Ostrom pointed to an authoritative study of 100 protected forests in 14 countries, which shows that the cooperation of local people is more important to preserving these commons than whether a national government, local officials or someone else actually oversees the forests. If the people who live there feel they benefit long-term from how the forests are managed, she notes, they make sure the rules are followed. “When local groups have the right to harvest non-timber resources, they are more likely to monitor and sanction those who break the rules.”
Punjab burning
Our pal Neil Palmer was in India recently to see how the farmers there deal with the debris after the rice harvest. The result is a stunning set of pictures. My question: is anybody doing anything to suggest that maybe some of that organic matter could be retained in the soil?
Champion goat photo bound to go viral
I KNOW you wanted another photo of that prize-winning Pakistani goat.
Brainfood: Kids and veggies, Common names, Markets, Barley genetic history, Inbreeding depression
- Exclusive breastfeeding duration and later intake of vegetables in preschool children. More breastfeeding means more vegetables later on.
- Common names of species, the curious case of Capra pyrenaica and the concomitant steps towards the ‘wild-to-domestic’ transformation of a flagship species and its vernacular names. Applying the common name of a domestic species to a wild one can cause problems. Yeah but how do you get across the importance of wild relatives otherwise?
- Testing the central market hypothesis: a multivariate analysis of Tanzanian sorghum markets. Lots of fancy maths proves there are basically two sorghum markets in Tanzania. But what does that mean for diversity?
- Evolutionary history of barley cultivation in Europe revealed by genetic analysis of extant landraces. Nine geographically-based populations, which go back to the early days of the spread of agriculture. Now, tell me someone, do they correspond with the human genetic data?
- Genetic erosion impedes adaptive responses to stressful environments. Stress reduces variability, which reduces ability to respond to stress.
Don’t forget the open Mendeley group for the papers we link to here.
Nutrition boosts productivity boosts nutrition
A new study from IFPRI looks at the link between agricultural productivity and nutrient consumption in Uganda. How does nutrient intake affect productivity? And how does productivity affect nutrient intake?
Using a structural equations model (SEM), estimation results clearly reveal the bidirectional relationship between productivity and nutrient intake. Labor productivity elasticity with respect to nutrient intake varies between 0.04 for vitamin B12 and 0.01 for Iron. Our findings suggest that labor productivity increases agricultural income as one would expect. We also find that nutrient intake as well as labor productivity positively affect agricultural income in Uganda. Overall, results indicate that agricultural productivity in Uganda is likely to be enhanced if nutrients intake is significantly increased.
I think that translates roughly as “win-win”. More than that, I cannot say.