Source code for https://feeds.feedburner.com/iwmi-cgspace

iwmi-rss.xml

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<title>International Water Management Institute (IWMI)</title>
<link>https://hdl.handle.net/10568/16814</link>
<description>IWMI</description>
<pubDate>Sun, 02 Oct 2022 14:12:11 GMT</pubDate>
<dc:date>2022-10-02T14:12:11Z</dc:date>
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<item>
<title>Knowledge networks to support youth engagement in sustainable food systems</title>
<link>https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121993</link>
<description>Knowledge networks to support youth engagement in sustainable food systems
Huambachano, M.; Arulingam, Indika; Bowness, E.; Korzenszky, A.; Mungai, C.; Termine, P.; Wittman, H.
Young people are on the front lines of transforming agriculture and food systems, coping with the social and economic impacts of COVID-19 as well as environmental and climate change effects which are likely to accelerate and intensify during their lifetimes. At the same time, young people across global contexts are increasingly emerging as visible agents of change in food systems, especially through networks that create, transform, and distribute food systems knowledge. This policy and practice review examines the role of youth as actors through food systems knowledge networks. Increasing youth participation in creating sustainable food systems for the future requires policies and practices that support food systems-related knowledge in two ways: (1) democratizing formal education systems; and (2) strengthening horizontal networks of grassroots research and innovation, including through traditional, ecological, local and community knowledge (TELCK). Food systems policies should be developed through dialogue with diverse knowledge systems, experiences, place-based needs, and aspirations of young people to maximize their participation in food systems policy development and evaluation .
</description>
<pubDate>Tue, 27 Sep 2022 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121993</guid>
<dc:date>2022-09-27T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
<title>Positive incentives for managing groundwater in the presence of informal water markets: perspectives from India</title>
<link>https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121996</link>
<description>Positive incentives for managing groundwater in the presence of informal water markets: perspectives from India
Balasubramanya, S.; Buisson, Marie-Charlotte
</description>
<pubDate>Fri, 23 Sep 2022 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121996</guid>
<dc:date>2022-09-23T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
<title>Transformative adaptation and implications for transdisciplinary climate change research</title>
<link>https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121965</link>
<description>Transformative adaptation and implications for transdisciplinary climate change research
Hellin, J.; Amarnath, Giriraj; Challinor, A.; Fisher, E.; Girvetz, E.; Guo, Z.; Hodur, J.; Loboguerrero, A. M.; Pacillo, G.; Rose, S.; Schutz, T.; Valencia, L.; You, L.
The severity of the climate challenge requires a change in the climate response, from an incremental to a more far-reaching and radical transformative one. There is also a need to avoid maladaptation whereby responses to climate risk inadvertently reinforce vulnerability, exposure and risk for some sections of society. Innovative technological interventions are critical but enabling social, institutional and governance factors are the actual drivers of the transformative process. Bringing about this transformation requires inter- and transdisciplinary approaches, and the embracing of social equity. In this Perspective, we unpack what this means for agricultural research and, based on our collective experience, we map out a research agenda that weaves different research components into a holistic and transformative one. We do not offer best practice, but rather reflections on how agricultural research can more readily contribute to transformative adaptation, along with the personal and practical challenges of designing and implementing such an agenda.
</description>
<pubDate>Thu, 22 Sep 2022 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121965</guid>
<dc:date>2022-09-22T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
<title>Social networks, heterogeneity, and adoption of technologies: evidence from India</title>
<link>https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121991</link>
<description>Social networks, heterogeneity, and adoption of technologies: evidence from India
Varshney, Deepak; Mishra, A. K.; Joshi, P. K.; Roy, D.
This study examines the role of caste-based affiliations in the smallholders’ social network interactions for adoption choices. In particular, whether lower-caste, namely Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes, farmers rely more on social networks for information than their counterparts. We further explore whether social network effects are more pronounced when farmers interact within their caste than otherwise. Finally, the study tests whether the effects (intra-caste and inter-caste) vary by caste—SC/ST versus non-SC/ST farmers. The study uses a survey of 478 mustard farmers in Rajasthan, India. Econometric concerns related to unobserved heterogeneity are addressed by employing specifications with village fixed effects and a series of robustness tests. Simultaneity concerns are addressed by analyzing the social network effects in a dynamic adoption framework. Results show that the adoption choices regarding hybrid mustard seeds are more pronounced for the lower-caste farmers than for their counterparts. Findings reveal that social network effects are significant in intra-caste but not in the case of inter-caste. Finally, the result shows that the likelihood of accepting advice in technology adoption is higher when SC/ST farmers interact with non-SC/ST network members than when non-SC/ST farmers interact with SC/ ST network members.
</description>
<pubDate>Tue, 20 Sep 2022 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121991</guid>
<dc:date>2022-09-20T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
<title>The “water machine” of Bengal: a data-driven and policy-supported strategic use of aquifers for irrigation is needed to maximize their benefits</title>
<link>https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121912</link>
<description>The “water machine” of Bengal: a data-driven and policy-supported strategic use of aquifers for irrigation is needed to maximize their benefits
Mukherji, Aditi
For decades, millions of farmers in Bangladesh have been capturing more water than even the world’s largest dams. They did so simply by irrigating intensively in the summer dry season using water from shallow wells. The ability to use groundwater to irrigate rice paddies during the dry seasons (January to May) helped Bangladesh become food self-sufficient by the 1990s, which was no small feat for one of the most densely populated countries in the world. Researchers proposed that lowering of the groundwater table as a result of intensive irrigation practices in the dry season created conditions for recharge from monsoon rains (June to September), which then replenishes the groundwater (1). On page 1315 of this issue, Shamsudduha et al. (2) present a quantitative analysis of this depletion-replenish process and show that this recharge has indeed been happening at a large scale, in a process they call the Bengal Water Machine (BWM).
</description>
<pubDate>Fri, 16 Sep 2022 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121912</guid>
<dc:date>2022-09-16T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
<title>Understanding human-water feedbacks of interventions in agricultural systems with agent based models: A review</title>
<link>https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121997</link>
<description>Understanding human-water feedbacks of interventions in agricultural systems with agent based models: A review
Alam, Mohammad Faiz; McClain, M.; Sikka, Alok; Pande, S.
