International Mountain Conference

Abstract ID 456 | Date: 2022-09-13 10:11 – 10:22 | Type: Oral Presentation | Place: SOWI – Lecture hall HS1 |

Grêt-Regamey, Adrienne; Blanco, Victor; Luthe, Tobias

Mountain regions face substantial challenges and opportunities arising from global change. The capacity of mountain regions for (systemic) innovation will be determinant to the success of sustainability transitions envisioned by social actors of mountain communities. We provide insights about innovative capacities in mountain regions and propose how to strengthen these capacities in order to support regional sustainability transitions. Accordingly, we present a multimethod approach to assess and strengthen innovative capacity of mountain communities, with respect to the achievement of their visions for sustainable regional development. We do so by a) analysing innovation systems' collaboration networks, to evaluate the innovative capacity of communities; b) co-constructing visions with mountain stakeholders and assessing innovation requirements to meet these visions; and c) proposing changes to the collaboration networks that address regional innovation system (RIS) weaknesses to help achieve visions through innovation. We empirically illustrate this approach for two mountain regions in the Alps with different types of RIS. Our analysis furthers the understanding on the type and magnitude of RIS changes required to more effectively address desired transformative visions in mountain regions. We also show how innovative capacities differ between both regions. Accordingly, we discuss implications of our approach for the assessment of innovative capacity and the transition of mountain regions.

Abstract ID 849 | Date: 2022-09-13 10:22 – 10:33 | Type: Oral Presentation | Place: SOWI – Lecture hall HS1 |

Romagnoli, Federica; Santini, Alessandra; Masiero, Mauro; Secco, Laura

On 28-29^th October 2018 Vaia windstorm hit the North-East of Italy affecting four out of the seven administrative regions situated in the Italian Alpine area. Vaia has been the largest single natural event that this area ever experienced, destroying more than 43.000 ha of forests, and causing long-lasting environmental and socio-economic impacts.

The storm has mainly hit mountain territories, exacerbating already existing fragilities. On the one hand it revealed the unpreparedness of local and regional institutions and inadequacy of legal frameworks in dealing with natural disasters, and, on the other, it showed how existing environmental and socio-economic vulnerabilities slowed down post-disaster recovery processes, ultimately
affecting the natural resources and the range of ecosystem services they provide.

Our research investigated how existing governance structures at different territorial levels, as well as decision making procedures and legislative frameworks have been adapted and transformed to answer the necessities brought by the storm. Content analysis of policies and legislation has been complemented by surveys to local and regional institutional actors to acquire a better understanding of: i) the main strengths and weaknesses of the involved governance structures; ii) adaptations of existing legal, institutional and technical frameworks to manage windstorm environmental, social and economic impacts; iii) collaborative networks established at different territorial levels and the multi-level governance interactions between institutions;. The "Senday Framwork for DRR" and "build-back-better" approach were taken as benchmarks to analyze the results obtained and assess ability of local and regional institutions to implement effective post disaster recovery management and built more resilient societies.

Preliminary findings revealed that despite just after the windstorm ad hoc measures have been implemented to manage immediate post-event interventions, the absence of a steering committee and of a clear multi-sector, multi-actor and multi-level strategy to manage extreme weather events in mountain regions have led to the implementation of uncoordinated, and thus less effective and less efficient, regional and local recovery measures. The identification of these gaps is intended to provide feedback and insights to improve adaptability and preparedness of institutions to cope with and manage future extreme weather event challenges. This could support the formulation of effective and long-term solutions boosting socio-ecological resilience of mountain communities.

Abstract ID 434 | Date: 2022-09-13 10:33 – 10:44 | Type: Oral Presentation | Place: SOWI – Lecture hall HS1 |

Hazarika, Reneema (1); Lapin, Katharina (2)

Sustainability of the ecosystem services provided by mountain forests has been the center of discourse in the European Alpine Space. Evaluating alternative tree species such as the non-native tree (NNTs) has been discussed as a nature-based adaptation strategy when native forests might be vulnerable to climate change. Such nature-based solutions, however, entail risks that need to be studied. We aimed to examine the perceptions of different stakeholders on the risks and benefits of NNTs in the Alpine Space. Further, we also analyzed the existing forest legislation to understand the status of NNTs in the framework of national and regional legislative processes. We conducted a stakeholder survey across the 6 countries ( Austria, Germany, Switzerland, France, Slovenia and Italy) of the Alpine Space which gathered 457 responses. This was followed by personal interviews with 30 forest policy experts. The survey revealed that except Slovenia, where the stakeholders perceived NNTs as potential risks rather than beneficial, the majority of the respondents from Austria, Germany, Switzerland, France and Italy think that the risks and benefits of NNTs depend on the site conditions and legal status of forests such as commercial forest or protected areas. This notion of stakeholders for NNTs is also reflected in the policy analysis where regional and national forest legislations mostly talks of NNTs in the context of invasiveness and phytosanitation. Each country has a different set of forest regulations concerning the NNTs which compound the challenges in harmonizing policies for management and utilization of the NNTs in the Alpine Space. However, experts were positive about including the benefits of NNTs into existing legislations especially for climate change adaptation. They unanimously stressed large-scale scientific evaluation and monitoring of the risks of NNTs. Therefore despite the immense potential of NNTs as nature-based solutions, the current legislative framework restricts their use for promoting forest resilience in the European Alpine Space.

