CORDIS | European Commission



Project no. 18347

LUCINDA

Land care in desertification affected areas: from science towards application

Instrument: Specific Support Action (SSA)

Thematic Priority 1.1.6.3 - GLOBAL CHANGE AND ECOSYSTEMS

Final Activity Report

Period covered: from Month 00 to Month 27 Date of preparation: 2008-09-01

Start date of project: 2006-04-01 Duration: 27 Months

Project coordinator name: Maria José Roxo

Project coordinator organisation name: Universidade Nova de Lisboa – Faculdade de Ciências Sociais e Humanas (UNL-FCSH)

Revision [Final]

1. Project execution

Summary description of project objective

The overall strategic objective of LUCINDA is to promote and facilitate the dissemination, transfer, exploitation and broad take-up of past and present research programme results in the theme of combating desertification in Mediterranean Europe. LUCINDA combines the research results of a number of projects in several information and communication products, which are made available to the regional and local authorities. LUCINDA has been able to exploit and diffuse the results at a level over and above the activities of the individual projects.

In fact, during recent decades great progress has been made in understanding the nature and complex causes of land degradation and desertification in Europe. During this time the focus of research projects has changed. Initially the emphasis was on scientific research into processes and models and the results were published in scientific journals and books but it was not easy for non-scientists to extract information they could use.

Later research was targeted towards the people who were affected by desertification. Efforts were made to establish ways in which information could be assembled and presented for a more practical application. Consultation with stakeholders has resulted in decision support systems, indicator systems and other targeted reports. However there is still a wealth of research results that have not been fully exploited and have not been made accessible to those who can benefit from them.

Relatively few of the many land users, land managers, local or national administrators responsible for or interested in the sustainable management and care of the land are aware of what has been achieved in the scientific community. Sometimes local action plans that aim to combat desertification are based on old and outdated models or paradigms.

Moreover, these frequently originate from outside of Europe and are not necessarily appropriate to European conditions. Similarly, the curricula of organisations responsible for training young people in all aspects of sustainable land use and soil conservation and protection are not yet incorporating and benefiting from these research findings.

The specific objective of LUCINDA is to address this situation by:

• providing a concise and comprehensive information pack containing guidelines for sustainable land management in desertification-affected areas derived from the scientific results of past and on-going EU research projects;

• making this information available to regional and local authorities who, through national participation in the UNCCD, have a specific mandate to combat desertification.

LUCINDA information and communication products are to be user-friendly, avoid jargon, and provide recommendations for actions. They will be more widely distributed than the original project-specific publications and reports bringing together, in an integrated manner, information from the different projects in a coherent format, based on a coherent strategy.

Contractors involved

|Organisation / Contact |Country |

|Universidade Nova de Lisboa: Faculdade de Ciências Sociais e Humanas – UNL-FCSH - Departamento de Geografia e|PT |

|Planeamento Regional – Profª Maria José Roxo - mj.roxo@iol.pt | |

|Stichting Voor Duurzame Ontwikkeling – FSD: Prof. Anton Imeson – anton.imeson@ |NL |

|Agricultural University of Athens – AUA ; Prof. Costas Kosmas – lsos2kok@aua.gr |GR |

|University Degli Studi Della Basilicata – UNIBAS-DITEC; Prof . Giovanni Quaranta - quaranta@unibas.it |IT |

|Fundación Centro de Estudios Ambientales del Mediterráneo – CEAM - Prof. Ramon Vallejo - ramonv@ceam.es |SP |

|COFAC – Universidade Lusófona de Humanidades e Tecnologias – COFAC-CICANT; Prof. Manuel Damásio – |PT |

|mjdamasio@ulusofona.pt | |

Work performed and end results, elaborating on the degree to which the objectives were reached

Each author will draw on the results of past and on-going projects to provide the state of the art review of each issue and make recommendations for the management of desertification-affected areas.

Names of the expert authors and the principal projects whose results were used in Project LUCINDA

|Desertification themes (Series A) |

|A1 |General introduction to land degradation and |Imeson |MEDALUS, DESERTLINKS |

| |desertification | | |

|A2 |Desertification indicators: what they are and how |Brandt and |MEDALUS III, DESERTLINKS |

| |they can be used |Geeson | |

|A3 |Remote sensing techniques for monitoring |Hill |LADAMER, GEORANGE, DEMON-II |

| |desertification | | |

|A4 |Warning Society about Desertification |Roxo |DESERTLINKS |

|A5 |Public policies: responding to the challenge of |Briassoulis |MEDACTION |

| |combating desertification | | |

|A6 |European policy and desertification: evidence from |Wilson |MEDACTION, FAIR 1CT95-0274 |