Increased variability of the water cycle manifested by climate change is a growing global threat to agriculture with strong implications for food and livelihood security. Thus, there is an urgent need for adaptation in agriculture. Agricultural water management (AWM) interventions, interventions for managing water supply and demand, are extensively promoted and implemented as adaptation measures in multiple development programs globally. Studies assessing these adaptation measures overwhelmingly focus on positive impacts, however, there is a concern that these studies may be biased towards well-managed and successful projects and often miss out on reporting negative externalities. These externalities result from coevolutionary dynamics of human-water systems as AWM interventions impact hydrological flows and their use and adoption is shaped by the societal response. We review the documented externalities of AWM interventions and present a conceptual framework classifying negative externalities linked to water and human systems into negative hydrological externalities and unexpected societal feedbacks. We show that these externalities can lead to long term unsustainable and inequitable outcomes. Understanding how the externalities lead to undesirable outcomes demands rigorous modeling of the feedbacks between human and water systems, for which we discuss the key criteria that such models should meet. Based on these criteria, we showcase that differentiated and limited inclusion of key feedbacks in current water modeling approaches (e.g., hydrological models, hydro-economic, and water resource models) is a critical limitation and bottleneck to understanding and predicting negative externalities of AWM interventions. To account for the key feedback, we find Agent Based Modeling (ABM) as the method that has the potential to meet the key criteria. Yet there are gaps that need to be addressed in the context of ABM as a tool to unravel the negative externalities of AWM interventions. We carry out a systemic review of ABM application to agricultural systems, capturing how it is currently being applied and identifying the knowledge gaps that need to be bridged to unravel the negative externalities of AWM interventions. We find that ABM has been extensively used to model agricultural systems and, in many cases, the resulting externalities with unsustainable and inequitable outcomes. However, gaps remain in terms of limited use of integrated surface-groundwater hydrological models, inadequate representation of farmers' behavior with heavy reliance on rational choice or simple heuristics and ignoring heterogeneity of farmers' characteristics within a population.
</description>
<pubDate>Wed, 14 Sep 2022 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121997</guid>
<dc:date>2022-09-14T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
<title>Small-scale producers in sustainable agrifood systems transformation</title>
<link>https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121994</link>
<description>Small-scale producers in sustainable agrifood systems transformation
Arulingam, Indika
</description>
<pubDate>Tue, 06 Sep 2022 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121994</guid>
<dc:date>2022-09-06T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
<title>Relatives, neighbors, or friends: Information exchanges among irrigators on new on-farm water management tools</title>
<link>https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121990</link>
<description>Relatives, neighbors, or friends: Information exchanges among irrigators on new on-farm water management tools
Mekonnen, D. K.; Yimam, S.; Arega, T.; Matheswaran, Karthikeyan; Schmitter, P. M. V.
CONTEXT: On-farm water application in Ethiopia, as in much of Sub-Saharan Africa, is dominated by furrow irrigation, which resulted in inefficient water uses and related economic and environmental problems. A recent project introduced two on-farm water management tools, called wetting front detectors and Chameleon sensors, to some farmers in Koga irrigation scheme and facilitated for other farmers in the quaternary canal, who did not receive the technology, to learn from farmers who installed the tools on their plots.&#13;
OBJECTIVES: The objective of this study is to investigate the role of different social ties on information exchanges among farmers when some farmers have the signal on how long to irrigate a field during an irrigation event from on-farm water management tools. The study explored the relative importance of being neighbors, friends, spatial proximity of farms, and project induced pairings.&#13;
METHODS: The study used a household survey data from all members of quaternary canals in the project that were in the technology, information, and control groups, as well as detailed network modules on how farmers with plots in the quaternary canal are associated with each other. A fixed effects econometric approach is used to control for time invariant household level and quaternary canal characteristics, while teasing out how the different social ties affect the information flow.&#13;
RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: The results show that being in purposeful friendships as indicated by knowing each other’s decision on the use of agricultural inputs and its outcome, as well as being spatially proximate as indicated by having farm plots next to each other or usually passing by each other’s plots play a significant role in determining whether information-recipient farmers received information from the technology-recipient farmers as expected. Being relatives or neighbors played a minor role to facilitate information exchanges on how long to irrigate. In addition, ad-hoc pairs of farmers between technology-recipient and information-recipient created through the project within the quaternary canal did not play a significant role above and beyond the existing social ties of friendships and spatial proximity.&#13;
SIGNIFICANCE: The findings have implications for effective ways of targeting in future scale up of such technologies as it informs that the roll out of such type of technologies and the extension services around it can better help technology diffusion and learning if they use friends and spatial proximates as anchors of information. That is, at times of over-subscription to such on-farm water management tools, information about the technology and the recommended duration of one irrigation turn can diffuse faster if the limited number of tools are distributed in such a way that friends and spatial proximates have access to a tool, rather than distributing the tools based on being neighbors or relatives.
</description>
<pubDate>Tue, 06 Sep 2022 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121990</guid>
<dc:date>2022-09-06T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
<title>Migration, environmental change and agrarian transition in upland regions: learning from Ethiopia, Kenya and Nepal</title>
<link>https://hdl.handle.net/10568/114148</link>
<description>Migration, environmental change and agrarian transition in upland regions: learning from Ethiopia, Kenya and Nepal
Sugden, Fraser; Nigussie, Likimyelesh; Debevec, Liza; Nijbroek, R.
This paper analyses the relationship between cyclical labour migration and agrarian transition in the uplands of Nepal, Ethiopia and Kenya. It shows that while migration decision-making is linked to expanding capitalist markets, it is mediated by local cultural, political and ecological changes. In turn, cyclical migration goes on to shape the trajectory of change within agriculture. The dual dependence on both migrant income and agriculture within these upland communities often translates into an intensifying work burden on the land, and rising profits for capitalism. However, on some occasions this income can support increased productivity and accumulation within agriculture – although this depends on both the agro-ecological context and the local agrarian structure.
</description>
<pubDate>Mon, 05 Sep 2022 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://hdl.handle.net/10568/114148</guid>
<dc:date>2022-09-05T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
<title>Analysis of water reuse potential for irrigation in Lebanon</title>
<link>https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121072</link>
<description>Analysis of water reuse potential for irrigation in Lebanon
Eid-Sabbagh, K.; Roukoz, S.; Nassif, Marie-Helene; Velpuri, Naga; Mateo-Sagasta, Javier
Water scarcity and pollution are major threats for human development in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, and Lebanon is no exception. Wastewater treatment and reuse in agriculture can contribute to addressing the increasing water crisis in the MENA region. However, what is the actual potential of water reuse as a solution for agriculture in Lebanon? This report addresses this question and provides the most comprehensive assessment of water reuse potential up to now. Using geographic information system (GIS) modelling and the best and most recent data available in the country, the report develops a detailed technical assessment of the quantities of treated water available for safe reuse in irrigation, and identifies the wastewater treatment plants that have the highest potential for that purpose.&#13;
The report also examines the governance barriers that need to be overcome for the water reuse potential to materialize in practice. These barriers include structural shortcomings in the wastewater sector combined with challenges of governance and the lack of a regulatory framework for reuse management. Once the current economic, financial and political crisis in Lebanon eases, addressing these barriers will be key to achieving more and safer water reuse in the country.
</description>
<pubDate>Thu, 01 Sep 2022 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121072</guid>
<dc:date>2022-09-01T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
<title>Increasing cropping options in seasonal floodplain wetlands of Sub-Saharan Africa: a remote-sensing approach for assessing available green water for cultivation [Abstract only]</title>
<link>https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121999</link>
<description>Increasing cropping options in seasonal floodplain wetlands of Sub-Saharan Africa: a remote-sensing approach for assessing available green water for cultivation [Abstract only]
Ayyad, S.; Karimi, P.; Langensiepen, M.; Ribbe, L.; Rebelo, Lisa-Maria; Becker, M.
