Looking back at 365 days of water, land and ecosystems

The CGIAR Research Program on Water, Land and Ecosystems 2014 Annual Report highlights stories of successful partnerships, including collaboration with Bioversity International in Central Asia, Volta and Nile regions and on IPBES, the Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services.   Here are a few of Bioversity International mentions in CRP-WLE's 2014 Annual Report - WLE 365:

Putting ecosystems into the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

At a national level, WLE scientists are supporting countries to both identify targets and indicators and to go beyond them, considering the local context, when implementing and monitoring initiatives intended to aid progress toward the SDGs.

For example, scientists from Bioversity International and other partners are working with governments in the Volta and Nile regions of Africa to find ways to leverage the SDGs for environmental conservation and human well-being. Scientists are investigating how the links between ecosystem services and the SDGs can be assessed, modeled and presented. The goal is to inform sound management of the environment in decision making and help the countries achieve the SDGs. [Read more]

Bringing local ecosystems to the global stage

CRP-WLE is parlaying its experience at the ecosystem level in Costa Rica and elsewhere into a more influential role in regional and global policy. WLE scientists increasingly are participating and contributing to the Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), which is modelled after the well-known Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

In June 2014, seven WLE researchers and partners including Bioversity International's Fabrice DeClerck and CIAT's Fred Kizito were selected to assist IPBES in drafting assessments for Africa, Asia and Pacific, and the Americas. [Read more]

Fruit trees for sweet futures in Central Asia

Bioversity International, a partner of the CGIAR Research Program on Water, Land and Ecosystems (WLE), has long collaborated with national research and development partners in five Central Asian countries, namely Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. Their combined efforts have transformed both livelihoods and landscapes by boosting farmers’ interest and capacity for planting orchards. For example, scientists have helped support the establishment of five regional and eight national training centers, and 1,500 farmers have been trained in soil, water and crop management practices. [Read more]