| |the local scale | | |

|A7 |Regional And National Action Programmes In Unccd |Enne |MEDRAP, AID-CCD |

| |Annex IV | | |

|Desertification Processes (Series B) |

|B1 |Soil erosion |Imeson |SCAPE, MEDALUS, COST 623, MWISED |

|B2 |Fire |Vallejo |GEORANGE, REDMED |

|B3 |Salinisation |Iannetta |RIADE |

|B4 |Land abandonment |Kosmas |DESERTLINKS. MEDALUS, TERON |

|B5 |Water use |Karavitis |ARID CLUSTER, AQUADAPT, WATERSTRATEGYMAN, MEDIS|

|B6 |Littoralisation |Zdruli |MEDCOASTLAND |

|B7 |Climate change |Goodess |MEDALUS I, II, III |

|Desertification-affected landscapes (Series C) |

|C1 |Forests and natural landscapes |Rojo Serrano and |DESERTLINKS, GEORANGE, MEDALUS II AND III, |

| | |Vallejo |MEDAFOR, REDMED, REACTION |

|C2 |Traditional and new soil conservation and |Kosmas |MEDALUS, TERON, HYPRES |

| |cultivation structures | | |

|C3 |Intensive agricultural production using irrigation |Garcia Gomez and |DESERTLINKS, MEDALUS III |

| | |López Bermúdez | |

|C4 |Dry agriculture |Quaranta |DESERTLINKS |

|C5 |Grazing lands and pastoral landscapes |Papanastasis |GEORANGE, MEDIMONT, LAND USE |

|DVD |

|D1 |500 DVDs including booklets, leaflets, PowerPoint |CICANT | |

| |presentations, photos, film clips, in 5 languages. | | |

SERIES A: DESERTIFICATION THEMES

An overview of the major themes related to understanding, monitoring and combating Desertification

|General introduction to land degradation and desertification (A. Imeson) |

|The objective of this book is to provide an overview of the nature and extent of desertification in Europe. It considers why it is|

|necessary and urgent to tackle desertification, the cost of desertification to society, how it affects people's lives and the |

|danger of doing nothing. It explains how desertification is linked to climate change and biodiversity and how it is a threat to |

|sustainable land management. It describes ongoing and past research by the EU and highlight policy relevant results. It considers |

|the actions being proposed to tackle desertification as part of the European Soil Strategy, and Water and other directives. It |

|also considers the relation to global and local energy, socio-economic and other changes and systematizes the golden rules for |

|combating desertification, according to the knowledge and tools distilled from European research. |

|A2. Desertification indicators: what they are and how they can be used (J. Brandt and N. Geeson) |

|Information on the status and risk of all aspects of desertification is summarised by using different types of desertification |

|indicators. Indicators can be used for making comparisons between different areas; for monitoring trends in desertification and |

|for setting management goals and evaluating the effectiveness of control measures in reducing desertification. This booklet |

|explains the different needs for indicators in Europe with reference to describing desertification risk in environmentally |

|sensitive areas. Using results and conclusions from recent European research the development, structuring and application of |

|desertification indicators in target areas is demonstrated. Progress made towards defining threshold values of indicators and |

|evaluating the DESERTLINKS Indicator System (DIS4ME) are discussed. |

|A3. Remote Sensing Techniques for Monitoring Desertification (J. Hill) |

|Once the existence or threat of desertification has been identified it is necessary to monitor improvement or deterioration on a |

|regular basis. Establishing the capacity to monitor desertification has for a long time been a priority of European research and |

|during the last decade considerable advances have been made in our ability to monitor desertification using new remote sensing |

|opportunities. This booklet presents and explains the current state of the art, explaining how advances in technology have |

|improved the ability to monitor, for example, the impact of fire, land use, grazing and climate change. It describes the lessons |

|learned and explains the new research being planned. Comparisons with remote sensing methods and results in other regions help to |

|show how the global perspective on desertification, climate change and biodiversity is changing. |

|A4. Warning Society about Desertification (M. Roxo) |

|Combating desertification is best achieved by mobilising the effort of everyone with an interest in the issue, from a number of |

|perspectives. This is essential to involve all stakeholders, from the level of the European and National Parliaments to that of |

|local communities and individuals. This booklet presents and explains the findings of European Research projects and demonstrates,|

|with examples, successful awareness raising strategies and methods. It extracts from these the golden rules and principles that |

|this European research has demonstrated and enables the reader to understand how these can be applied in different settings and to|

|identify and obtain the information and knowledge needed for his own aims. |

|A5. Public policies: responding to the challenge of combating desertification (H. Briassoulis) |

|Among the many factors that contribute to desertification in contemporary times, public policies figure prominently because they |

|induce processes of land and resource use change that, under adverse bio-climatic (arid, semi-arid and sub-humid) conditions in |