Paper presented at the European Geosciences Union (EGU) General Assembly 2022, Vienna, Austria and Online, 23-27 May 2022.
</description>
<pubDate>Thu, 01 Sep 2022 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121999</guid>
<dc:date>2022-09-01T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
<title>Functionality of rural community water supply systems and collective action:  a case of Guras Rural Municipality, Karnali Province</title>
<link>https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121995</link>
<description>Functionality of rural community water supply systems and collective action:  a case of Guras Rural Municipality, Karnali Province
Rajouria, A.
</description>
<pubDate>Thu, 01 Sep 2022 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121995</guid>
<dc:date>2022-09-01T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
<title>On the role of water resources management to transform water, energy, food and ecosystem (WEFE) systems in transboundary river basins [Abstract only]</title>
<link>https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121998</link>
<description>On the role of water resources management to transform water, energy, food and ecosystem (WEFE) systems in transboundary river basins [Abstract only]
Uhlenbrook, Stefan; Ringler, C.; Lautze, Jonathan; McCartney, Matthew; Hafeez, Mohsin
Paper presented at the IAHS-AISH Scientific Assembly 2022, Montpellier, France, 29 May-3 June 2022.
</description>
<pubDate>Thu, 01 Sep 2022 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121998</guid>
<dc:date>2022-09-01T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
<title>Participation and politics in transboundary hydropower development: the case of the Pak Beng Dam in Laos</title>
<link>https://hdl.handle.net/10568/117316</link>
<description>Participation and politics in transboundary hydropower development: the case of the Pak Beng Dam in Laos
Suhardiman, Diana; Geheb, K.
Hydropower development in the lower Mekong Basin is being rapidly developed. Taking the Pak Beng hydropower project in Laos as a case study, this paper looks at participation and politics in transboundary hydropower development, how the latter is revealed by multiple, parallel institutional architectures in hydropower decision-making across scales, and its implications for transboundary environmental governance. We look at the institutional disjuncture in hydropower decision-making, how it is (re)produced by powerful, albeit conflicting narratives at respectively national and transboundary levels, power relations shaping these narratives, and how these translate into local community's limited ability to convey their voices and represent their development needs. Conceptually, the paper sheds light on the underlying politics in transboundary environmental governance by bringing to light the structural factors that prevent participation, including how these factors are justified, sustained and to a certain extent reproduced as an integral part of legal, policy, and institutional landscapes that govern hydropower decision-making across scales (e.g., local to transboundary).
</description>
<pubDate>Wed, 31 Aug 2022 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://hdl.handle.net/10568/117316</guid>
<dc:date>2022-08-31T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
<title>Legal recognition of customary water tenure in Sub-Saharan Africa: unpacking the land-water nexus</title>
<link>https://hdl.handle.net/10568/120964</link>
<description>Legal recognition of customary water tenure in Sub-Saharan Africa: unpacking the land-water nexus
Troell, J.; Keene, S.
Despite the progress made in conceptualizing and advocating for secure community-based land and forest tenure rights, there is a critical lacuna in advocacy and policymaking processes pertaining to community-based freshwater tenure rights. Moreover, water tenure as a concept has only recently gained significant traction in global policy circles. This report analyzes national and international legal pathways for recognizing customary forms of community-based freshwater tenure rights held by Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (IPLCs) in sub-Saharan Africa. It employs a methodological framework and builds on an analysis of community-based water tenure systems that was developed and applied by the Rights and Resources Initiative (RRI) and the Environmental Law Institute (ELI) in the publication Whose Water? A Comparative Analysis of National Laws and Regulations Recognizing Indigenous Peoples’, Afro-Descendants’, and Local Communities’ Water Tenure. Based on the key findings of this analysis, in particular the frequent dependence of IPLCs’ legally recognized customary water tenure rights on their legally recognized land and/or forest rights, this report further analyzes national constitutions, national legislation governing water, land, forests, environmental protection and other related matters, international and national case law, and international and regional human rights laws, to explore how legal frameworks are recognizing and protecting customary water tenure rights across sub-Saharan Africa. The findings and recommendations provide a basis for analyzing the comparative effectiveness and potential drawbacks of these legal pathways for the recognition and protection of customary water tenure and ultimately for future work refining and improving legislation and assessing progress in its implementation and enforcement.
</description>
<pubDate>Tue, 30 Aug 2022 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://hdl.handle.net/10568/120964</guid>
<dc:date>2022-08-30T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
<title>Modeling climate change impact on inflow and hydropower generation of Nangbeto Dam in West Africa using multi-model CORDEX ensemble and ensemble machine learning</title>
<link>https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121016</link>
<description>Modeling climate change impact on inflow and hydropower generation of Nangbeto Dam in West Africa using multi-model CORDEX ensemble and ensemble machine learning
Obahoundje, S.; Diedhiou, A.; Dubus, L.; Alamou, E. A.; Amoussou, E.; Akpoti, Komlavi; Ofosu, Eric Antwi
Climate change (CC) poses a threat to renewable hydropower, which continues to play a significant role in energy generation in West Africa (WA). Thus, the assessment of the impacts of climate change and climate variability on hydropower generation is critical for dam management. This study develops a framework based on ensemble climate models and ensemble machine learning methods to assess the projected impacts of CC on inflow to the reservoir and hydropower generation at the Nangbeto Hydropower plant in WA. Inflow to reservoir and energy generation for the future (2020–2099) is modeled using climate models output data from Coordinated Regional Downscaling Experiment to produce a publicly accessible hydropower dataset from 1980 to 2099. The bias-adjusted ensemble mean of eleven climate models for representative concentration pathways (RC4.5 and RCP8.5) are used. The added value of this approach is to use fewer input data (temperature and precipitation) while focusing on their lagged effect on inflow and energy. Generally, the model output strongly correlates with the observation (1986–2005) with a Pearson correlation of 0.86 for energy and 0.82 for inflow while the mean absolute error is 2.97% for energy and 9.73% for inflow. The results reveals that both inflow and energy simulated over the future periods (2020–2039, 2040–2059, 2060–2079, and 2080–2099) will decrease relative to the historical period (1986–2005) for both RCPs in the range of (2.5–20.5% and 1–8.5% for inflow and energy, respectively), at annual, monthly and seasonal time scales. Therefore, these results should be considered by decision-makers when assessing the best option for the energy mix development plan.
