TY - JOUR A1 - Spies, Michael T1 - Promises and perils of the China-Pakistan economic corridor: agriculture and export prospects in northern Pakistan JF - Eurasian Geography and Economics N2 - The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is a mega-project of primarily infrastructure-related loans and investments in Pakistan. Recently, the official discourse has increasingly shifted to the agricultural sector. For the region of Gilgit-Baltistan bordering China, academic and policy debates highlight the potential boost of fruit exports to China as the most promising opportunity to be leveraged through the CPEC. This paper scrutinizes these promises from a locally grounded perspective, investigating potential benefits and risks for local farmers. To make sense of the complex interplay between external and local actors, interests, markets and (infra)structures, the paper follows an assemblage-inspired approach to map out local trajectories. Contrary to the CPEC narrative, agricultural exports from Gilgit-Baltistan recently came to a halt, due to increasing trade barriers and seemingly competing agricultural developments in neighboring Xinjiang, China. Moreover, the economically most promising local crop for export to China, namely cherries, does not seem too promising for the majority of small farmers. There are other commodities with export potential, but overall, prospects appear to be limited. There is a need for a deeper engagement with the inherent complexities of CPEC trajectories, particularly in regards to local farming contexts in Pakistan and relevant developments in China. KW - Agricultural export KW - CPEC KW - Agrarian change KW - Mountain farming KW - Assemblage KW - Belt and Road Initiative Y1 - 2021 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:eb1-opus-2259 SN - 1938-2863 PB - Taylor & Francis ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Spies, Michael A1 - Schick, Axel A1 - Karomatov, Sharofiddin A1 - Bakokhoja, Bobozoda A1 - Zikriyokhon, Khaidarov A1 - Jobirov, Shonazar A1 - Bloch, Ralf A1 - Ibisch, Pierre L. T1 - Adapting a Participatory and Ecosystem-Based Assessment Impacted by the Pandemic: Lessons Learned With Farmers in Tajikistan JF - Frontiers in sustainable Food Systems N2 - The paper presents a systemic and participatory assessment approach and scrutinizes how methodological changes necessitated during the Covid-19 pandemic implicated the process and its outcomes. The approach was applied in rural Tajikistan to evaluate changes effected by a development project that promoted the enhancement of biodiversity and ecosystem services in agrarian landscapes. The central building block of the assessment consisted of participatory workshops in 2018 and 2020 with farmers and other stakeholders to develop a systemic knowledge map and to evaluate the promoted strategies based on local expertise. The methodological basis was MARISCO (adaptive MAnagement of vulnerability and RISk at COnservation sites), a holistic and participatory approach to ecosystem-based assessment and management that requires well-trained facilitators. While the activities in 2018 could be implemented as planned, major changes in the work plan were necessary in 2020 due to severe travel restrictions and social distancing rules. Conducting virtual workshops was not possible, as it would have excluded key stakeholders from the process. Instead of conducting a comprehensive assessment workshop guided by two German MARISCO facilitators as originally planned, a series of short and small workshops could be realized. These workshops were facilitated by Tajik scientists after receiving virtual training from their German colleagues. Although it was possible to bring the assessment to a satisfactory conclusion, the methodological changes revealed significant drawbacks. Radical simplifications of the methods were necessary that led to reduced depth of the assessment and missed learning opportunities for participants. Limited experience in workshop guidance by the new facilitators posed challenges to the participatory process and the quality of its outcomes. While the adapted method created training effects that would otherwise have been missed, it also put additional pressure on the capacities of local partners. Our experience during the pandemic offers valuable lessons learned for future applications of systemic-participatory approaches. Whereas, a complete shift to remote applications is problematic, there is a need to put greater emphasis on capacitating local partners. Methodological trade-offs are necessary for partially remote working processes, but principles of participation and systemic thinking should not be compromised. KW - Eco-system-based sustainable development KW - MARISCO KW - Participatory methods KW - Biodiversity and ecosystem service assessment KW - Sustainable agriculture KW - Tajikistan Y1 - 2021 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:eb1-opus-2263 SN - 2571-581X IS - 5 PB - Frontiers ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Spies, Michael T1 - Commercialization versus De-intensification? Markets, Livelihoods, and Agricultural Change in Northern Pakistan JF - Asien: the German journal on contemporary Asia N2 - Based on a case study in northern Pakistan, this paper investigates the complex processes of change that have reshaped local farming systems there in recent decades. In Pakistan, agricultural policies emphasize intensification and productivity growth as overarching, nationwide goals. In an empirical investigation of changing farming practices in the mountain district of Nagar, guided by an assemblage-theory perspective on