Unraveling complexity: Understanding the land-water-food nexus in Elgeyo-Marakwet, north-west Kenya

Elgeyo-Marakwet社区位于肯尼亚西北部，横跨温带的Cherangany丘陵和干旱的Kerio山谷的生态连续体。它们严重依赖土地-水-食物关系，在过去200年里，面对多种环境变化，它们提供了一个充分研究的恢复力例子（Davies和Moore， 2016）。PI， CoI和团队的早期研究侧重于通过用于农业和家庭目的的建造水道网络来管理水；通过复杂的权属和后续模式对农业土壤进行精密管理；管理植物资源，包括各种本地和进口作物；还有森林的重要性，它具有水利功能，是收集到的药品和食物的储备。然而，最近的工作表明，人们越来越担心新的生态变化的影响，包括对气候变化的普遍关切，以及转向用水密集的单一作物、引进新作物和安装管道灌溉，这些都加剧了对水资源的不平等获取。虽然后一种变化旨在帮助缓解粮食不安全，但研究表明，它们可能会产生相反的效果，加剧土壤退化，引入不熟悉的杂草和作物病害，并对现有水源施加压力。与此相关的是对传统自然资源管理丧失、文化上有价值的生物多样性丧失以及对粮食安全的影响的关切。Cherangany森林集水区土地利用的变化加剧了这些紧张局势，特别是由于农业和畜牧业活动增加而造成的森林砍伐。这引起了人们对化肥径流、土地退化、生物多样性丧失以及整个高地-山谷生态连续体水质和水量下降的关注。当地社区和县政府迫切希望了解这些新挑战的含义，并制定切实可行的解决方案。我们的重点是解开复杂和相互依存的陆地-水-食物关系，跨越Cherangany森林保护区和半干旱的Kerio山谷。利用民族志、访谈、植物调查、航空摄影、地理信息系统制图和现有的合作优势，我们将沿着两个轴实现这些目标：2.森林管理；农业。我们将整理、审查和扩展现有数据，以了解与历史和未来潜在的环境变化有关的土地-水-粮食关系。我们还将审查关于区域气候变化的现有文献，并整理当地气象站的数据，以产生对这些关键轴（森林和农业）如何对气候波动作出反应和可能作出反应的实际理解。由于目前对东非的预测在空间上是不均匀的，而且往往不确定，因此对潜在的气候引起的影响进行更高分辨率的分析似乎特别重要。为了为实际的政策制定提供本地化和有根据的知识，我们将与埃尔盖约-马拉克韦县议会、附近的埃尔多雷特大学（UOE）、马拉克韦研究站（MRS）、英国东非研究所（BIEA）、肯尼亚国家博物馆（NMK）和肯尼亚林业局（KFS）合作，开展研究，直接纳入新的县级环境和保护规划。我们已经与县官员举行了初步会议，并与UOE和夫人建立了谅解备忘录。这项工作将推动发展当地研究能力的长期目标，鼓励适当的资源管理，并通过汇集专家、民间社会和决策者，制定跟踪和应对新出现的气候变化和其他生态影响的政策框架。戴维斯，M.I.J和摩尔，H.L. 2016。景观、时间和文化弹性。东非研究杂志（10:67-87）

The communities of Elgeyo-Marakwet, northwest Kenya reside across the ecological continuum of the temperate Cherangany Hills and arid Kerio Valley. Heavily reliant on the land-water-food nexus, they offer a well-studied example of resilience in the face of multiple environmental changes over the last 200 years (Davies and Moore 2016). Earlier research by the PI, CoI and team has focused on management of water through a network of built water channels used for agricultural and domestic purposes; the sophisticated management of agricultural soils through complex patterns of tenure and fallowing; management of botanic resources including diverse indigenous and imported crops; and the importance of forests which serve hydraulic functions and as reserves of gathered medicines and foodstuffs.However, recent work indicates growing apprehension of the impact of new ecological changes, including general concerns over climate change, as well as a shift towards water-intensive mono-cropping, the introduction of new crops, and the installation of piped-irrigation which is exacerbating unequal access to water resources. While these latter changes were meant to help mitigate food insecurity, research suggest that they may have had the opposite effect by increasing soil degradation, introducing unfamiliar weeds and crop diseases, and placing pressure on existing water sources. Related to this are concerns about the loss of traditional natural resource management, the loss of culturally valuable biodiversity, and the implications for food security. Compounding these tensions are land-use changes within the Cherangany Forest catchment, especially deforestation resulting from increased agricultural and pastoral activities. This has raised concerns of fertilizer runoff, land degradation, biodiversity loss, and decreased water quality and quantity across the upland-valley ecological continuum. There is pressing interest among local communities and the County government, to understand the implications of these new challenges and develop practical solutions. We focus on disentangling the complex and interdependent land-water-food nexus across the Cherangany Forest reserve and the semi-arid Kerio Valley. Using ethnography, interviews, botanic survey, aerial photography, GIS mapping and building on existing collaborative strengths, we will effect these aims along two axes: 1. Forest Management and 2. Agriculture. We will collate, review and extend existing data to understand the land-water-food nexus in relation to both historic and potential future environmental changes. We will also examine existing literature on regional climatic change and collate local weather station data to produce a practical understanding of how these key axes (forests and agriculture) have and may respond to climatic fluctuation. Production of more highly resolved analyses of potential climate induced impacts seems especially important since current predictions for Eastern Africa are spatially heterogeneous and often of low certainty. To produce localized and grounded knowledge for practical policy making we will partner with Elgeyo-Marakwet County Council, nearby Eldoret University (UOE), the Marakwet Research Station (MRS), British Institute in Eastern Africa (BIEA), National Museums of Kenya (NMK) and Kenya Forestry Service (KFS) to produce research to be directly incorporated into new county-level environmental and conservation planning. We have undertaken preliminary meetings with County officials and established MOU's with UOE and MRS. This work will advance longer-term goals of developing local research capacity, encouraging appropriate resource management, and devising policy frameworks that track and address emerging climate change and other ecological impacts by bringing together experts, civil society, and policy makers.Davies, M.I.J and Moore, H.L. 2016. Landscape, time and cultural resilience. Journal of Eastern African Studies 10:67-87