Proposals developed at the Workshop on Biodiversity Conservation and Sustainable Development in the Northwest of Yunnan, China
Kunming August 8-18, 2002
Proposal IV:
Management of grassland to conserve cultural and biological diversity
Project coordinators:
Prof. Dr. Wu Ning
Prof. Dr. Ken Albrecht
E-mail addresses:
wuning@cib.ac.cn
kaalbrec@facstaff.wisc.edu
Coordinating Institutions:
Chengdu Institute of Biology, CAS
College of Agricultural and Life Sciences, Univ. of Wisconsin-Madison
Project duration: 2003 - 2008
Project Rationale
Grasslands are the basis for cultural and economic well being of the Tibetan people and other minority groups in Northwestern Yunnan and Western Sichuan (Eastern part of Tibetan Plateau) provinces of China. Degradation of this natural resource threatens the culture and livelihood of these people. Furthermore, loss of plant and animal biodiversity is eroding the level of ecological services provided by grasslands.
The degradation of grasslands is a function of management as well as recent fluctuation in weather. In order to maintain the culture of people in the region, as well as the ecological services provided by grassland, the drivers for degradation must be understood and curbed, and strategies for restoration must be developed. The goals of this research are to understand the process, the driving forces and the scope of degradation, and to develop technology for ecological restoration and conservation of cultural and biological diversity in the target area(s).
Objectives:
- To identify processes of degradation and develop strategies for the sustainable management and utilization of natural grasslands, and for the promotion of ecological function on soil and water conservation, in order to increase the contribution to pastoral production and improve the livelihood of local herders. Some potential research areas are as follows:
- ecology and control of weed plants (eg. allelopathy of invasive weeds on grasslands)
- grassland changes under disturbances(productivity, biodiversity, and soil properties etc.)
- development process of pastoral systems and the sustainable strategies
- To evaluate forage species that have potential to be used in high altitude regions and analyze technology for the establishment of artificial grassland in order to promote the production of forage crop, supply fodder for livestock in winter and lighten the grazing pressures on natural grasslands. Some potential research areas are as follows:
- evaluation of forage species (productivity of native species, adaptability of introduced species)
- intercropping systems for winter pasture (annual + perennial; grasses + legume)
- technology of artificial pasture establishment and management (e.g. sowing, fertilizing, harvesting etc.);
Research sites:
Two or three research sites will be selected in the Eastern Tibetan Plateau, which including:
- Shangrila, NW Yunnan;
- Hongyuan or Songpan, W Sichuan
Research team:
Chinese team |
US team |
Prof. Dr. Wu Ning, CIB |
Dr. Ken Albrecht |
Dr. Luo Peng, CIB |
Dr. Ed Luschei ?? |
Dr. Pan Kaiwen, CIB |
Dr. Randy Jackson ?? |
Ms. Yan Zhaoli, CIB |
Dr. Jack Rutledge |
Dr. Gishi Song, XTBG |
Dr. Katherine Bowie |
Ms. Xie Hongyan, KIB |
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