Meeting to Review and Synthesize Miombo Ecosystem Processes and Mechanisms

点击翻译按钮获取中文摘要

This workshop, organized by Dr. Paul Desanker, Assistant Professor, School of Forestry and Wood Products, at Michigan Technological University, in cooperation with Mr. Mzoma Ngulube of the Forestry Research Institute of Malawi, will be held in Zomba, Malawi, in November or December, 1995. African and U.S. researchers of global change, ecology, forestry, hydrology, social and economic sciences, public health, and other disciplines, will review the state of knowledge regarding the processes and mechanisms of savanna woodland ecosystems and develop a proposal for a regional study on miombo woodlands. Miombo woodlands, one of the most extensive vegetation covers in southern Africa, are undergoing major changes due to human disturbances and possibly global climatic changes. The woodlands hold vast pools of carbon, and changes in fire, climate, disturbance regimes and other controlling processes will likely result in significant global effects. The large savanna area of Southern/Central Africa is the largest area of seasonal vegetation in the southern hemisphere, and so, phenological effects of these savannas must be significant in global circulations. Among the issues to be addressed are carbon sequestration, trace gas emissions in relation to soil processes and biomass burning, and the linkages between satellite data with ground measurements to describe ecosystem processes in this poorly studied region of the world. An edited volume of the proceedings will be published. In addition to eight US researchers, the workshop will include participants from Zambia, Tanzania, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Kenya, Mozambique, South Africa, Malawi, and Zaire. This workshop will strengthen collaboration internationally (between US and African scientists), regionally (among scientists throughout southern Africa, including South Africa), and across disciplinary boundaries. This workshop will buttress the concern about the socio-economic role of miombo woodlands with heightened awareness of ecosystem functions related to soil protection, watershed protection, wildlife preservation, biodiversity, and species with medicinal properties. All of the participants are involved in other fora related to global change; this ensures that the conclusions of this meeting and the findings of future research will be linked into the global research effort on climate change.