Abstract ID 496 | Date: 2022-09-13 10:44 – 10:55 | Type: Oral Presentation | Place: SOWI – Lecture hall HS1 |

Clivaz, Mélanie (1,2); Reynard, Emmanuel (1,2); Trouilloud, Séverine (1,3)

Sustainable development seeks to balance the environmental, economic and social dynamics of a territory, and to preserve good livelihood conditions for future generations. Citizen science can contribute to sustainability and transformation of society by involving the inhabitants in the co-production of knowledge (Pettibone et al., 2018; Strasser et al., 2019; Sauermann et al., 2020). To address these two dimensions of sustainability – the balance between economic development and environmental protection by involving society, and the intergenerational dimension – the citizen science project "Val d'Hérens 1950/2050 – Lives, images and practices of a changing territory" was set up by the University of Lausanne in the Hérens valley (Valais, Switzerland). The project combines participatory research, scientific outreach activities and artistic approaches. It involves several research teams as well as the population of the valley. The general objective is to answer the question: what are the challenges of living in the mountains in a context of climate change?

Several research teams are working on nine topics: evolution and perception of landscapes, soundscapes, socio-economic development, impacts of climate change on mountaineering, on the forest boundaries or on heritage plants, climatic perceptions, as well as hunting and dog-sledding practices. The project is structured around three periods: (i) Past – collecting and sharing the living history of the valley; (ii) Present – establishing shared diagnoses (with the population) and (iii) Future – imagining possible futures.

This contribution deals with the transdisciplinary character of the project. It discusses the challenges of participatory approaches to research on sustainability in the mountains. Engaging with the population takes time and requires gaining the trust of the inhabitants. Working with the schools in the valley and relying on certain committed personalities in the valley helps to strengthen this trust. We were also confronted with the concurrence of political processes (fusion of communes) which make the scientific approach difficult. Finally, it is necessary to regularly provide the population with concrete results so that they can fully engage in university research that is perceived a priori as theoretical and not very rooted in the territory.

REFERENCES

Pettibone, L., Blättel-Mink, B., Balázs, B. et al. 2018: Transdisciplinary sustainability research and citizen science: Options for mutual learning, GAIA, 27(2), 222-225.

Sauermann, H., Vohland, K., Antoniou, V. et al. 2020: Citizen science and sustainability transitions, Research Policy, 49(5), 103978.

Strasser, B.J., Baudry, J., Mahr, D. et al. 2019: "Citizen Science"? Rethinking Science and Public Participation, Science & Technology Studies, 32(2), 52-76.

Abstract ID 491 | Date: 2022-09-13 10:55 – 11:06 | Type: Oral Presentation | Place: SOWI – Lecture hall HS1 |

Dubo, Titouan (1); Palomo, Ignacio (2); Collain, Guillaume (1); Lavorel, Sandra (1)

Climate change is already threatening mountain ecosystems and consequently nature's contribution to people's good quality of life. Nature-based Solutions (NbS) have recently gained attention as initiatives with a potential for transformative adaptation of mountain socio-ecosystems. NbS are actions to protect, sustainably manage and restore natural or modified ecosystems that address climate change, biodiversity loss and human well-being. While the number of NbS implemented in the Alps is rapidly increasing to face the more frequent and intense drought, floods and landslides, the levers and barriers to NbS implementation are still unclear. The PORTAL project (Pathways of Transformation in the Alps) has identified and characterised a portfolio of on-the-ground NbS for adaptation to climate change in the Alps. In 20 semi-structured interviews with managers of identified NbS, we used the Values-Rules-Knowledge framework to understand the making-decision context of each NbS. This framework structured our exploration of combined barriers and levers from human values, multiple knowledge types and formal or informal institutions. Specifically, we investigated how the governance model, the knowledge used and financial instruments facilitated or impeded i) the decision to act for adaptation; ii) managers risk assessment and exploration of possible actions; iii) the implementation of the initiative; iv) the future and the potential transfer of the NbS. We discuss the main leverage points that need to be activated to foster transformative NbS in mountains.

Abstract ID 876 | Date: 2022-09-13 11:06 – 11:17 | Type: Oral Presentation | Place: SOWI – Lecture hall HS1 |