</description>
<pubDate>Sat, 27 Aug 2022 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121016</guid>
<dc:date>2022-08-27T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
<title>Living customary water tenure in rights-based water management in Sub-Saharan Africa</title>
<link>https://hdl.handle.net/10568/120948</link>
<description>Living customary water tenure in rights-based water management in Sub-Saharan Africa
van Koppen, Barbara
Living customary water tenure is the most accepted socio-legal system among the large majority of rural people in sub-Saharan Africa. Based on literature, this report seeks to develop a grounded understanding of the ways in which rural people meet their domestic and productive water needs on homesteads, distant fields or other sites of use, largely outside the ambits of the state. Taking the rural farming or pastoralist community as the unit of analysis, three components are distinguished. The first component deals with the fundamental perceptions of the links between humankind and naturally available water resources as a commons to be shared by all, partially linked to communities’ collective land rights. The second component deals with the sharing of these finite and contested naturally available water resources, especially during dry seasons and droughts. Customary arrangements shape both the ‘sharing in’ of water resources within communities and the ‘sharing out’ with other customary communities or powerful third parties. Since colonial times, communities have been vulnerable to those third parties grabbing water resources and overriding customary uses and governance. The third component deals with infrastructure to store and convey water resources. Since time immemorial, communities have invested in infrastructure for self supply, ranging from micro-scale soil moisture retention techniques to large-scale collective deep wells. As increasingly recognized in both the water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) and irrigation sectors, this component of self supply is rapidly expanding. In all three components, local diversity is high, with gender, class and other social hierarchies intertwining with social safety nets, neighborliness and moral economies.&#13;
The study derives two sets of implications for state and non-state policies, laws and interventions. First, state legislation about the sharing of water resources should recognize and protect living customary water tenure, especially through due process in ‘sharing out’ water with powerful third parties. Remarkably, water law, which is dominated by permit systems in sub-Saharan Africa, lags behind other legislation in recognizing customary water tenure (see IWMI Research Report 182). Second, by taking communities’ self supply for multiple uses as a starting point for further water infrastructure development, the WASH, irrigation and other sectors can follow the priorities of communities, including the most vulnerable; identify cost-effective multi-purpose infrastructure; develop local skills; and, hence, contribute more sustainably to achieving more United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), in particular SDGs 1, 2, 3, 5, 6 and 13. Further historical and interdisciplinary research to achieve these benefits is recommended.
</description>
<pubDate>Fri, 26 Aug 2022 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://hdl.handle.net/10568/120948</guid>
<dc:date>2022-08-26T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
<title>Examining the transfer of knowledge and training to smallholders in India: direct and spillover effects of agricultural advisory services in an emerging economy</title>
<link>https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121992</link>
<description>Examining the transfer of knowledge and training to smallholders in India: direct and spillover effects of agricultural advisory services in an emerging economy
Varshney, Deepak; Joshi, P. K.; Kumar, A.; Mishra, A. K.; Dubey, S. K.
We evaluate a large-scale model of agricultural advisory services, known as Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) or Farm Science Centers, introduced by the Government of India to facilitate smallholder adoption of new agricultural technologies. The study first evaluates the impact of frontline demonstrations and capacity-building programs conducted by KVKs and aimed at promoting a new wheat variety (HD2967); it then examines gains in the speed of diffusion at the district level. The study’s second objective is to estimate the spillover effects of KVKs through social networks. The study identifies network beneficiaries based on a ‘‘networks within sample” approach. The study uses a matched difference-indifferences approach and sample of 1496 wheat farmers in Uttar Pradesh, India. The finding shows that frontline demonstrations and capacity-building programs positively impact the adoption of HD-2967. The magnitude of the impacts is larger for KVK beneficiaries, but substantial gains also arise for network beneficiaries. The study underscores the importance of frequently conducting interventions to influence adoption on aggregate at the district level. From a policy perspective, the study offers new insights for strengthening outreach and extension services designed to facilitate the transfer of agricultural knowledge and information, emphasizing frontline demonstrations, capacity-building programs, and spillovers in extending the scope of KVKs.
</description>
<pubDate>Thu, 18 Aug 2022 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121992</guid>
<dc:date>2022-08-18T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
<title>Impacts of climate change on crop and irrigation water requirement in the Savannah regions of Ghana</title>
<link>https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121020</link>
<description>Impacts of climate change on crop and irrigation water requirement in the Savannah regions of Ghana
Incoom, A. B. M.; Adjei, K. A.; Odai, S. N.; Akpoti, Komlavi; Siabi, E. K.
Water sources remain the key sources of irrigation in semi-arid regions. However, future climate changes threaten these sources. The study analysed water requirements of two commonly cultivated crops in the dry season in the Ghanaian Savannah regions under baseline and future periods. Crop water requirement (CWR) and crop irrigation requirement (CIR) were lowest in baseline periods and increased in the 2020 s, 2050 s, and 2080 s for RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5 at all locations. CIR was higher for tomato as compared to onions for most locations. Seasonal changes in the CWR ranged from 2–9, 3–12, and 3–12% and 2–8 3–12% and 5–18% for the 2020 s, 2050 s and 2080 s under RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5, respectively, for both the crops. Bole and Zuarungu recorded highest increases in CWR for tomato, whereas the least change was observed at Yendi for onions. Changes in seasonal CIR ranged from 3–19, 2–21, and 6–22%, respectively, for the 2020 s, 2050 s and 2080 s for RCP 4.5. Under RCP 8.5, changes in seasonal CIR ranged from 3–23, 5–23, and 6–27% were observed for the 2020 s, 2050 s, and 2080 s, respectively. Highest increases in CIR were noticed at Bole and Zuarungu for tomato, whereas the least change was observed at Wenchi for onions. Findings of the study support zero hunger and climate action, goals 2 and 13 of the SDGs.
</description>
<pubDate>Wed, 17 Aug 2022 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121020</guid>
<dc:date>2022-08-17T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
<title>Climate–urban nexus: a study of vulnerable women in urban areas of KwaZulu-Natal Province, South Africa</title>
<link>https://hdl.handle.net/10568/120621</link>
<description>Climate–urban nexus: a study of vulnerable women in urban areas of KwaZulu-Natal Province, South Africa
Hlahla, S.; Simatele, M. D.; Hill, T.; Mabhaudhi, Tafadzwanashe
The changes in climatic conditions and their associated impacts are contributing to a worsening of existing gender inequalities and a heightening of women’s socioeconomic vulnerabilities in South Africa. Using data collected by research methods inspired by the tradition of participatory appraisals, we systematically discuss the impacts of climate change on marginalized women and the ways in which they are actively responding to climate challenges and building their adaptive capacity and resilience in the urban areas of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. We argue that changes in climate have both direct and indirect negative impacts on women’s livelihoods and well-being. Less than one-half (37%) of the women reported implementing locally developed coping mechanisms to minimize the impacts of climate-related events, whereas 63% reported lacking any form of formal safety nets to deploy and reduce the impacts of climate-induced shocks and stresses. The lack of proactive and gender-sensitive local climate change policies and strategies creates socioeconomic and political barriers that limit the meaningful participation of women in issues that affect them and marginalize them in the climate change discourses and decision-making processes, thereby hampering their efforts to adapt and reduce existing vulnerabilities. Thus, we advocate for the creation of an enabling environment to develop and adopt progendered, cost-effective, transformative, and sustainable climate change policies and adaptation strategies that are responsive to the needs of vulnerable groups (women) of people in society. This will serve to build their adaptive capacity and resilience to climate variability and climate change–related risks and hazards.
