Publications

This session will discuss the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), ecological resistance in relation to nature-based solutions and the effect of nature-based solutions on human wellbeing.

Biochar application offers significant potential to enhance food security and mitigate climate change. However, most evidence stems from short-term field experiments (≤3 y), leaving uncertainty about the long-term sustainability of these benefits, especially with annual biochar additions to soils. To address this knowledge gap, we analyzed a global dataset from 438 studies (3,229 observations) and found that long-term annual biochar application (≥4 y) not only sustains but often enhances its benefits. These include improved crop yields (+10.8%), reductions in CH 4 (–13.5%) and N 2 O (–21.4%) emissions, and increased soil organic carbon content (+52.5%). In contrast, these benefits tend to diminish over time with single biochar applications due to the aging effect of biochar. Results from 29 global long-term experiments (4 to 12 y) confirm these sustained benefits for crop yield and greenhouse gas mitigation, although the magnitude of effects varies with soil properties, climate, and management practices. To maximize biochar’s long-term benefits for global food security and climate change mitigation, it is essential to develop viable strategies, such as applying biochar at intervals of several years while tailoring practices to local soil, climate, and cropping conditions.

This database contains farm data (e.g. yields) and results (indicators) from assessments with the three decision support tools in the UNISECO case studies: SMART (www.fibl.org/en/themes/smart-en.html), Cool Farm Tool (coolfarmtool.org) and COMPAS (www.thuenen.de). This version (2.0) was developed as a benchmark for the assessment of exemplary cases of how the core dilemmas of agro-ecological transitions may be overcome at farm level and as an input to the modelling at territorial level in WP4. This database was created in the course of the H2020 project UNISECO. The project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement N° 773901.

Climate controls upland habitats, soils and their associated ecosystem services; therefore, understanding possible changes in upland climatic conditions can provide a rapid assessment of climatic vulnerability over the next century. We used 3 different climatic indices that were optimised to fit the upland area classified by the EU as a Severely Disadvantaged Area (SDA) 1961–1990. Upland areas within the SDA covered all altitudinal ranges, whereas the maximum altitude of lowland areas outside of the SDA was ca. 300 m. In general, the climatic index based on the ratio between annual accumulated temperature (as a measure of growing season length) and annual precipitation predicted 96% of the SDA mapped area, which was slightly better than those indices based on annual or seasonal water deficit. Overall, all climatic indices showed that upland environments were exposed to some degree of change by 2071–2100 under UKCIP02 climate projections for high and low emissions scenarios. The projected area declined by 13 to 51% across 3 indices for the low emissions scenario and by 24 to 84% for the high emissions scenario. Mean altitude of the upland area increased by +11 to +86 m for the low scenario and +21 to +178 m for the high scenario. Low altitude areas in eastern and southern Great Britain were most vulnerable to change. These projected climatic changes are likely to affect upland habitat composition, long-term soil carbon storage and wider ecosystem service provision, although it is not yet possible to determine the rate at which this might occur.

Mathematical models, such as the DNDC (DeNitrification DeComposition) model, are powerful tools that are increasingly being used to examine the potential impacts of management and climate change in agriculture. DNDC can simulate the processes responsible for production, consumption and transport of nitrous oxide (N2O). During the last 20 years DNDC has been modified and adapted by various research groups around the world to suit specific purposes and circumstances. In this paper we review the different versions of the DNDC model including models developed for different ecosystems, e.g. Forest-DNDC, Forest-DNDC-Tropica, regionalised for different areas of the world, e.g. NZ-DNDC, UK-DNDC, modified to suit specific crops, e.g. DNDC-Rice, DNDC-CSW or modularised e.g. Mobile-DNDC, Landscape-DNDC. A ‘family tree’ and chronological history of the DNDC model is presented, outlining the main features of each version. A literature search was conducted and a survey sent out to c. 1500 model users worldwide to obtain information on the use and development of DNDC. Survey results highlight the many strengths of DNDC including the comparative ease with which the DNDC model can be used and the attractiveness of the graphical user interface. Identified weaknesses could be rectified by providing a more comprehensive user manual, version control and increasing model transparency in collaboration with the Global Research Alliance Modelling Platform (GRAMP), which has much to offer the DNDC user community in terms of promoting the use of DNDC and addressing the deficiencies in the present arrangements for the models’ stewardship.