Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
At each scale, the demonstration may be carried out in the context of the
predominant land-use types or stages, such as any of the following ones proposed
by Zarin, Huijin, and Enu-Kwesi (1999) for plant species diversity assessment:
•
annually cropped units
•
agroforests
•
fallows (grass-dominated, shrub-dominated, and tree-dominated)
•
orchards
•
native forests
•
house or home gardens
•
edges
•
any other appropriate types.
Key steps in the process of developing the demonstration sites
From the experience in Ghana, the first step is the identification of a potential
demonstration site for the study on the basis of the following parameters:
•
richness of existing agricultural and biological diversity
•
extent of threat to the diversity
•
level of documented knowledge about the site.
If the agrobiodiversity is found to be rich, but under threat, then further studies
of the agro-ecological conditions may proceed, using as a starting point whatever
documented information there might be.
In the initial investigative studies, as in subsequent applied work, it is important to
involve local people, especially the chiefs, other leaders, and expert farmers who
possess good knowledge of the agro-environmental history and situation in general.
These key personalities may later serve as facilitators in any applied work.
An important initial step is participatory mapping of settlements with involve-
ment of local farmers, which, among other things, may serve as a basis for the
creation of a geographical information system (GIS) towards a standardized data-
base for demonstration sites.
Investigative studies are followed by applied work that may involve any of the
following:
•
consolidation of local contacts, including formalization of selected local
people as facilitators, or expert farmers for demonstrations
•
dialogue through group discussion with farmers to determine relevant needs on
a prioritized basis
•
organization of farmers and other local users or managers of the land resources
into farmers' associations to facilitate popular PLEC scientist-farmer interactions
•
promotion of farmer-led conservation measures
•
gradual collaboration with agricultural extension agents and other appropriate
governmental and non-governmental agents.