</description>
<pubDate>Mon, 15 Aug 2022 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://hdl.handle.net/10568/120621</guid>
<dc:date>2022-08-15T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
<title>Can cash incentives modify groundwater pumping behaviors? Evidence from an experiment in Punjab</title>
<link>https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121019</link>
<description>Can cash incentives modify groundwater pumping behaviors? Evidence from an experiment in Punjab
Mitra, Archisman; Balasubramanya, Soumya; Brouwer, R.
As groundwater levels steadily decline in India, authorities are concerned about reducing extraction for irrigation purposes without jeopardizing food security. Very low or zero prices for electricity and water in agriculture is partly responsible for overextraction, but charging higher prices is politically not feasible. In this study, we describe the results of a pilot scheme implemented in Punjab, India, where farmers who enrolled were allocated a monthly entitlement of electricity units and compensated for unused electricity. Eight hours of uninterrupted daytime electricity supply were also provided under the scheme instead of the usual mix of daytime and night-time supply. Analyzing data from a cross-sectional farm household survey and instrumenting for enrollment, we find that self-reported hours of irrigation for enrolled farmers were significantly lower than for non-enrolled ones, with no impact on rice yields. We also find a reduction in monthly electricity consumption at electricity-feeder level due to the pilot scheme using the synthetic control method. Our results suggest that the combination of daytime electricity provision and cash incentives for unused electricity has the potential to incentivize farmers to reduce electricity consumption and irrigation hours by at least 7.5% and up to 30% without impacting paddy yields.
</description>
<pubDate>Sun, 14 Aug 2022 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121019</guid>
<dc:date>2022-08-14T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
<title>The fate of wetlands: can the view from space help us to stop and reverse their global decline?</title>
<link>https://hdl.handle.net/10568/120591</link>
<description>The fate of wetlands: can the view from space help us to stop and reverse their global decline?
Strauch, A.; Bunting, P.; Campbell, J.; Cornish, N.; Eberle, J.; Fatoyinbo, T.; Franke, J.; Hentze, K.; Lagomasino, D.; Lucas, R.; Paganini, M.; Rebelo, Lisa-Maria; Riffler, M.; Rosenqvist, A.; Steinbach, S.; Thonfeld, F.; Tottrup, C.
Wetlands are among the most vulnerable, threatened, valuable, diverse, and heterogeneous ecosystems existing on our planet. While they provide invaluable ecosystem services to our society, they have been declining globally for many centuries. Monitoring of these changes is necessary for implementing efficient conservation policies and sustainable management schemes. Earth observation techniques can support the effort of monitoring, assessing, and inventorying wetlands at different scales with ever growing capabilities and toolsets. While the GEO-Wetlands initiative provides a framework for collaboratively increasing and utilizing these capabilities, global stakeholders like the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands and U.N. Environment are starting to adopt EO-based methods in their guidelines and technical reports. Many challenges still remain, although different projects and case studies successfully demonstrate the opportunities provided by the growing data archives, analysis algorithms, and processing capabilities. Many of these demonstrations focus on local wetland sites. The mapping and inventorying, specifically of vegetated wetlands, on national or even global scales remains a challenge for the wetlands and EO communities for years to come. Collaboration and partnership between different stakeholders of both communities are key for success. Initiatives like GEO-Wetlands, in cooperation with global stakeholders, need to provide the framework for this collaborative effort.
</description>
<pubDate>Fri, 12 Aug 2022 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://hdl.handle.net/10568/120591</guid>
<dc:date>2022-08-12T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
<title>Warming climate and elevated CO2 will enhance future winter wheat yields in North China Region</title>
<link>https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121033</link>
<description>Warming climate and elevated CO2 will enhance future winter wheat yields in North China Region
Shoukat, M. R.; Cai, D.; Shafeeque, Muhammad; Habib-ur-Rahman, M.; Yan, H.
The projected climate change substantially impacts agricultural productivity and global food security. The cropping system models (CSM) can help estimate the effects of the changing climate on current and future crop production. The current study evaluated the impact of a projected climate change under shared socioeconomic pathways (SSPs) scenarios (SSP2-4.5 and SSP5-8.5) on the grain yield of winter wheat in the North China Plain by adopting the CSM-DSSAT CERES-Wheat model. The model was calibrated and evaluated using observed data of winter wheat experiments from 2015 to 2017 in which nitrogen fertigation was applied to various growth stages of winter wheat. Under the near-term (2021–2040), mid-term (2041–2060), and long-term (2081–2100) SSP2-4.5 and SSP5-8.5 scenarios, the future climate projections were based on five global climate models (GCMs) of the sixth phase of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP6). The GCMs projected an increase in grain yield with increasing temperature and precipitation in the near-term, mid-term, and long-term projections. In the mid-term, 13% more winter wheat grain yield is predicted under 1.3  C, and a 33 mm increase in temperature and precipitation, respectively, compared with the baseline period (1995–2014). The increasing CO2 concentration trends projected an increase in average grain yield from 4 to 6%, 4 to 14%, and 2 to 34% in the near-term, mid-term, and long-term projections, respectively, compared to the baseline. The adaptive strategies were also analyzed, including three irrigation levels (200, 260, and 320 mm), three nitrogen fertilizer rates (275, 330, and 385 kg ha-1 ), and four sowing times (September 13, September 23, October 3, and October 13). An adaptive strategy experiments indicated that sowing winter wheat on October 3 (traditional planting time) and applying 275 kg ha-1 nitrogen fertilizer and 260 mm irrigation water could positively affect the grain yield in the North China Plain. These findings are beneficial in decision making to adopt and implement the best management practices to mitigate future climate change impacts on wheat grain yields.
</description>
<pubDate>Thu, 11 Aug 2022 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121033</guid>
<dc:date>2022-08-11T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
<title>Are climate finance subsidies equitably distributed among farmers? Assessing socio-demographics of solar irrigation in Nepal</title>
<link>https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121021</link>
<description>Are climate finance subsidies equitably distributed among farmers? Assessing socio-demographics of solar irrigation in Nepal
Kafle, K.; Uprety, Labisha; Shrestha, Gitta; Pandey, V.; Mukherji, Aditi
Solar-powered irrigation pumps are a vital tool for both climate change adaptation and mitigation. Since most developing countries cannot fully utilize large-scale global funds for climate finance due to limited institutional capacities, small-scale solar irrigation pumps (SIPs) can provide a climate-resilient technological solution. We study the case of a subsidized SIP program in Nepal to understand who likely benefits from a small-scale climate finance program in a developing country setting. We analyze government data on profiles of farmers applying for SIPs and in-depth interviews with different actors along the SIP service chain. We find that vulnerable farmers (women, ethnic minorities, and poor farmers) were less likely than wealthier and non-minority farmers to have access to climate finance subsidies. Even though the government agency gave preference to women and ethnic minority farmers during beneficiary selection, an unrepresentative pool of applicants resulting from social and institutional barriers that prevented them from applying to the program led to an inequitable distribution of subsidized SIPs. The lack of a clear policy framework for allocating climate finance subsidies was a significant constraint. Lack of periodic updating of SIP prices and poor provision of after-sale services were also responsible for the inequitable distribution of subsidized SIPs. We recommend the involvement of local governments in soliciting applications from a wider pool of farmers, periodic revision of SIP prices to reflect market price, replacement of the current fixed subsidy scheme with a variable subsidy scheme, and mandatory provisions of after-sales services.
