Albrecht Ehrensperger

Integrating mitigation and adaptation into development: the case of Jatropha curcas in sub-Saharan Africa

BART MUYS , L INDSEY NORGROVE , TENA ALAMIREW , RHODA B IRECH , EL I SA CH IR IN IAN , YOSEPH DELELEGN , ALBRECHT EHRENSPERGER , CAROL A . ELL I SON , ADEM FETO , BERNHARD FREYER , JAN GEVAERT , S IMON GM € UNDER , RAYMOND E . E . JONGSCHAAP , MANFRED KAUFMANN , JOD IE KEANE , MARC KEN I S , BON I FACE K ITEME , JACKSON LANGAT , REG INALD LY IMO , V IOLET MORAA , JAC INTA MUCHUGU , AKL I LU NEGUSS I E , CAROL INE OUKO , MATHUR IN W . ROUAMBA , I R IA SOTO , MANFRED W € ORGETTER , RA INER ZAH and RIGOBERTO ZETINA

Effectiveness of jatropha barriers as a soil and water conservation technology to rehabilitate gullies in northern Ethiopia

Jatropha (Jatropha curcas L.), a perennial oil-producing shrub, has been promoted in many parts of sub-Saharan Africa in recent years, with the aim of producing biofuels, developing rural areas, and providing alternative income opportunities (Francis et al. 2005). Researchers largely agree that jatropha is suited for rehabilitating degraded land, as it improves microbial activity, available nutrients, and water holding in soils (Wani et al. 2012). The basic pattern of its root structure is believed to control soil erosion (Achten et al. 2007), although in drylands limited water availability has negative effects on jatropha root growth and overall performance (Krishnamurthy et al. 2012). Nonetheless, only few studies investigate vegetative soil and water conservation technologies based on jatropha. Rare individual studies, such as the ones by Openshaw (2000) on hedges or by Kagamebga et al. (2011) on the half-moon technique in Burkina Faso, demonstrate that jatropha can, in different ways, successfully be used for soil and water conservation. In the Ethiopian Highlands, land degradation is a major concern, and the control and rehabilitation of gullies pose a particular challenge. Efforts to conserve soil and water have been made for a long time and at a large scale (Dale 2010). However, farmers often…

Scaling-Up Sustainable Pro-poor Energy Solutions: Addressing Stumbling Blocks

Affordable, reliable, and modern pro-poor energy solutions play a key role in achieving sustainable development in emerging economies. While such solutions have been successfully tested in numerous protected niches and “proto-markets,” their diffusion beyond these niches has remained very limited. There are a number of factors explaining the widespread failure to change prevailing energy supply regimes. An actor-oriented perspective (Wiesmann et al. in Research for sustainable development: foundations, experiences, and perspectives: Perspectives of the Swiss National Centre of Competence in Research (NCCR) North-South. University of Bern, Bern, pp. 231–256, 2011) helps demonstrating that these factors are primarily linked (1) to action itself, viewed as the interplay between actors’ existing practices, their means, and assets, and the meaning actors attribute to action; and (2) to external dynamic social, economic, political, and ecological conditions of action influencing actors’ perceptions. The four contributions of Part III (Chaps. 8–11) identify the stumbling blocks hindering the successful scaling-up of pro-poor energy solutions. The solutions proposed by the authors focus on the dynamic conditions of action (Kung et al., Chap. 8; Zalengera et al., Chap. 9), on local actors’ perceptions, means, and activities (Mirza, Chap. 10), and on the utilization of a comprehensive planning and decision-making framework to improve the sustainability of pro-poor energy solutions (Jain and Kattuman, Chap. 11).

Towards a differentiated assessment of geographic information sciences for sustainable development

Over the last three decades, geographic information sciences (GIS) have seen tremendous development and have been integrated into a wide range of professional and scientific fields. This development took place parallel to the rise of the sustainable development paradigm in research and practice, triggering a sometimes heated debate about the usefulness of GIS for informed decision-making. We analyse this debate, extracting five essential criticisms brought forth against GIS. Without disputing the relevance of the issues concerned, we underline the importance of adopting a more differentiated perspective on the role of GIS in terms of a) the spatial scales of decision-making contexts in which GIS are used, and b) the types of knowledge with which GIS interact. Based on these insights we propose a new approach to assessing the usefulness of GIS in sustainable development research and practice that will make it possible to identify strengths and weaknesses in ongoing projects as well as opportunities and limitations for the future role of GIS in sustainable development. This article is based on the authors’ professional understanding of the role of GIS in research activities within the framework of the Swiss National Centre of Competence in Research (NCCR) North-South, and on their experience in sustainable development research and implementation of concrete sustainable development projects.

Upper Ewaso Ngiro River Basin Water Management Information Platform: Survey on Development priorities, Information Needs and Conflict Management Efforts

A survey of development priorities and needs for water related information, including information on Water User Associations

Fostering Sustainable Urban Development in Nakuru, Kenya Rift Valley

Abstract The town of Nakuru—Kenyas fourth largest town—lies in a unique setting in the Great Rift Valley (Figure 1). Recent developments on the Menengai Crater, the Mau Escarpment, and the Bahati Highlands exemplify the impacts of poorly planned urban growth on mountain ecosystems. The Nakuru Local Urban Observatory (LUO) project was initiated by the Municipal Council of Nakuru in January 2003, in collaboration with the Centre for Development and Environment (CDE) of the University of Berne and the Intermediate Technology Development Group (ITDG), and with funding from the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC). The project aims to provide a framework for sustainable urban development practices by building technical skills and improving participation by local stakeholders in decision-making processes. The potentials of information technology (IT) are being tapped to provide up-to-date information to decision-makers and democratize access to information, in order to improve public participation. The overall objective is to find ways of achieving better urban management in order to mitigate non-sustainable development trends in the town and its surroundings.