The potential and regeneration capacity of soil seed banks in three eastern Ethiopian rangeland ecosystems (Asbuli grassland or arid grassland, Aydora open savanna or arid bush/grassland and Hurso closed savanna or arid bush land) were determined over a degradation gradient. Soil samples from 0.09m² blocks (100mm deep) were spread evenly in plastic containers in the greenhouse and studied over a 1-year period. The aboveground species composition was also compared. Sampling was from rangelands in excellent, good, moderate and poor conditions for each ecosystem.

This paper examines the changes in land use/cover types in the degraded environment of central Tanzania over the last 45 years, and how such changes have influenced agricultural and livelihoods sustainability, especially in the Irangi Hills. Changes of land use/cover were measured through aerial photographs interpretations, while local perceptions and description of change were addressed through household interviews and field observations. The results of this study show that there have been variations over the years in terms of both the areas and spatial distribution of cultivated fields.

The 'Research to Reality Project' assisted beef producers in the Burdekin catchment of north Queensland to develop practical responses to a range of production and grazing land management challenges. The project involved three groups of beef producers encompassing 19 enterprises, 680000ha of land and the management of 162000 cattle. The project was founded on a continuous improvement and innovation approach, and included an employed industry champion and multi-disciplinary project team who used a range of extension methods to identify, develop and implement on-property projects.

Little information is available about the effects of global warming and land management on dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentration in soil solution in the field. Here, for the first time, we used a free-air temperature enhancement (FATE) system in a controlled warming-grazing experiment in 2006 and 2007 to test the hypothesis that grazing modifies the response of soil solution DOC concentration to experimental warming.

The industrialization of agriculture in western societies has often led to either intensified use or abandonment of farmland and open pastures, but experimental evidence on how the dynamics of farmed ecosystems affect space use by large herbivores is limited. We experimentally manipulated farmland patches with cutting and (early summer) low- and high-intensity domestic sheep Ovis aries grazing according to traditional use in north Norway.

There was observed one-off effect of high nitrogen dose (1,000 kg per ha N) on the floristical composition of the Lolio-Cynosuretum R. Tx. 1937 association in the locality Chvojnica in the Strážovské vrchy during the four-year period (1997-2000). The high nitrogen dose supported only spread of four nitrophilous grass species (Dactylis glomerata L., Festuca pratensis HUDS., Festuca rubra L. and Deschampsia cespitosa L. P. B.) within the grassland. These species took up 89% of the share towards the end of experiment. Just three herbs species (Acetosella vulgaris FOURR., Cruciata glabra L.

The interaction between ecological and hydrological processes is particularly important in arid and semi-arid regions. Often the interaction between these processes is not completely understood and they are studied separately. We developed a grid-based computer model simulating the dynamics of the four most common vegetation types (perennial grass, annuals, dwarf shrubs and shrubs) and related hydrological processes in the region studied.

There is an increasing understanding that forests and the forestry sector are key elements in poverty reduction strategies in Africa. However, issues of equity between various forest users are becoming a major challenge to environmental development, forest management and poverty reduction. This paper presents an analysis of household representatives' socio-economic determinants and other constraints on accessing forest products, based on data collected through a questionnaire survey of 1865 respondents in seven districts of the Sissili province, southern Burkina Faso.

The economic value of the Upper Tuul ecosystem in Mongolia reports on a study carried out under the auspices of the World Bank and the Government of Mongolia. The goal of the study was to improve understanding about the economic value of the Upper Tuul ecosystem for Ulaanbaatar's water supplies and how this might be affected by different land and resource management options in the future.

Agriculture – on which we all depend for our food – is under threat from climate change. There is no doubt that systems worldwide will have to adapt, but while consumers may barely notice in developed countries, millions of people in developing countries face a very real and direct threat to their food security and livelihoods. Even without climate change, many agricultural systems in developing countries are nearing crisis point. Feeding a rapidly rising global population is taking a heavy toll on farmlands, rangelands, fisheries and forests. Water is becoming scarce in many regions.