agricultural change, the paper questions this lopsided view. The case study reveals a significant shift from subsistence- to market-oriented crop production in recent decades, but also an emerging tendency among farmers to invest less time and effort in sophisticated and productivity-enhancing practices — in other words, a certain de-intensification of the latter. These processes may seem contradictory, but make sense for local households who adapt their farming strategies to a changing social, political, and economic context. Following political reforms and major road improvements, new livelihood opportunities, lifestyles, and ideals have emerged in the community and contributed to a significant shift away from farming aspirations, despite a general process of agricultural commercialization. The paper concludes that processes of agricultural development cannot be adequately addressed by the narrowly defined productivity goals of related policies in Pakistan, as for smallholder farmers the maximization of production is not necessarily a priority. Instead, more holistic approaches are needed that focus on safeguarding the agricultural resource base while also supporting the aspiration of local farming households to diversify their livelihoods. KW - agrarian change KW - intensification KW - commercial crop production KW - Gilgit-Baltistan KW - Karakoram KW - assemblage theory Y1 - 2020 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:eb1-opus-2277 SN - 0721-5231 SN - 2701-8431 VL - 2020 IS - 156/157 SP - 79 EP - 101 PB - Deutsche Gesellschaft für Asienkunde ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Alff, Henryk A1 - Spies, Michael T1 - Pfadabhängigkeiten in der Bioökonomie überwinden? Landwirtschaftliche Intensivierungsprozesse aus sozial-ökologischer Perspektive JF - Peripherie: Politik, Ökonomie, Kultur N2 - Der Wandel zu einer „bio-basierten“ Wirtschaft, wie er in nationalen und internationalen Bioökonomie-Strategien propagiert wird, kann nur mit tiefgreifenden Veränderungen landwirtschaftlicher Systeme zur Steigerung der Agrarproduktion einhergehen. Besonders in Ländern des Globalen Südens gingen solche Prozesse jedoch meist mit unbeabsichtigten – oder in Kauf genommenen – negativen Konsequenzen wie Umweltdegradation oder die Verschärfung gesellschaftlicher Ungleichheiten einher. Dennoch finden die Kenntnisse über die Risiken bisheriger landwirtschaftlicher Interventionen kaum in politischen Bioökonomie-Strategien Berücksichtigung, die auf wirtschaftlich-technische Lösungen einer „nachhaltigen“ Intensivierung durch agrartechnologische Innovationen auf der einen, und eine Ausweitung von Produktionsflächen auf der anderen Seite setzen. Wie diese Produktionssteigerungen ökologisch und sozial nachhaltig gestaltet werden sollen, bleibt unklar, und bisherige Erfahrungen mit derartigen Interventionen lassen eher das Gegenteil befürchten. Anhand von zwei historischen Beispielen – der Grünen Revolution im Punjab Pakistans und der Neulandkampagne in Kasachstan – skizziert der Beitrag die vielschichtigen sozialen und ökologischen Folgen bisheriger, großangelegter landwirtschaftlicher Interventionen zur Produktionssteigerung und geht der Frage nach, inwiefern diese Erfahrungen (besser) in Bioökonomie-Strategien Berücksichtigung finden (können). Kritische Reflektion sollte dabei vor allem die Rolle institutioneller Pfadabhängigkeiten in der Gestaltung aktueller und zukünftiger Entwicklungen erfahren. Wie bisherige Erfahrungen im Landwirtschaftssektor deutlich machen, müssen Bioökonomie-Strategien ihren geforderten systemischen Ansatz ernst nehmen – was impliziert, dass technologie- und produktivitätsorientierte Ziele stets sozialen und ökologischen Zielen untergeordnet werden müssen. KW - Landwirtschaft KW - Bioökonomie-Strategien KW - Produktionssteigerung KW - Grüne Revolution KW - Neulandkampagne KW - Pakistan KW - Kasachstan Y1 - 2020 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:eb1-opus-2280 VL - 40 IS - 159/160 SP - 334 EP - 359 PB - Verlag Barbara Budrich ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Voigt, Katja A1 - Spies, Michael T1 - Female Education and Social Change: Changing Perceptions of Women's Roles in Society in the High Mountains of Northern Pakistan JF - Mountain Research and Development N2 - This article investigates the emergence of female education and its social impacts in a remote and male-dominated mountain community through a case study of Nagar District in northern Pakistan. Drawing on qualitative interviews with 24 women from different educational backgrounds and 15 selected male informants, the study reveals a notable increase in educational opportunities for girls and young women within a relatively short time span, and shows how these changes have affected local perceptions of women's social roles. While there are mixed opinions about the usefulness of education for girls—some find that educated women are better housewives and mothers, while others highlight career opportunities for women—female education has clearly contributed to an increase in self-determination of women. Young women now marry later and have fewer children, parents give their daughters more freedom, and education has contributed to an increase in female mobility and to a more confident and visible role of women in community life. While other aspects of social change also play critical roles, this study shows that female education is one important element in the development of a more equitable society in mountains and elsewhere. KW - Female education KW - Development KW - Gender inequality KW - Gilgit-Baltistan KW - Karakoram KW - Nagar District Y1 - 2020 