</description>
<pubDate>Fri, 05 Aug 2022 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121021</guid>
<dc:date>2022-08-05T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
<title>Demand and supply constraints of credit in smallholder farming: evidence from Ethiopia and Tanzania</title>
<link>https://hdl.handle.net/10568/120612</link>
<description>Demand and supply constraints of credit in smallholder farming: evidence from Ethiopia and Tanzania
Balana, B. B.; Mekonnen, D.; Haile, B.; Hagos, Fitsum; Yimam, S.; Ringler, C
Credit constraint is often considered as one of the key barriers to the adoption of modern agricultural technologies and low agricultural productivity in low- and middle-income countries. Past research and much of the policy discourse associate agricultural credit constraints with supply-side factors, such as limited access to credit sources or high costs of borrowing. However, demand-side factors, such as risk-aversion and financial illiteracy among borrowers could also affect credit-rationing of smallholder agricultural households. This study investigates the nature of credit constraints, factors affecting credit constraint status, and the effects of credit constraints on adoption and intensity of use of three modern agricultural technologies – small-scale irrigation, chemical fertilizer, and improved seeds. The paper also assesses whether credit constraints are gender-differentiated. Primary survey data were collected from sample farmers in Ethiopia and Tanzania, and Tobit and two-step hurdle econometric models were used to analyze these data. Results show that demand-side credit constraints are as important as supply-side factors in conditioning smallholders’ access to credit in both countries. We also find that credit is a binding constraint for the decision to adopt technologies and input use intensity in Tanzania but not statistically significant in Ethiopia. Results suggest that women are more likely to be credit constrained (from both the supply and demand sides) than men in both study countries. Based on these findings, we suggest that policies should focus on addressing both supply- and demand-side credit constraints to credit access, including through targeted interventions to reduce risk, such as crop insurance, and to strengthen the gender sensitivity of credit policies.
</description>
<pubDate>Mon, 01 Aug 2022 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://hdl.handle.net/10568/120612</guid>
<dc:date>2022-08-01T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
<title>Food waste minimization and circularity for optimizing urban food system resilience</title>
<link>https://hdl.handle.net/10568/120959</link>
<description>Food waste minimization and circularity for optimizing urban food system resilience
Simon, D.; Fauzi, D.; Drechsel, Pay; Melati, K.; Prain, G.; Jintarith, P.; Cavalleri, S. A. E.; Kangogo, D.; Osborne, M.
As urbanization increases, meeting the challenges of urban food supply and food security requires coherent and holistic strategies. Attention too often focuses solely on best practices without addressing the required behavior change. This policy brief highlights the importance of minimizing food loss and waste, which accounts for some 30% of current global production, in order to link and achieve SDGs 2, 11 and 12. The strategy comprises four interrelated elements, namely adopting holistic and circular planning perspectives; facilitating urban and peri-urban farming; integrating innovative behavioral interventions; and providing enabling environments. The G20 has the capacity to act rapidly, without the need for major capital investment, thereby also providing leadership to the entire international community.
</description>
<pubDate>Mon, 01 Aug 2022 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://hdl.handle.net/10568/120959</guid>
<dc:date>2022-08-01T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
<title>IWMI-GIZ WASCA MGNREGA tool: user manual</title>
<link>https://hdl.handle.net/10568/120946</link>
<description>IWMI-GIZ WASCA MGNREGA tool: user manual
Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit  (GIZ) GmbH; International Water Management Institute (IWMI)
</description>
<pubDate>Mon, 01 Aug 2022 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://hdl.handle.net/10568/120946</guid>
<dc:date>2022-08-01T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
<title>MENAdrought in Jordan: Strengthening &#13;
capabilities to manage drought risk</title>
<link>https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121917</link>
<description>MENAdrought in Jordan: Strengthening &#13;
capabilities to manage drought risk
International Water Management Institute (IWMI)
</description>
<pubDate>Mon, 01 Aug 2022 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121917</guid>
<dc:date>2022-08-01T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
<title>Enhanced Composite Drought Index (eCDI) supports drought early warning</title>
<link>https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121915</link>
<description>Enhanced Composite Drought Index (eCDI) supports drought early warning
International Water Management Institute (IWMI)
</description>
<pubDate>Mon, 01 Aug 2022 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121915</guid>
<dc:date>2022-08-01T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
<title>MENAdrought in Lebanon: strengthening capabilities to manage drought risk</title>
<link>https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121914</link>
<description>MENAdrought in Lebanon: strengthening capabilities to manage drought risk
International Water Management Institute (IWMI)
</description>
<pubDate>Mon, 01 Aug 2022 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121914</guid>
<dc:date>2022-08-01T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
<title>MENAdrought in Morocco: strengthening capabilities to manage drought risk</title>
<link>https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121913</link>
<description>MENAdrought in Morocco: strengthening capabilities to manage drought risk
International Water Management Institute (IWMI)
</description>
<pubDate>Mon, 01 Aug 2022 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121913</guid>
<dc:date>2022-08-01T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
<title>Developing drought action plans</title>
<link>https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121916</link>
<description>Developing drought action plans
International Water Management Institute (IWMI)
</description>
<pubDate>Mon, 01 Aug 2022 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121916</guid>
<dc:date>2022-08-01T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
<title>Global mangrove extent change 1996–2020: Global Mangrove Watch version 3.0</title>
<link>https://hdl.handle.net/10568/120582</link>
<description>Global mangrove extent change 1996–2020: Global Mangrove Watch version 3.0
Bunting, P.; Rosenqvist, A.; Hilarides, L.; Lucas, R. M.; Thomas, N.; Tadono, T.; Worthington, T. A.; Spalding, M.; Murray, N. J.; Rebelo, Lisa-Maria
Mangroves are a globally important ecosystem that provides a wide range of ecosystem system services, such as carbon capture and storage, coastal protection and fisheries enhancement. Mangroves have significantly reduced in global extent over the last 50 years, primarily as a result of deforestation caused by the expansion of agriculture and aquaculture in coastal environments. However, a limited number of studies have attempted to estimate changes in global mangrove extent, particularly into the 1990s, despite much of the loss in mangrove extent occurring pre-2000. This study has used L-band Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) global mosaic datasets from the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) for 11 epochs from 1996 to 2020 to develop a long-term time-series of global mangrove extent and change. The study used a map-to-image approach to change detection where the baseline map (GMW v2.5) was updated using thresholding and a contextual mangrove change mask. This approach was applied between all image-date pairs producing 10 maps for each epoch, which were summarised to produce the global mangrove time-series. The resulting mangrove extent maps had an estimated accuracy of 87.4% (95th conf. int.: 86.2–88.6%), although the accuracies of the individual gain and loss change classes were lower at 58.1% (52.4–63.9%) and 60.6% (56.1–64.8%), respectively. Sources of error included misregistration in the SAR mosaic datasets, which could only be partially corrected for, but also confusion in fragmented areas of mangroves, such as around aquaculture ponds. Overall, 152,604 km2 (133,996–176,910) of mangroves were identified for 1996, with this decreasing by -5245 km2 (-13,587–1444) resulting in a total extent of 147,359 km2 (127,925–168,895) in 2020, and representing an estimated loss of 3.4% over the 24-year time period. The Global Mangrove Watch Version 3.0 represents the most comprehensive record of global mangrove change achieved to date and is expected to support a wide range of activities, including the ongoing monitoring of the global coastal environment, defining and assessments of progress toward conservation targets, protected area planning and risk assessments of mangrove ecosystems worldwide.