Thakur, Shinny; Negi, Vikram; Bhatt, Indra

The Himalaya is known as a mountainous terrain that provides a variety of ecosystem services for the survival of billions of people. The region is one of 35 global biodiversity hotspots because of its unique and diverse wildlife. Furthermore, the region is extremely vulnerable to anthropogenic disruptions and climate change. The structure and function of forest ecosystems are impacted by increased community reliance on forests and changing climate. As a result, forest vulnerability assessment is critical in order to comprehend the anticipated effects of these changes and actions. Previous studies on forest and forest-dependent people vulnerability assessment have overlooked the importance of geographical and temporal dimensions of vulnerability evaluated through field-based observations. The study focuses on assessing forest vulnerability using field data over an altitudinal gradient in India's west Himalaya. We have chosen nine forest vulnerability indicators across four domains based on literature and data availability: ecological (species richness, and the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index), climate (temperature, rainfall), topographic (slope, aspect, elevation), disturbances (forest fragmentation), and social (forest fragmentation) (population density). The forest vulnerability index (FVI) was created using a general linear model technique based on the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP). The FVI index was then divided into four categories: low, medium, high, and extremely high. Forest vulnerability is higher in temperate and mixed forests in the region, but subtropical pine, broadleaf, and subalpine forests have less vulnerable forest grids. These findings revealed that elevation (15.4%), population density (15.1%), slope (14.5%), rainfall (13.7%), forest fragmentation (12.9%), temperature (12.3%), and aspect (11.4%) are the key drivers of forest vulnerability, especially in the region. To verify the findings, we compared the created FVI in this study to ground-based FVI generated in earlier studies from the region and found that the assessments were more similar. The present study's spatial forest vulnerability maps provide a realistic profile of sensitive forests in India's western Himalayas, which can be used to build adaptation measures and management plans. Indigenous knowledge and sustainable development goals have been linked in previous studies. This information is important not only for dependent communities but also for ensuring livelihood security and human well-being in the modern world. Documenting such studies is thus critical for mainstreaming and developing discourses on sustainable ecosystem management practices in the region, as well as addressing the threats among indigenous groups.

Abstract ID 425 | Date: 2022-09-13 11:17 – 11:28 | Type: Oral Presentation | Place: SOWI – Lecture hall HS1 |

Donadieu De Lavit, Paul (1); Trentin, Marco (2); Le Goff, Ulysse (1); Piccin, Luca (2); Barjolle, Dominique (1,2)

ValPoschiavo is a remote valley of the eastern Swiss alps, populated by 4'500 inhabitants. Its geographical isolation has led to a linguistic and cultural isolation, being one of the few Italian speaking valleys in the mostly German-speaking canton of Graubünden. Over the recent years and thanks to the dynamism of its protagonists, ValPoschiavo has nevertheless managed to build its regional resilience through a strategy centered around its food system. This work explores how a regional agri-food strategy may enhance the socio-ecological resilience of a mountain region. We follow Holling & Gunderson's definition (2001) of a Social-Ecological System (SES) resilience: "the capacity of a system to undergo disturbance and maintain its functions and controls", by considering the region and its sectors as a SES. After having interviewed fifteen key actors of the valley's food system, we discuss the existing links between regional resilience and the localness of the agri-food sector.

The geographical isolation of ValPoschiavo led to the development of a unique identity and specificities on which the strategy relies. In the 2000's the valley has taken steps to be declared, alongside the local railway, as a UNESCO World Site Heritage. This candidacy led the protagonists of the valley to elaborate a common development strategy: 100% Bio. This strategy, aimed at preserving the landscape and the biodiversity by reaching 100% of organic farming in the valley. Few years later, the agriculture strategy has been extended to the whole regional food system with the creation, in 2017, of the 100% Bio ValPoschiavo regional development project. This project, built on a tourism-gastronomy-agriculture nexus, has strongly fostered the attractiveness of the valley and led to the creation of 100%ValPoshiavo label.

The valley's community of actors has been able to organize itself to develop a coherent project centered around its agri-food system which helped fostering the valley attractiveness, economy, biodiversity and life quality. ValPoschiavo has also learnt from its vulnerabilities and adapted to transform them into assets leading to building buffer capacities in several fields (financial, social, human, physical and natural) and to recovering a high functional and response diversity in agriculture, ValPoschiavo has developed, through its agri-food strategy, the key characteristics that, according to (Carpenter et al., 2001), make a SES resilient.

Provided a strong preexisting cultural identity and social cohesion, the promotion of a more localized agri-food system appears to be a powerful strategy to enhance the resilience of particular mountain regions.

Abstract ID 141 | Date: 2022-09-13 11:28 – 11:39 | Type: Oral Presentation | Place: SOWI – Lecture hall HS1 |

Zango Palau, Anna (1); Rivera Ferre, Marta (2); López-I-Gelats, Feliu (3); Claramunt López, Bernat (4)

Mountains are immersed in a profound process of reorganization linked to their high exposure to different global drivers of change. Their future largely depends on their adaptation capacity; however, as marginal areas isolated from administrative centers, very often are subjected to maladaptation processes. Avoiding maladaptation requires integrating local knowledge, considering the potential feedbacks between local and global processes, and acknowledging that differing values and interests affect adaptation outcomes. To implement these principles in decision-making we have develop of a protocol capable to integrate different values existing at different scales, from local to global, using the Pyrenees as a case study. Our protocol first addresses the complex nature of mountains, tackled through the integration of the Social-Ecological System and the Vulnerability conceptual frameworks. Stemming from this first step, the protocol enables to generate a list of adaptation actions. Finally, these actions are put in context of the potential development pathways and mental frameworks coexisting among the local population. This protocol allows to identify which development pathway better fits with local mental frameworks, and facilitates the identification of the specific adaptation actions that may be both a source of conflict and may better resonate among local stakeholders. Our protocol helps to make decisions with information of high quality, and can be used elsewhere. We argue that tools like this one are valuable to integrate complexity without getting lost in the process, and they are particularly valuable in helping decision makers to reduce maladaptation and to identify actions with larger positive impacts.

