Lead Institute
Topics

Secretariat

Steffanie Schirren
Institute of Climate-Smart Agriculture

Bundesallee 65
38116 Braunschweig
Phone: +49 531 596 2602
Fax: +49 531 596 2699
ak@thuenen.de

ARS AfricaE

Project

Setting up an eddy-covariance tower for the measurement of carbon dioxide and water vapor fluxes at a pasture site near Middelburg, Eastern Cape, Karoo, South Africa (c) Thünen-Institut/AK
Setting up an eddy-covariance tower for the measurement of carbon dioxide and water vapor fluxes at a pasture site near Middelburg, Eastern Cape, Karoo, South Africa (© Thünen-Institut/AK)

ARS AfricaE - Adaptive Resilience in Southern African Ecosystems

The ARS AfricaE project investigates the coupled carbon and water cycles of natural and disturbed savanna ecosystems by setting up a network of research clusters.

Background and Objective

Main objectives of the project are

  1. setting up a network of research clusters to investigate the effects of disturbance and land use change on water and carbon cycles as well as their interaction along an aridity gradient, l
  2. inking ecosystem functioning and structure using field measurements and models,
  3. characterizing ecosystem disturbances by functional parameters such as gross primary productivity, water use and other efficiency parameters,
  4. setting up an individual-based model system to predict ecosystem dynamics under different disturbances and land uses,
  5. linking this model with long-term data from remote sensing products, and
  6. development of sustainable strategies for ecosystem management.

Approach

ARS AfricaE is a joint research project with 3 German and 6 South African partner institutions. The Thünen Institute of Climate-Smart  Agriculture takes the overall coordination of the project. Results of the project will form better management strategies of savanna ecosystems.

Results

see final report below

Links and Downloads

www.ars-africae.org

Site selection at pasture land in the Karoo, Eastern Cape, South Africa
Site selection at pasture land in the Karoo, Eastern Cape, South Africa (© Thünen-Institut/AK)

Thünen-Contact


Involved Thünen-Partners


Involved external Thünen-Partners


Funding Body

  • Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF)
    (national, öffentlich)

Duration

8.2014 - 10.2018

More Information

Projekt type:
Project funding number: 01LL1303A
Project status: finished

Field visit during the ARS AfricaE Annual Meeting in the Karoo, Eastern Cape, South Africa
Field visit during the ARS AfricaE Annual Meeting in the Karoo, Eastern Cape, South Africa (© Thünen-Institut/AK)

Publications

hits: 1

  1. Berger C, Bieri M, Bradshaw K, Brümmer C, Clemen T, Hickler T, Kutsch WL, Lenfers UA, Martens C, Midgley GF, Mukwashi K, Odipo V, Scheiter S, Schmullius C, Baade J, du Toit JCO, Scholes RJ, Smit IPJ, Stevens N, Twine W (2019) Linking scales and disciplines: an interdisciplinary cross-scale approach to supporting climate-relevant ecosystem management. Clim Change 156(1-2):139-150, DOI:10.1007/s10584-019-02544-0
    pdf document (limited accessibility) 907 kb