Grasslands

Esta metodología para la evaluación participativa de pastizales y tierras de pastoreo (denominada PRAGA) se desarrolló a través del proyecto "Evaluación participativa de la degradación de la tierra y la gestión sostenible de la tierra en sistemas de pastizales y pastos", financiado por el Fondo para el Medio Ambiente Mundial y ejecutado por FAO y la UICN. La metodología se probó en cinco países (Burkina Faso, Kenia, Kirguistán, Níger y Uruguay) para comprobar su eficacia y valor. Se hicieron las revisiones necesarias a la metodología, basadas en las lecciones aprendidas de su aplicación.

In rangelands and grasslands, land degradation has an immediate and local impact by disrupting ecosystems from functioning, threatening livelihoods and negatively affecting social cohesion. It also threatens productivity while dovetailing with the threats of climate change in these ecologically fragile areas. The understanding of land degradation in rangelands and grasslands is weak, which is attributed to a lack of robust data and a misunderstanding of management objectives.

This participatory grassland and rangeland assessment (PRAGA) methodology was developed for the assessment of rangelands and grasslands in selected project countries. It was developed through the project “Participatory assessment of land degradation and sustainable land management in grassland and pastoral systems”, financed by the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and executed by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

This participatory grassland and rangeland assessment (PRAGA) methodology was developed for the assessment of rangelands and grasslands in selected project countries. It was developed through the project 'Participatory assessment of land degradation and sustainable land management in grassland and pastoral systems', financed by the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and executed by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

In the Northeast Asia sub-region, environmental pollution, transboundary sand and dust storms (SDS), agricultural expansion, deforestation, and overgrazing are growing challenges that are being further complicated by the impacts of climate change. Desertification, land degradation and drought (DLDD) are a significant problem affecting soil, air and water quality, threatening forest and woodlands, pasture and rangelands as well as irrigated and rain-fed croplands that support the livelihoods of more than half of the sub-region’s population.

For more than half a century, many natural habitats in the Czech Republic have been affected by destructive human activities or conversely, by abandonment, decreasing their quantity (area) as well as their quality (biodiversity). In response, many attempts have been made to restore some of the deteriorated sites, and studies have been made of the best ways to do so. This publication demonstrates how ecological restoration can help improve or recover ecosystem functioning and ecological services.

This publication is the proceedings for a satellite event on Biodiversity and the Ecosystem Approach in Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, held on the occasion of the Ninth Regular Session of the Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, in FAO, Rome, 12-13 October 2002. An informal presentation of the Satellite Event’s discussions and results was given on 16 October 2002. About 100 participants attended the day and a half event.