</description>
<pubDate>Sat, 30 Jul 2022 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://hdl.handle.net/10568/120582</guid>
<dc:date>2022-07-30T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
<title>A bibliometric analysis of solar energy forecasting studies in Africa</title>
<link>https://hdl.handle.net/10568/120375</link>
<description>A bibliometric analysis of solar energy forecasting studies in Africa
Zwane, N.; Tazvinga, H.; Botai, C.; Murambadoro, M.; Botai, J.; de Wit, J.; Mabasa, B.; Daniel, S.; Mabhaudhi, Tafadzwanashe
Solar energy forecasting is considered an essential scientific aspect in supporting efforts to integrate solar energy into power grids. Moreover, solar energy forecasting plays an essential role in mitigating greenhouse gas emissions and conserving energy for future use. This study conducted a bibliometric analysis to assess solar energy forecasting research studies evolution at the continental (Africa) and southern Africa levels. Key aspects of analysis included (i) scientific research trends, (ii) nature of collaboration networks, (iii) co-occurrence of keywords and (iv) emerging themes in solar energy forecasting over the last two decades, between the years 2000–2021. The results indicate that solar energy forecasting research has, on average, expanded by 6.4% and 3.3% in Africa and southern Africa, respectively. Based on the study context, solar energy forecasting research only gained momentum in 2015, peaking in 2019, but it is generally still subtle. The scientific mapping illustrated that only South Africa ranks among the leading countries that have produced high numbers of published documents and also leads in contributions to the research area in both Africa and southern Africa. Three emerging topics were identified from the thematic map analysis— namely, “solar irradiance”, “artificial intelligence” and “clear sky”, which implies that researchers are paying attention to solar irradiance, using modelling techniques that incorporate machine learning techniques. Overall, this study contributes to scientific information on the potential bankability of renewable energy projects that could assist power utilities, governments and policymakers in Africa to enforce the green economy through accelerated decarbonisation of the energy systems and building relationships with developed countries for support and better transitioning to solar energy. From a Water–Energy–Food nexus perspective, the results of this work could assist the scientific community in Africa to take advantage of the inherent interconnectedness of water, energy and food resources, whilst also advancing the use of integrated solutions to shape the focus of solar energy research into a more systems thinking and transdisciplinary approach involving the interconnected primary resources and stakeholders pursuit of the Sustainable Development Goals.
</description>
<pubDate>Fri, 29 Jul 2022 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://hdl.handle.net/10568/120375</guid>
<dc:date>2022-07-29T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
<title>Climate change impacts on water sustainability of South African crop production</title>
<link>https://hdl.handle.net/10568/120374</link>
<description>Climate change impacts on water sustainability of South African crop production
Bonetti, S.; Sutanudjaja, E. H.; Mabhaudhi, Tafadzwanashe; Slotow, R.; Dalin, C.
Agricultural production in arid and semi-arid regions is particularly vulnerable to climate change, which, combined with projected food requirements, makes the sustainable management of water resources critical to ensure national and global food security. Using South Africa as an example, we map the spatial distribution of water use by seventeen major crops under current and future climate scenarios, and assess their sustainability in terms of water resources, using the water debt repayment time indicator. We find high water debts, indicating unsustainable production, for potatoes, pulses, grapes, cotton, rice, and wheat due to irrigation in arid areas. Climate change scenarios suggest an intensification of such pressure on water resources, especially in regions already vulnerable, with a country-scale increase in irrigation demand of between 6.5% and 32% by 2090. Future land use planning and management should carefully consider the spatial distribution and local sustainability of crop water requirements to reduce water consumption in water risk hotspots and guarantee long-term food security.
</description>
<pubDate>Mon, 25 Jul 2022 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://hdl.handle.net/10568/120374</guid>
<dc:date>2022-07-25T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
<title>The determinants of market participation and its effect on food security of the rural smallholder farmers in Limpopo and Mpumalanga provinces, South Africa</title>
<link>https://hdl.handle.net/10568/120373</link>
<description>The determinants of market participation and its effect on food security of the rural smallholder farmers in Limpopo and Mpumalanga provinces, South Africa
Hlatshwayo, S. I.; Ojo, T. O.; Modi, A. T.; Mabhaudhi, Tafadzwanashe; Slotow, R.; Ngidi, M. S. C.
Addressing the disproportionate burden of food insecurity in South Africa requires targeted efforts to help smallholder farmers to access markets. The purpose of this study was to assess determinants of market participation and its contribution to household food security. The secondary data used in this study were collected from 1520 respondents; however, 389 smallholder farmers participated in the market. The Household Food Insecurity Access Scale revealed that out of the total sample size, 85% of the households were food insecure while 15% were food secure. Gender of household head, receiving social grants and higher wealth index positively impacted market participation. Having a family member with HIV had a negative impact on market participation among smallholder farmers. The results from the extended ordered probit regression model showed that household size, having a family member with HIV and agricultural assistance had a positive and significant contribution to the household food insecurity situation of the smallholder farmers. On the other hand, the educational level of household head, ownership of livestock, age of household head, gender of household head, and having access to social grants had a negative and significant effect on the food insecurity status. Access to education and the market can improve household food security. Linking smallholder farmers, particularly women and aged farmers, to markets should form an intrinsic part of the government’s efforts to improve farming and food security and increase access to diversified food.
</description>
<pubDate>Thu, 21 Jul 2022 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://hdl.handle.net/10568/120373</guid>
<dc:date>2022-07-21T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
<title>A new index on agricultural land greenhouse gas emissions in Africa</title>
<link>https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121893</link>
<description>A new index on agricultural land greenhouse gas emissions in Africa
Epule, T. E.; Chehbouni, A.; Ongoma, V.; Brouziyne, Youssef; Etongo, D.; Molua, E. L.
