Big beetles, big benefits: Trading some of the largest insects on Earth

Andrea Booth | Contributor | CIFOR Forests News | February 19 2013 | Insect trade and livelihoods in Cameroon

A local collector in Cameroon with a Goliath beetle – the 4th largest beetle in the world. Photo: John Fogoh Muafor

BOGOR, Indonesia (19 February, 2013)_Protection of beetle habitats in Cameroon and regulation over their collection and trade could help lift rural communities out of poverty while conserving relic forest patches in the region, a new study says.

The hardy insects are the most diverse of all living organisms in terrestrial ecosystems, constituting nearly a quarter of our global biodiversity.

Researchers warn of more wild fires as Peruvians migrate to the big city

Andrea Booth | Contributor | CIFOR Forests News | February 8 2013 | Wild fires increasing in Peruvian Amazon

As more Peruvians move to the cities, fires will burn in the outskirts, warn researchers. Photo: Danielle Pereira/flickr.

BOGOR, Indonesia (8 February, 2013)_Wild fires in the western Amazon are being exacerbated by a population shift: As farmers move from rural areas to cities, they leave behind uncultivated landscapes that are drier and more susceptible to runaway blazes, a new case study indicates.

And, when fires do break out, there are fewer bodies around to control them.

Why negotiators at Doha should care about the world’s forgotten mangroves

Andrea Booth | Contributor | CIFOR Forests News | 2012 | COP18

Photo: Baban Shyam

DOHA, Qatar (28 November, 2012)_New estimates have shown that when coastal ecosystems suffer degradation or are converted for aquaculture, upstream dams, dredging or urban development, up to one billion metric tons of carbon is emitted into the atmosphere every year – with over half of that coming from mangrove destruction alone.

Yet as negotiators travel this week to the United Nations climate change summit (COP18) in Doha, Qatar – a country rich in mangroves — it seems that the rapid decline of wetlands has yet to garner the international attention it deserves.

Potential of bamboo to alleviate poverty in rural China remains untapped: Expert

Andrea Booth | Contributor | CIFOR Forests News | January 25 2013 | Bamboo’s contribution to livelihoods in China

CIFOR researcher Nick Hogarth (right) with a farmer looking at freshly harvested sections of bamboo shoots in the pot ready to be steamed, before being fermented and dried. Photo: Hannah Brodie-Hall/CIFOR

BOGOR, Indonesia (25 January, 2013)_Easy to grow, even on steep, marginal land unsuitable for other crops, bamboo has the potential to lift people in rural communities out of poverty, but only if management techniques and trade improves, a case study in southwestern China indicates.

An estimated 2 billion people across the globe use bamboo on a daily basis to produce everything from household utensils and handicrafts, to scaffolding for construction sites, according to the International Network for Bamboo and Rattan. Increasingly, though, it also is being recognized for its beauty, durability and flexibility, turning it into a hot, internationally traded commodity, and making it a key resource for livelihood development.

Africa Views – New tree-planting and water-use methods boost soil carbon to aid food security in Africa

Andrea Booth | Contributor | Reuters AlertNet – the world’s humanitarian news site and CIFOR Forests News | January 18 2013 | Food security in Africa

LONDON, United Kingdom_Innovative tree-planting techniques that amp up levels of soil organic carbon, an indicator of soil quality, are being encouraged on agricultural land in West Africa and the Sahel to strengthen food security in the region.

Soil carbon provides important support to food security by maintaining soil fertility for agricultural productivity,” said Johnson Nkem, the author of the recent CIFOR study on soil organic carbon’s role in improving agricultural product quality in West Africa.Yet the primary soil types in West Africa are the arable Alfisols and red-clay Ultisols, which have lower soil fertility levels compared to expanding clay-rich Vertisols.

A 4°C warmer world “will be catastrophic” for forest biodiversity: Expert

Andrea Booth | Contributor | CIFOR Forests News | January 8 2013 | CIFOR’s response to World Bank environmental report

Will species be able to survive in 4 degree hotter world? Photo: Daniel Tiveau/CIFOR

BOGOR, Indonesia (8 January, 2013)_Global temperatures may be climbing at a rate too fast for our forests and its biodiversity to adapt, a scientist with the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) warned after the World Bank predicted a 4°C warming of the planet if policymakers continue to be apathetic about greenhouse gas emissions.

“The long-term effects will undoubtedly be catastrophic,” said Terry Sunderland, CIFOR principal scientist specialising in biodiversity.

“Everything will become imbalanced and whole ecosystems will be lost.”

Q&A: Land-use planning in northern Papua

Andrea Booth | Contributor | CIFOR Forests News | December 14 2012 | Q&A: Papua and land-use planning

Aerial view of Lake Sentani, Papua, Indonesia. Photo: Mokhammad Edliadi/CIFOR

BOGOR, Indonesia (14 December, 2012)_Researchers working in northern Papua are helping to incorporate local community perceptions into development activities, using interviews, group discussions, mapmaking, and a workshop to encourage discussion between all stakeholders in the region.

“The prime objective of the project has been to provide input on land-use planning that is harmonious with the regional government’s planning, such as infrastructure development, but also that accommodates local priorities, and addresses sustainable development,” said Michael Padmanaba, a scientist with the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) who has been working on the project.