Abstract ID 431 | Date: 2022-09-13 11:39 – 11:50 | Type: Oral Presentation | Place: SOWI – Lecture hall HS1 |

Manna, Ashim Kumar

The paper critically examines 'forest-fed' rivers, smaller rivers that support human habitation within the Himalayas. Forest and water resources are critical landscape elements for carbon-water sequestration and climate impact reduction through nature-based adaptation strategies. Enhancing and conserving these key landscape features can leverage ecological and economic opportunities for settling in the mountains. The Garhwal region in the Himalayan region is renowned for its key rivers, such as the Bhagirathi, Alaknanda, Yamuna and the Ganga, that flow within deep gorges and do not support settlements. The paper emphasizes the role of 'forest-fed' rivers, which do not have a glacial source of origin. The spread of settlements are found along the smaller, more accessible river streams which emerge from forests and underground springs can be termed as 'Inhabited ecologies'. The paper explores the role of 'forest-fed' rivers in sustaining traditional (aquifers, springs, traditional irrigation canals) and modern water resources supporting settlement and agriculture within the mountains. The quality and quantity of water resources within these 'Inhabited ecologies' have an inseparable relationship to its landscape, which have been compromised due to loss of native forests, increasing anthropogenic activities, increasing global temperature and irregular precipitation. The paper explores research by design methodology utilizing cartography and interpretative mapping in investigating the Barkot watershed within the Garhwal region of the Himalayas (250 km north of Delhi).   

The paper compares the transformation of the Barkot watershed, spread across a diverse topography (spread across 1100msl to 2200 msl) that represents dynamic human occupations linking land use, water, typography and settlements. The paper will examine the transformation within the separate watersheds by overlapping historical and present occupations, exposing landscape structure, urbanization, and infrastructure positions. It intertwines the issues of representing marginal demographics of the Himalayas through people-centric and community-driven projects. Finally, the paper argues for the importance of forest-fed river systems as critical elements of natural infrastructure, which leverage ecological, economic and settlements opportunities for the urbanizing mountains and are essential in planning for climate adaptation for mountainous communities. Traditionally, mountain communities are custodians of the region's ecological diversity. The article strongly argues for landscape rejuvenation using nature-based solutions, which embedded soil and water conservation, livelihood opportunities for local communities. The paper interprets the water-settlements nexus in enhancing ecosystem services to respond to the immediate needs of climate change, support capacity building, and enable Himalayan communities to transition towards sustainable development.

Abstract ID 939 | Date: 2022-09-13 11:50 – 12:00 | Type: Oral Presentation | Place: SOWI – Lecture hall HS1 |

Sparkes, Edward (1); Werners, Saskia (1,6); Bhadwal, Suruchi (2); Shrestha Pradhan, Neera (3); Ahmed, Bashir (4); Khalid Jamil, Muhammad (4,6); Syed, Abu (5); Biemans, Hester (6)

Communities throughout the world face substantial challenges in the face of climate change. This is of particular concern in climate change hotspots such as the Hindu Kush Himalayan, where extreme climate effects coincide with large numbers of vulnerable people. For development to be sustainable in the Hindu Kush Himalayan, interventions need to include choices that improve livelihoods and counteract climate change while being resilient over time. Climate resilient development pathways present an option to bring together these goals, by consolidating climate action and development choices to generate pathways towards sustainable development.

This research co-created climate resilient development pathways in the Hindu Kush Himalayan. The work built on four livelihood innovations that were piloted in a previous project, which are as follows:

1. Springshed restoration in the Gandaki basin, Nepal.
2. Climate and flood resilient housing in the Teesta river basin, Bangladesh.
3. Climate Smart Agriculture in the hill district of Rudraprayag, India.
4. Portable solar water pumping in Potohwar and Thal, Pakistan.

In this work, we assessed the potential for upscaling these innovations by understanding their long term sustainability, and the relationship between innovations and community resilience. To this end we monitored and evaluated the outcomes of the pilots and placed them in the context of climate resilient development pathways.

To advance the practice of climate resilient development pathways, we first conducted a review of conceptual advances. The results were published in a research paper titled 'Advancing climate resilient development pathways since the IPCC's fifth assessment report'. Following this, we developed climate resilient development pathways in the cases. To do this, we engaged with different stakeholders, from the community to the national level. Numerous case specific lessons emerged from our empirical work. To summarize, for this practice of climate resilient development pathways in mountain regions, we highlight:

• Pathways need to map the roles and actions of different actors;
• Pathways are highly location specific;
• Engagement with trade-offs and maladaptive choices is critical;
• Soft measures, such as enhanced awareness and willingness to conserve natural resources have a more indirect contribution to climate resilient development. These are however important precondition for action. Pathways need to include actions that have a direct and more indirect on climate resilience.
• Broad monitoring and evaluation of implementation, outcomes and actor activities is critical;
• Pathways need to be reviewed and updated frequently to include new ideas and activities that actors are developing in response to earlier interventions and evolving capacities.