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:eb1-opus-2294 SN - 0276-4741 VL - 2020 IS - 40(4) PB - International Mountain Society CY - Switzerland ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Werg, Jana Lorena A1 - Grothmann, Torsten A1 - Spies, Michael A1 - Mieg, Harald A. T1 - Factors for Self-Protective Behavior against Extreme Weather Events in the Philippines JF - Sustainabilty N2 - We report the results on factors for self-protective behavior against weather extremes such as extreme heat events, drought, and heavy precipitation. Our research draws on the Model of Private Proactive Adaptation to Climate Change (MPPACC). We developed a survey instrument incorporating the main aspects of the MPPACC and other factors from related research work that are assumed to explain why some people show self-protective behavior while others do not. The interview survey was conducted with a non-random sample of 210 respondents from three Philippine cities, namely Baguio, Dagupan, and Tuguegarao. The results reveal the importance of adaptation appraisal, including the perceived feasibility of self-protective measures, the perceived adaptation knowledge, and, with limitations, the perception of actions taken by neighbors or friends. We also show that perceptions of past weather trends are closely linked to risk perception but are only partly corroborated by weather station data. Implications for fostering self-protective behavior are making use of time windows right after an extreme weather event and focusing on enhancing adaptation appraisal. KW - natural hazards KW - climate change KW - perception KW - self-protective measures KW - adaptation Y1 - 2020 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:eb1-opus-2306 SN - 2071-1050 IS - 12(15) PB - MDPI ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Spies, Michael A1 - Alff, Henryk T1 - Assemblages and complex adaptive systems: A conceptual crossroads for integrative research? JF - Geography Compass N2 - In human geography and beyond, assemblage thinking has increasingly gained attention as a perspective from which to investigate the emergence and dynamics of more-than-human entanglements. Similarly, in the interdisciplinary field of social-ecological systems analysis, theories of complex adaptive systems have been employed to investigate how social and ecological dynamics and actors interact with each other on different scales. Nonetheless, despite the success of these conceptual perspectives in their respective research fields, there have been few attempts so far to bring these theoretical strands together to explore their common ground and investigate how they could cross-fertilize each other. This contribution seeks to address this gap, by investigating the ontological compatibility of these two approaches and exploring the potential for meaningful syntheses that could be utilized for integrative research—combining perspectives, approaches, and methods taken from social and environmental sciences for the analysis of human-environmental relations. Based on a comparative discussion of four selected “guiding principles” found in assemblage thinking and complex adaptive systems, namely, socio-nature, emergence/historicity, relationality, and self-organization, we find not only significant common ground between the two perspectives but also discrepancies that may be utilized for cross-fertilization. In particular, we argue complex adaptive systems would benefit from a deeper engagement with society-nature theorizations found in the assemblage literature, while assemblage thinking could borrow from complex adaptive systems to broaden its conception of how elements relate to and co-function with each other. KW - historicity KW - more-than-human social theory KW - relationality KW - social-ecological systems KW - socio-natures Y1 - 2020 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:eb1-opus-2319 SN - 1749-8198 VL - 2020 IS - 14 PB - Wiley ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Ruppert, Daniel A1 - Welp, Martin A1 - Spies, Michael A1 - Thevs, Niels T1 - Farmers’ Perceptions of Tree Shelterbelts on Agricultural Land in Rural Kyrgyzstan JF - Sustainabilty N2 - The reestablishment of agroforestry systems in Central Asia, combining crop production with protective tree shelterbelts, provides significant potential to improve farming systems. This includes increasing crop yields, additional income from timber, as well as reducing soil degradation and wind erosion. Thus, adopting shelterbelts as a form of pro-environmental behavior provides a number of socio-economic benefits, although some trade-offs need to be considered as well. This paper investigates factors that shape the perception of—and attitude towards—the establishment of tree shelterbelts by farmers in two case study regions in Kyrgyzstan. Applying a conceptual framework distinguishing between extrinsic and intrinsic factors, research methods included semi-structured interviews with farmers and local policy makers. The results show spatial differences in the perception of shelterbelts, both on the regional and on the village scale. In general, shelterbelts were negatively perceived by more than half of the farmers. The main concern raised by farmers was the shading of crops by shelterbelts, resulting in a decrease of yield. In addition, small field sizes and potential conflicts with neighbors were key concerns. Furthermore, rules set by local self-government bodies were inconsistent with the legislative framework, posing significant restrictions to the adoption of sustainable land use practices. KW - agroforestry KW - agriculture KW - Central Asia KW - adoption KW - perception KW - pro-environmental behavior Y1 - 2020 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:eb1-opus-2323 SN - 2071-1050 VL - 2020 IS - 12 PB - MDPI ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Blumröder, Jeanette Silvin A1 - Hoffmann, Monika T. A1 - Ilina, Olga A1 - Winter, Susanne A1 - Hobson, Peter R. A1 - Ibisch, Pierre L. T1 - Clearcuts and related secondary dieback undermine the ecological effectiveness of FSC certification in a boreal forest JF - Ecological Process N2 - Background: Over the last 25 years, the prominent forest certification system established by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) has used by many companies worldwide for claiming responsible forest management. The objectives of the Russian National FSC standard to decrease the size of clearcuts and the retention of forest elements such as residual seed trees need on-site validation to proof the effectiveness of FSC. To assess the ecological impacts of harvesting practices and benefits of FSC certification, we geospatially compared logging activities with and without FSC certification. Within a sample area covering approximately 3,000 km 2 in the east of the Russian Arkhangelsk Region, we used available data on tree cover loss and satellite images to assess secondary impacts of clearcuttings on adjacent remnant forests and to quantify the logging intensity. Additionally, the size and structure as well as the density of skidding trails of ten specific clearcuttings located within the sample area were surveyed using satellite images and in the field observation to delineate the boundaries of clearcuts and forested remnants within the clearcuts. Results: We found a significant increase of small-scale tree cover loss in the proximity of the clearcuts. Patchy dieback is possibly linked to the scale and intensity of logging in the surroundings. On the investigated clearcuts, FSC failed to reduce the size, to increase the retention of forest remnants including seed trees on logged areas, and to maintain larger tracts of undisturbed ground and soil compared to clearcuts that were logged before they received FSC-certification. Conclusions: Trees and forest remnants remaining inside an increasingly stressed forest ecosystem matrix may not resist further harvesting-related and climate change-induced stresses and disturbances. Large-scale clearcuttings seem to have negative impacts even in adjacent forests and undermine the ecological effectiveness of FSC certification in the study area. The Russian FSC standard is not clearly setting effective guidelines that induce a change in clearcutting practices in order to reduce ecological risks. KW - Ecological efectiveness KW - Impact assessment KW - Forest certification KW - Sustainable forestry Y1 - 2020 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:eb1-opus-2414 SN - 2192-1709 IS - 9 PB - SpringerOpen ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Blumröder, Jeanette Silvin A1 - May, Felix A1 - Härdtle, Werner A1 - Ibisch, Pierre L. T1 - Forestry contributed to warming of forest ecosystems in northern Germany during the extreme summers of 2018 and 2019 JF - Ecological Solutions and Evidence N2 - 1. Forest management influences a variety of ecosystem structures and processes relevant to meso- and microclimatic regulation, but little research has been done on how forest management can mitigate the negative effects of climate change on forest ecosystems. 2. We studied the temperature regulation capacity during the two Central European extreme summers in 2018 and 2019 in Scots pine plantations and European beech forests with different management-related structural characteristics. 3. We found that the maximum temperature was higher when more trees were cut and canopy was more open. Logging 100 trees per hectare increased maximum temperature by 0.21–0.34 K at ground level and by 0.09–0.17 K in 1.3 m above ground. Opening the forest canopy by 10% significantly increased Tmax, measured 1.3 m above ground by 0.46 K (including pine and beech stands) and 0.35 K (only pine stands). At ground level, Tmax increased by 0.53 K for the model including pine and beech stands and by 0.41 K in pure pine stands. Relative temperature cooling capacity decreased with increasing wood harvest activities, with below average values in 2018 (and 2019) when more than 656 (and 867) trees per hectare were felled. In the pine forests studied, the relative temperature buffering capacity 1.3 m above ground was lower than average values for all sample plots when canopy cover was below 82%. In both study years, mean maximum temperature measured at ground level and in 1.3 m was highest in a pine-dominated sample plots with relatively low stand volume (177 m3 ha−1) and 9 K lower in a sample plot with relatively high stock volumes of Fagus sylvatica (>565 m3 ha−1). During the hottest day in 2019, the difference in temperature peaks was more than 13 K for pine-dominated sample plots with relatively dense (72%) and low (46%) canopy cover. 4. Structural forest characteristics influenced by forest management significantly affect microclimatic conditions and therefore ecosystem vulnerability to climate change. We advocate keeping the canopy as dense as possible (at least 80%) by maintaining sufficient overgrowth and by supporting deciduous trees that provide effective shade. KW - climate change KW - forest functionality KW - regulating ecosystem services KW - cooling KW - drought events KW - forest canopy KW - temperature regulation Y1 - 2021 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:eb1-opus-1992 SN - 2688-8319 VL - 2 IS - 3 PB - Wiley ER -