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Rest of the world
RNRRS legacy

Research reports for Brazil

Evaluation of selected non-industrial tree species and development of approaches to facilitate utilisation of results
The project was designed to investigate improvements to the current widespread utilisation of sub-optimal germplasm in agroforestry programmes, the poor uptake of results from agroforestry tree evaluation programmes, and the lack of availability of seed of superior agroforestry tree provenances. The research activities included investigating improvements to network management, investigation of uptake pathways for research results and development of guidelines for improvements to seed orchard design. (Ref: R6551)
Fair trade for forest products
Lessons learned from assessing best practice in ethical trade schemes are now guiding organisations around the world. Ethical and conventional trading systems were compared for three forest products: cocoa, brazil nuts and timber - in terms of both their impact on local people and their economic viability. Researchers also analysed wider policies, markets and non-forest sectors, to get the big picture. An important conclusion was that assessing impacts on livelihoods and the environment must be a part of ethical trade initiatives. This and other findings have been disseminated through policy briefings and a draft manual on best practices. Lessons learned have already been used by Oxfam and CARE in Peru, Ecuador and South Africa, and by the Ecolabelling Institute of Indonesia (LEI). (Ref: FRP19)
Guides to better livelihoods
To help poor forest users make better use of the resources around them, researchers have worked with local people to produce field guides and create methods for identifying useful local plants. Outputs include policy briefings, a book to teach in-country partners how to produce usable easy-to-understand local field guides and a whole range of field guides suitable for use by local people. These are targeted at different countries, such as Bolivia, Brazil, Peru, Cameroon, Grenada, the West Indies and Ghana. This work has created a popular approach that local people can readily benefit from. Demand for the handbook on field guide preparation is high, and copies have been distributed to at least 15 countries. (Ref: FRP37)
Planning ahead with FIESTA
A new highly detailed computer model of climate, land and water interactions is now available that covers the whole of the tropics. The model, known as FIESTA, can help us to better understand the effects of land use changes and climate change on hydrological systems and poor users downstream. FIESTA can be used to help decision makers apply watershed protection in appropriate areas, build water-related infrastructure and target efforts to get water to people who need it. The model is unique because it looks at areas as small as one square kilometre. This helps planners account for the very different hydrological effects that land use or climate change can have from area to area at a very local level - boosting our ability to develop sustainable land and water strategies. (Ref: FRP30)
Bridging the knowledge gap on a valuable tree
A project to bridge a critical information gap on the valuable mesquite tree, with inputs from 10 countries, has resulted in many valuable publications. These include a field guide, country-specific policy briefs on India, Ethiopia, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Kenya and Brazil, other briefs on the weed problem and global issues, and many journal and popular articles, as well as a video. Mesquite, Prosopis juliflora, is a common species in the world's hot, arid and semi-arid regions. It provides fuel, food, fodder, wood products (parquet floors, furniture, fence posts), and bee pasturage. However, in many parts of Asia and Africa it remains under-used, and is often regarded as an invasive weed. Over 18,000 copies of the publications were downloaded from the project website in 2006 alone; 70% of this demand was from sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia. (Ref: FRP05)
Ploughs, hoes and cheap herbicides beat weeds in cotton
Smallholder cotton growers in Zimbabwe now use low-cost techniques to control weeds. In the Zambezi Valley, the rainy season is short and hot. If farmers don't weed promptly and thoroughly, they can lose nearly all their crop. Previously, controlling weeds needed lots of labour for constant weeding. In the Lower Zambezi Valley and South East Lowveld of Zimbabwe, farmers now beat weeds by ploughing before planting, hand hoeing and applying low-cost herbicides - techniques within their means and that save labour. Extension services now routinely advise farmers that this is a good way to deal with weeds and universities teach this system in their courses. Plus, inquiries from South Africa, Mozambique, Tanzania, Uganda, Kenya, Pakistan, Slovenia, Togo and Brazil are pouring in. (Ref: CPP67)

RNRRS legacy: Rest of the World

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