BE/CNH: Climate and Land Use Change Processes in East Africa

这项规划赠款支持的活动将导致一项关于东非区域范围内土地利用变化、土地覆盖变化和气候变化之间相互作用的全面研究提案。计划包括在东非举办研讨会、模型概念发展和一份概念论文。这项资助将使来自美国、非洲和英国的团队成员能够在这些活动中有效地合作，并建立合作准备完整提案和实施研究项目的模式。外国合作机构包括英国东安格利亚大学（University of East Anglia）和位于肯尼亚内罗毕的国际畜牧研究所（International Livestock Research Institute）。本研究建议将气候变化分析和土地利用/覆被变化研究中使用的方法、模型和分析框架用于综合评估气候及其与土地利用的相互作用。科学重点将是审查气候与土地利用变化之间、土地利用变化与土地覆盖变化之间以及土地覆盖变化与区域气候模拟之间的联系。理解这些联系的重要基础问题包括空间和时间尺度之间的相互作用，间接和非线性影响，以及不确定性和复杂性。更有效地了解这些联系将在气候变化下带来社会效益，为东非和其他地区的土地和资源管理者提供指导。该项目将促进国际跨学科合作的发展，为美国和非洲的研究生提供教育和培训机会。该项目是2001年度环境生物复杂性特别竞赛颁发的奖项，重点关注自然和人类系统耦合动力学

This planning grant supports activities that will lead to a full research proposal on the interactions between land use change, land cover change, and climate change at the regional scale in East Africa. Plans include a workshop in East Africa, concept development for modeling, and a concept paper. The grant will enable team members from the U.S., Africa, and the U.K. to collaborate effectively in these activities and to establish modalities for collaborative preparation of the full proposal and implementation of the research project. Foreign partner institutions include the University of East Anglia, U.K., and the International Livestock Research Institute, located in Nairobi, Kenya. The research proposes application of methods, models, and analytical frameworks used in Climate Change analysis and Land Use/Cover Change studies for integrated assessment of climate and its interactions with land use. The scientific focus will be on examination of the linkages between climate and land-use change, between land-use change and land-cover change, and between land-cover change and regional climate modeling. Important issues fundamental to an understanding of these linkages include interactions between spational and temporal scales, indirect and non-linear affects, and uncertainty and complexity. A more effective understanding of these linkages will have societal benefits under climate change, providing guidance for land and resource managers in East Africa and elsehwere. The project will facilitate development of international interdisciplinary collaborations, with education and training opportunities for U.S. and African graduate students.This project is an award emanating from the FY 2001 special competition in Biocomplexity in the Environment focusing on the Dynamics of Coupled Natural and Human Systems.***