Abstract ID 682 | Date: 2022-09-13 13:30 – 13:41 | Type: Oral Presentation | Place: SOWI – Lecture hall HS1 |

Hagen, Isabel; Huggel, Christian; Schnyder, Sanne

The tropical Andes of Peru host 30% of the country's 32.9 million inhabitants. The highly populated mountain region is exposed to several climate-related risks, such as glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs), landslides, and seasonal water scarcity. Climate change is exacerbating the risks, and efforts are made to predict the magnitude and severity of risks for the 21^st century. Comprehensive climate risk management and adaptation measures, such as early warning systems and water storage systems, can alleviate some of the aforementioned risks. However, uneven socio-economic development together with increased magnitude and frequency of risks are increasing the probability of reaching adaptation limits. The limits can be socio-economic, cultural, political, technical, or biophysical. Whilst there is abundancy of research on both climate risks and adaptation measures in the Peruvian Andes, investigations of adaptation limits are lacking.

Here, we investigate the limits of adaptation to GLOFs, landslides, and seasonal water scarcity in the Santa Teresa catchment, located in the Cusco region in the Peruvian Andes. We focus on indicators of human needs and define the thresholds, beyond which you cannot live up to the human needs anymore. When, despite risk management and adaptation efforts, any one of these indicators is no longer fulfilled, an adaptation limit has been reached. We develop the indicators and thresholds based on a thorough literature review together with in-depth interviews with local stakeholders. In parallel, we define the socio-economic and political space that favours or disfavours adaptation action in the region, including scanning past events and processes in Santa Teresa where thresholds were approached or even exceeded, and what factors prevented appropriate adaptation action. The aim of this study is to identify and define the limits of adaptation on a regional scale, where and when these could be reached and which aspects of human wellbeing are at risk.

Abstract ID 174 | Date: 2022-09-13 13:41 – 13:52 | Type: Oral Presentation | Place: SOWI – Lecture hall HS1 |

Prescott, Graham (1); Adhikari, Biraj (1,2); Bugingo, Adili (3); Chettri, Nakul (2); Delgado, Freddy (4); Geschke, Jonas (1); Kilungu, Halima (5); Mariaca, Karina (4); Munishi, Pantaleo (3); Mwampamba, Tuyeni (6); Snethlage, Mark (1,7); Urbach, Davnah (1,7); Fischer, Markus (1)

Mountain ecosystems are centres of cultural and biological diversity, and provide vital ecosystem services (including water, food, income, and protection from natural disasters) both in mountain communities and far beyond. However, the costs of conserving biodiversity may be incurred at different scales and locations than the benefits from resulting ecosystem services. This means we need to explicitly account for synergies and tradeoffs between biodiversity conservation and other Sustainable Development Goals (such as eliminating poverty and food insecurity) at different scales. Here, we synthesise insights from database analyses, expert surveys, literature reviews, and household questionnaires to uncover the challenges faced in conserving mountain ecosystems generally, and in particular, pathways for synergistic nature-based solutions and adaptation strategies in mountains in Tanzania, Bolivia, and Nepal.

Abstract ID 741 | Date: 2022-09-13 13:52 – 14:03 | Type: Oral Presentation | Place: SOWI – Lecture hall HS1 |

Carnelli, Fabio (1); Cocuccioni, Silvia (1); Pedoth, Lydia (1); Flarer, Heidi (1); Tedeschi, Evan (2); Viggiano, Rossella (1)

Locals and tourists love spending time in nature and practicing mountain sports. This trend resulted in an increase in accidents related to mountain sports in recent years. This leads, among other things, to highly complex liability questions and it is, therefore, necessary to make nature as tangible as possible for the sake of the law. Criminal law in particular depends on precise parameters for assessing liability. On the one hand, protective measures seek to make the mountain environment safer to provide better protection for the inhabitants of Alpine areas from avalanches, landslides, and rockfalls through targeted disaster risk reduction measures. Sports enthusiasts, on the other hand, have the opportunity to experience mountain environments that constantly challenge human capacity to cope with the uncertainty embedded in the Alpine environment For these reasons, as part of an interregional and interdisciplinary project called M_Risk (Natural Hazards in the Mountain Environment: Risk Management and Responsibility), and starting from some assumptions from the legal world, we designed and administered two surveys to find out respectively if and how much tourists and members of local mountain sports associations behave in a self-responsible way while doing summer and winter sports. We chose as study area Trentino, South Tyrol in Italy, and Tyrol in Austria, based on the assumption that in Italy criminal law is dominated by a paternalistic attitude and consequently characterized by over-regulation, if compared with the Austrian approach. Our research design started from the concepts of residual risk, its perception, and the type of preparation when doing sport activities. Our results can give us useful information both on who the different sportsmen and women are and how they behave, and on which aspects of accident risk prevention future action should be focused. Although we didn't address climate adaptation explicitly in our research design and in the questionnaires, the results are also valuable in the context of climate change adaptation.

Abstract ID 795 | Date: 2022-09-13 14:03 – 14:14 | Type: Oral Presentation | Place: SOWI – Lecture hall HS1 |

Häberli, Isabel; Jurt, Christine

Several debris flows since 2005 shook up Guttannen and attracted attention far beyond the municipality. The mountain pass road, an international gas pipeline but also inhabited houses were affected and called for action. These events raised fear but also led to the need of actively searching pathways for resilience as climate change is about to enhance hazard exposure in the area.

Guttannen is a municipality located in the Aare River valley at 1057 m above sea level in the Swiss Alps. Its large territory (200 km²) consists mainly of rock and glacier areas. The local population is small with about 280 inhabitants, approximately 60-70% of whom are over 50 years old.

