aims to remedy this issue through analyzing the geographic distribution of forest remnants in the Colombian Amazon, Andes, and Chocó in relation to the armed conflict in country. 

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