Africa emits the lowest amounts of greenhouse gases (GHGs) into the global GHG budget. However, the continent remains the most vulnerable continent to the effects of climate change. The agricultural sector in Africa is among the most vulnerable sectors to climate change. Also, as a dominant agricultural sector, African agriculture is increasingly contributing to climate change through GHG emissions. Research has so far focused on the effects of GHG emissions on the agricultural and other sectors with very little emphasis on monitoring and quantifying the spatial distribution of GHG emissions from agricultural land in Africa. This study develops a new index: African Agricultural Land Greenhouse Gas Index (AALGGI) that uses scores and specific scale ranges for carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), and nitrous oxide (N2O) to map the spatial variations in regional GHG emissions across Africa. The data for the three main GHGs (CO2, CH4, and N20) were downloaded from FAOSTAT. The data were analyzed through the newly developed African Agricultural Land Greenhouse Gas Index (AALGGI). This is an empirical index with scores ranging from 0 to 10, with higher scores indicating higher levels of emissions. The results show that Southern and North African regions have the lowest amounts of agricultural land GHG emissions, with AALGGIs of 3.5 and 4.5, respectively. East Africa records the highest levels of GHG emissions, with an AALGGI of 8 followed by West Africa with an AALGGI of 7.5. With the continental mean or baseline AALGGI being 5.8, East and Middle Africa are above the mean AALGGI. These results underscore the fact that though Africa, in general, is not a heavy emitter of GHGs, African agricultural lands are increasingly emitting more GHGs into the global GHG budget. The low AALGGIs in the more developed parts of Africa such as Southern and North Africa are explained by their domination in other GHG emitting sectors such as industrialization and energy. The high rates of emissions in East Africa and Middle Africa are mainly linked to intensive traditional farming practices/processes and deforestation. These findings underscore the need to further leverage climate change mitigation actions and policy in Africa and most importantly the co-benefits of mitigation and adaptations in the most vulnerable regions.
</description>
<pubDate>Thu, 21 Jul 2022 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://hdl.handle.net/10568/121893</guid>
<dc:date>2022-07-21T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
<title>Assessment of soil salinity changes under the climate change in the Khorezm Region, Uzbekistan</title>
<link>https://hdl.handle.net/10568/120372</link>
<description>Assessment of soil salinity changes under the climate change in the Khorezm Region, Uzbekistan
Khamidov, M.; Ishchanov, J.; Hamidov, A.; Donmez, C.; Djumaboev, Kakhramon
Soil salinity negatively affects plant growth and leads to soil degradation. Saline lands result in low agricultural productivity, affecting the well-being of farmers and the economic situation in the region. The prediction of soil salinization dynamics plays a crucial role in sustainable development of agricultural regions, in preserving the ecosystems, and in improving irrigation management practices. Accurate information through monitoring and evaluating the changes in soil salinity is essential for the development of strategies for agriculture productivity and efficient soil management. As part of an ex-ante analysis, we presented a comprehensive statistical framework for predicting soil salinity dynamics using the Homogeneity test and linear regression model. The framework was operationalized in the context of the Khorezm region of Uzbekistan, which suffers from high levels of soil salinity. The soil salinity trends and levels were projected under the impact of climate change from 2021 to 2050 and 2051 to 2100. The results show that the slightly saline soils would generally decrease (from 55.4% in 2050 to 52.4% by 2100 based on the homogeneity test; from 55.9% in 2050 to 54.5% by 2100 according to the linear regression model), but moderately saline soils would increase (from 31.2% in 2050 to 32.5% by 2100 based on the homogeneity test; from 31.2% in 2050 to 32.4% by 2100 according to the linear regression model). Moreover, highly saline soils would increase (from 13.4% in 2050 to 15.1% by 2100 based on the homogeneity test; from 12.9% in 2050 to 13.1% by 2100 according to the linear regression model). The results of this study provide an understanding that soil salinity depends on climate change and help the government to better plan future management strategies for the region.
</description>
<pubDate>Wed, 20 Jul 2022 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://hdl.handle.net/10568/120372</guid>
<dc:date>2022-07-20T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
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<title>Spatiotemporal variability of lightning activity over the railway network in Sri Lanka with special attention to the proposed suburban railway electrification network</title>
<link>https://hdl.handle.net/10568/120380</link>
<description>Spatiotemporal variability of lightning activity over the railway network in Sri Lanka with special attention to the proposed suburban railway electrification network
Maduranga, U. G. D.; Edirisinghe, M.; Alahacoon, Niranga; Ranagalage, M.
This study is oriented towards the investigation of the spatiotemporal variability of the lightning activity over the railway network in Sri Lanka using -lightning data from 1998 to 2014 that were downloaded from the database of Lightning Imaging Sensor (LIS) onboard NASA’s Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM). The study has also been extended to study the lightning activity over the proposed suburban railway electrification network. GIS was used to conduct an annual and seasonal analysis of the railway network, which consists of nine major railway lines, to identify vulnerable stations and segments. The average annual lightning flash density over a 1447 km-long railway network of Sri Lanka varies between 5.08–16.58 flashes/(km2 year). The railway lines run across the western and southern regions of the country have been identified as being in areas with higher lightning activity. In comparison to other railway lines, the Kelani Valley line in the Colombo district and Colombo-Maradana to Polgahawela segment of the Mainline are particularly vulnerable to lightning activity. These areas have also been recognized as regions with higher population density. The proposed 102 km long railway electrification network in Sri Lanka is also within higher population density segments, with higher lightning flash density values between 10.55–16.53 flashes/(km2 ·year). As a result, to improve the operational efficiency of the proposed electrification network, a fully coordinated lightning protection system in accordance with the findings of this study is strongly suggested.
</description>
<pubDate>Wed, 13 Jul 2022 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://hdl.handle.net/10568/120380</guid>
<dc:date>2022-07-13T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
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<title>Institutional bricolage (re)shaping the different manifestations of state-citizens relations in Mekong hydropower planning</title>
<link>https://hdl.handle.net/10568/120370</link>
<description>Institutional bricolage (re)shaping the different manifestations of state-citizens relations in Mekong hydropower planning
Suhardiman, Diana; Manorom, K.; Rigg, J.
Concerns over hydropower development in the Mekong River Basin and elsewhere include not only the overall impacts of dams on basin ecology and economy but also more site-specific impacts on affected communities. While hydropower development is impacting the livelihoods of local communities living along the river, the latter’s views and concerns are often sidelined by top-down hydropower planning. Nonetheless, local communities create and shape their political spaces of engagements in relation to hydropower decision making across scales, albeit through various means and with different results. Taking the planned Pak Beng hydropower dam as a case study and building on the concept of institutional bricolage, we look at: 1) local communities’ responses in Thailand and Laos, including how these are influenced by social movements; 2) how these responses are translated into collective action (or the lack thereof), including in relation to local communities’ (in)ability to negotiate better compensation for their to be impacted livelihoods; and 3) how local communities strategies are embedded in the wider political context and different manifestations of state-citizens relations. We argue that while affected farm households can pursue their interests to secure proper compensation through individual means, this leads to sub-optimal outcomes for affected communities collectively.
</description>
<pubDate>Mon, 11 Jul 2022 00:00:00 GMT</pubDate>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://hdl.handle.net/10568/120370</guid>
<dc:date>2022-07-11T00:00:00Z</dc:date>
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