Since these debris flow events, several studies on natural hazards related to the municipality were carried out. An early warning system and a monitoring were installed, which caused resistance among some inhabitants. The municipality came into focus of the national and the regional government for climate change adaptation strategies. A participative process was initiated including natural hazard experts as well as three municipalities of the region that were represented by inhabitants. Interestingly, during the process, the focus of the strategy shifted away from natural hazards to a broader scope of regional climate change adaptation. In this context, the municipality of Guttannen itself started to cooperate with natural hazard experts as well as universities to work on topics of climate change and to develop projects promoting a positive image of Guttannen.

Being part of the network knowledgeforclimate.net the aim of our case study was twofold:
1) understanding the interplay of different knowledge at various scales, as well as processes of co-production of knowledge for the development of climate change adaptation strategies and
2) elaborating a case study for teaching co-production of knowledge for processes of climate change adaptation.

Here, we present the anthropological study within this framework that addresses local perceptions of risks and opportunities and related knowledge which is considered to be necessary at different scales for contesting climate change in the municipality. Therefore, we carried out semi-structured interviews and analyzed them following qualitative content analysis according to Mayring (2015). In a following step, we compared them to studies that calculated risks related to natural hazards on site. Our results show considerable differences concerning the magnitude of the perceived risks, the interlinkages between risks, and further risks, that measures may bring along according to different perspectives.

Abstract ID 415 | Date: 2022-09-13 14:14 – 14:25 | Type: Oral Presentation | Place: SOWI – Lecture hall HS1 |

Drenkhan, Fabian (1,2,3); Martínez Mendoza, Marc (1); Ross, Anthony (1); Montoya, Nilton (4); Baiker, Jan (3,5); Buytaert, Wouter (1)

Tropical high-Andean wetlands, locally called bofedales, represent key ecosystems sustaining biodiversity, carbon sequestration, water provision and livestock farming. They are highly sensitive to climatic and anthropogenic disturbances, such as changes in precipitation patterns, glacier retreat and peat extraction, and are thus of major concern for watershed management. However, the eco-hydrological dynamics and responses of bofedales to impacts from global change are little explored.

In this study we map seasonal bofedales extent in the glaciated Vilcanota-Urubamba basin (Southern Peru) at unprecedented spatial resolution in the region. Therefore, we developed a supervised classification based on the Machine Learning algorithm Random Forest in Google Earth Engine. A total of 27 vegetation and topographic indices were computed and iteratively selected with cross-validated feature selection. We identify a total wetland area of 282 km² (630 km²) at the end of the dry (wet) season in 2020 (2021). The observed high seasonal variability in bofedales extent within the study region suggests the presence of a pronounced intra-annual hydrological regime of drying, soaking and wetting.

For a more thorough assessment of the suggested pattern, we combined borehole water level and outlet river stage data from an arduino sensor network covering five bofedales sites in two micro-watersheds. These confirmed distinct wetting and drying regimes, indicating a strong relationship between wetland area extent and water table levels. Based on these findings and a scoping review, a conceptual hydrological model has been proposed. As an initial attempt for model parameterisation, we undertook a statistical analysis, cross-correlating borehole levels, river stage and precipitation inputs. We identified lag-time responses to precipitation from 1 to 46 days, likely owing to the complex topography, hydrogeology and eco-hydrological processes controlling intra-annual storage dynamics of the bofedales.

Our proposed conceptual model offers a framework to further assess the water storage capacity and residence times of bofedales that can support local decision-making. In view of severe impacts from climate and land use changes, locally tailored conservation and adaptation practices are urgently needed including innovative water storage enhancement interventions. These can be combined with traditional bofedales management by local, native livestock herders. In this regard, nature-based solutions, such as headwater and wetland protection and the implementation of additional water storage, can provide a cost-effective and flexible solution. These interventions leverage natural processes that sustain ecosystem services and increase the buffer function of bofedales to water loss from e.g. glacier shrinkage in headwaters and increasing water demand further downstream.

Abstract ID 887 | Date: 2022-09-13 14:25 – 14:36 | Type: Oral Presentation | Place: SOWI – Lecture hall HS1 |

Unuvar, Fatma Ilknur; Dellal, Ilkay

The aim of this research is to determine socio-economic changes of smallholder goat farms in Turkey. Sheep and goat breeding have been a traditional agricultural activity during Turkish history. Generally, it is done by small-scale family farms in the whole country. There were 42 million head sheep and 11 million head goats in Turkey in 2020 according to FAO.

In the Mediterranean region of Turkey, especially in mountain farms, goat breeding is common, because of their high adaptability to harsh conditions, their flexible integration into dissimilar socioeconomic situations and resulting high economic value from very low input usage. Of the total goat number, 26.3% belong to Mediterranean region of Turkey. Mersin and Antalya provinces have the highest share into the region with their share over 50%. In this paper, it was studied on socio-economic structure of goat farms in Mediterranean region of Turkey by determining demographic characteristics (population, age, education, etc), main agricultural activities and economic importance of goat farming. For this aim, the survey was conducted on goat farms in which mountainous/semi-mountainous areas and on the plains of Mersin province. Farmers' intentions for land allocation and livestock and their migration tendencies were analysed in different scenarios. Age, experience, number of small ruminants, land size and credit usage were found to have a statistically significant effect on farmers' decisions about continuing farming. Their decisions changed across the policy scenarios provided, and a policy that considers regional differences was found to be significant in their decisions. The research results were compared the previous research which was done in 2000 in the same area in Antalya, which has almost the same characteristics as Mersin. Thus, the comparison was made by some selected socio-economic parameters and the transition of goat farms during 2000's years was determined.

Abstract ID 576 | Date: 2022-09-13 14:36 – 14:47 | Type: Oral Presentation | Place: SOWI – Lecture hall HS1 |

Turin, Cecilia (1); Meza, Katherin (2); Vanek, Steven (3)

The high Andean agricultural landscapes in Peru are social and cultural spaces managed mainly by peasant families and communities. These actors with different interests and livelihood objectives specialize in agriculture or grazing livestock managing specific spaces, or they can be mixed systems with holistic management of several spaces along the altitudinal gradient of the landscape. Whatever the productive orientation (agriculturalist, pastoral and agropastoral) and scope, the management of these Andean complex socio agroecological systems implies access to different landscape zones, and through this to a diversity of types and uses of soils and biological material and therefore to a deep spatial knowledge. Management and decisions of these actors geographically encompass diverse defined and delimited spaces, but socially management is more complex since ways of accessing land are multiple and eventually overlap. In addition, access to land can be very dynamic in time. This form of Andean agricultural management with a landscape approach we called the "Andean farm" (finca andina) which consists of access to several pieces of land of different sizes, not necessarily connected to each other, generally of irregular shape, located in one or several landscape zones, whose scope or size is the result of historical and current formal and informal social agreements of access to land. This complex social management of high Andean agricultural landscapes that has endured over time, despite social, political and environmental changes, is key to the resilience of these agroecosystems and their livelihoods and guarantee farm productivity, biological diversity and food security for the families that depend on them. Understanding these complex social management of high Andean landscapes will allow us to understand their capacity to adapt to changes, especially climate change. The objective of this study is to evaluate the state of social management of landscape, its validity, and its trends of change in two high Andean zones of Peru through a comparative study. The study of such complex socio-ecological systems represents a methodological challenge. A combination of semi-structured and structured interviews was carried out with different actors of Ancash and Junin regions and mapping of areas under their management. The results of this study can contribute to fill gaps in knowledge and relevant information for policy makers who elaborate policies and instruments for rural development and land use with a territorial approach but without considering the complexity and diversity of the Andean context.

Abstract ID 300 | Date: 2022-09-13 14:47 – 14:58 | Type: Oral Presentation | Place: SOWI – Lecture hall HS1 |

Patwary, Muhammad Mainuddin

The Hindu-Kush-Himalaya (HKH) region is one of the most diversified mountain ecosystems in the world, including 60 ecoregions and habitat for 240 million people. However, intensive human intervention has altered the natural landscapes that need to be managed sustainably to ensure the long-term provision of ecosystem services (ESs) in this region. The concept of Nature-based Solutions (NbS), which connected the people in maintaining the ecosystem, addresses such challenges, however, requires thinking in terms of socio-ecological systems. Understanding the spatiotemporal connections between people and ecosystems is critical for decision-makers to implement sustainable management strategies and NbS that can enhance the resilience of social-ecological systems. However, studies on the impact of land-use changes (LULC) on ESs and their trade-off relationship are still unrepresentative in this region. With this in mind, this study estimated the impact of LULC changes on the ecosystem services values (ESVs) and their trade-off & synergies in the Chittagong Hill Tract (CHT) region of Bangladesh. The current research analyzed the trend of land-use changes between 2000 and 2020 and their impact on ESVs using a benefit transfer approach. Correlation analyses were used to determine the temporal trade-offs and synergistic relationships among ESs. The findings indicated that the dramatic increase of settlements caused an ongoing shift of grassland toward more human-modified land-use types (e.g. urban land use) during 2000-2020. These land-use changes resulted in a net decline of 1.7×10⁶ USD of ESVs in the CHT region during the study period. This loss was mostly due to the conversion of grassland to settlements. Likewise, the findings indicate that nutrient cycling, climate regulation, raw material production, erosion control, and water regulation are the most important individual ecosystem service functions, accounting for 82.71 % (2020) and 82.14 % (2000) of total ESVs, respectively. However, there was a negative trend in the function of individual ecosystem services. Synergy accounts for 57.03% of ecosystem service interactions in the CHT region, with fewer trade-off exchanges. This synergy mainly exists in the relationships involving food production, raw materials, water regulation, erosion control, climate regulation, recreation, and culture and tourism. The results suggest that quantification of multiple ecosystem service values and their synergies can provide a good basis to promote sustainable development in mountain landscapes.

Abstract ID 137 | Date: 2022-09-13 15:15 – 15:17 | Type: Poster Presentation | Place: SOWI – Garden |

Antonescu, Daniela

Food waste in Romania represents a major social problem: statistics indicate 5 million tons of food waste annually, representing between one third and a half of the total amount of food for human consumption produced in a year (about 250 kg / inhabitant). Annually, about a third of the products bought in Romania end up in the trash or are wasted unnecessarily. This quantity corresponds to about 2.55 million tons of food, respectively to the load of 127,500 trucks lined up from Bucharest to Munich. Every Romanian wastes an average of 353 grams of food per day in the household and over 6,000 tons of food end up in the garbage every day. The greatest waste of food is registered in the urban environment, while the rural communities use traditional methods of capitalization of food waste in the household. In the urban environment, over 95% of the municipal waste reaches the landfill, thus making it impossible to capitalize on waste of any kind, both food and non-food.Present paper seeks to provide an overview regarding the phenomenon of food waste in Romania. It also presents the conclusions resulting from interviews and questionnaires with the owners of agro-mountain boarding houses on how they manage this phenomenon with a negative impact on life and the environment. The conclusions will also present a series of measures that can contribute to reducing food waste in Romania.

Abstract ID 735 | Date: 2022-09-13 15:17 – 15:19 | Type: Poster Presentation | Place: SOWI – Garden |

Fontanella Pisa, Paola (1); Schneiderbauer, Stefan (1); Boret Penmellen, Sébastien (2)

Research Topic and Problem Statement

The increasing number of hydro-geological hazards in mountain regions worldwide is causing extended damage, posing a great challenge to community resilience. Mountain regions are particularly exposed to the adverse effects of climate change. The vulnerabilities of mountain communities to climate-related risks are further exacerbated by socio-economic and political pressures interrelated to changes in the land management systems over time. To reduce community vulnerability to these risks, the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction encourages efforts towards a holistic understanding of disaster risk and strengthening disaster governance. These Priorities for Actions benefit from transdisciplinary research for better understanding social-ecological interdependencies in relation to disaster management. Upon researchers' engagement with local actors, the process of co-creation of transformation knowledge leads to the development of ad-hoc adaptation strategies. More guidance is however still lacking on transdisciplinary methodologies that can facilitate the development of adaptation pathways through the co-creation of transformation knowledge based on complex social-ecological dynamics.

Adopted Methods

This research aims at contributing to this topic, suggesting the adoption of qualitative methods for the co-creation of transformation knowledge that can support the risk governance and enhance community resilience of two identified UNESCO Biosphere Reserves: Italian Julian Alps (Italy) and Tadami (Japan). Both sites are in mountain areas and are recognized for their exceptional biodiversity and cultural richness that has for centuries been shaping these social-ecological systems. The transdisciplinary research will adopt methods from the social sciences and humanities in collaboration with local stakeholders and communities. Longitudinal data on past events and changes in the way communities have been interacting with their environment are collected through focus groups and in-depth interviews, for the co-creation of narratives. These narratives are then analysed and translated into transformation knowledge in contribution to developing adaptation pathways.

Findings

Methodological approach and preliminary findings to this research project will be presented, showing initial results on the analysis of narratives of the studied social-ecological systems.

Abstract ID 281 | Date: 2022-09-13 15:19 – 15:21 | Type: Poster Presentation | Place: SOWI – Garden |

Gnyawali, Kaushal Raj; Tannant, Dwayne

Post-wildfire debris flows/floods originating from the 2021 wildfires areas in BC have impacted highways and railways. The Lytton Creek wildfire started on June 30, 2021, one day after Canada's highest ever temperature (49.6 °C) was recorded at Lytton, B.C. The fire destroyed the village of Lytton. Post-wildfire debris floods and flows occurred on August 16, 2021, during the first period of significant rainfall after the fire. These events affected watersheds around the First Nations village of Nicomen, located 14 km east of Lytton. The debris flows/floods also affected Highway 1 and the Canadian Pacific Railway along the Thompson River. This paper examines and compares six post-wildfire debris flow/flood events from the Lytton Creek Wildfire burnt area. The discharge capacities of culverts were, in some cases, overwhelmed, and debris flowed across the highway and railway track. Simulations were performed to analyze debris flow depths and velocities. Fieldwork conducted after the debris flows provided data to constrain and calibrate the simulations. The simulations consider rainfall hydrographs at 10-minute intervals and high-resolution digital terrain models obtained from point clouds created from lidar surveys and structure-from-motion processing of UAV aerial images. We discuss the potential use of these simulations to optimally guide low-cost mitigation measures (e.g. placement of deflection structures, retention barriers and enhancing the capacity of culverts) for areas susceptible to wildfire hazards.

Abstract ID 972 | Date: 2022-09-13 15:21 – 15:23 | Type: Poster Presentation | Place: SOWI – Garden |

Posch, Eva

Tourism is a vulnerable industry. Particularly, tourism destinations in the Global South are facing many risks. Resilience has evolved as a key concept in research, development practice and in the private sector. However, this entails a divers set of expectations and objectives for an already overloaded concept. What does resilience actually imply for a tourism destination? How can 'destination resilience' be assessed? And finally, what can be done to strengthen the resilience of a tourism destination? These questions are at the centre of a joint project of the German Committee for Disaster Reduction, futouris and the Department of Tourism Studies/ Uva Wellassa University in Sri Lanka. Building on the case of Ella in Uva Province, a popular mountain tourism destination in the central mountain range of Sri Lanka, we developed a 5-step approach to analyse and build destination resilience given the conditions that formal structures and data availability is an issue. Data needed for classical risk and resilience assessments is often not available in tourism destinations in the Global South. Thus, our analysis is based on an iterative process and a variety of participatory formats. Following the 5-step approach we analysed the tourism system, identified key risks for tourism and explored options for action to build resilience.