|particular regions, deplete land resources and reduce their carrying and productive capacity. Economic, social and environmental |

|public policies affect directly or indirectly the biophysical and the socio-economic determinants of land use change as well as |

|the decision making of land users as regards the use of land resources (soil, water, etc.). Public policies can be used to |

|mitigate several of the unwanted effects of land use change that may lead to desertification. This booklet indicates the most |

|important policies implicated in this context and will negotiate the complexity of policy making for combating desertification. It|

|presents EU policy efforts directly or indirectly contributing to the mitigation of desertification in sensitive EU regions. It |

|suggests principles and alternative approaches for policy design at the EU and the member state level, placing particular emphasis|

|on policy structures (policy actor networks) and policy instruments that may help introduce desertification concerns into public |

|policies. |

|A6. European policy and desertification: evidence from the local scale (G. Wilson) |

|Policy acts both as driver and potential solution for desertification in affected areas. Agricultural policy under the CAP emerges|

|as a key driver for land use change (especially encouraging intensification), with potentially disastrous repercussions for |

|sustainable management of areas already severely affected by desertification. Positive trends are also apparent, especially where |

|conservation and environmental policies have operated in conjunction with strengthened actor networks. At EU level, this booklet |

|strengthens the argument for a holistic and integrated desertification policy package that directly addresses desertification |

|problems in Southern Europe through applied policy solutions. End users at the EU level are able to use results to both strengthen|

|the case for a further dismantling of CAP subsidies and to call for a unified and holistic EU desertification policy. Additionally|

|local stakeholders are also able to use results to lobby regional and national decision-makers to better target existing and |

|future policies at desertification-related issues, while also providing financial packages that are not aimed at further |

|agricultural intensification but that financially reward sustainable management of desertification-affected areas. |

|A7. Regional And National Action Programmes In Unccd Annex IV (G. Enne, C. Zanolla, V. Petrucci, C. Caria, C. Zucca) |

|As part of their commitment to the UNCCD, the affected countries have planned National Action Programmes to combat desertification|

|in a practical manner. They have begun by defining national priorities and some of them also used pilot areas, such as Portugal. |

|This booklet shows how the different countries are trying to coordinate efforts and to define common priorities to tackle |

|desertification, and give examples of projects and achievements. It also describes common actions and initiatives, along with the |

|lessons learned and future goals. |

SERIES B: DESERTIFICATION PROCESSES

A synthesis of the state of the art knowledge about desertification processes in Mediterranean environments including, where appropriate, recommendations for management or mitigation.

|B1. Soil erosion (A. Imeson and M. Curfs) |

|Soil erosion has been identified in the European Soil Strategy as a major threat. This booklet focuses on measures to combat |

|desertification by protecting the soil from erosion and examining the relationship between erosion and desertification. It draws |

|upon the results of European research projects, (such as SCAPE and DESERTLINKS) to provide a state-of-the-art synthesis of both |

|soil erosion process and methods of soil conservation and protection. European research has led to the formulation of new |

|strategies and methods for preventing and controlling erosion. |

|B2. Fire (R. Vallejo and A. Valdecantos) |

|This booklet presents a state-of-the-art review of all aspects of wildfires that are linked to desertification. It looks at the |

|different settings in which fire occurs: the use of fire by herders to improve grazing, the effects of fire in different types of |

|shrub land, and fires in native forest ecosystems or in plantations of exotic trees. The specific problems of the rural-urban |

|interface are examined. European research has contributed to a better understanding of the impact of fire and how it should be |

|managed to reduce the risk of desertification. Development of criteria to identify vulnerable ecosystems with respect to forest |

|fires and setting mitigation priorities and strategies are described. Strategies and practices for reducing fire-induced |

|desertification are also presented. |

|B3. Salinisation (M. Iannetta and N. Colonna) |

|This booklet explains the nature and extent of salinisation in Europe, and how it can be either a cause or an effect of |

|desertification. It presents and explains the setting of salinity problems found in Europe. These range from those that sometimes |

|occur seasonally in areas of high evaporation where large amounts of water soluble salts are found in the soil, to those that |

|occur as a result of the evaporation of irrigation water or the intrusion of saline groundwater. Salt affects soil properties, |

|plant growth, soil erosion and consequently desertification. Hotspots of salinisation tend to correspond with areas of intensive |

|agriculture in southern Europe. The results of research in Europe are described and translated into management strategies. |

|B4. Land abandonment (C. Kosmas, N. Yassoglou, K. Kounalaki, O. Kairis) |

|Large areas of “marginal” or relatively remote land in Europe have been recently abandoned as young people in particular have left|

|the land to seek their livelihoods elsewhere. Furthermore, hilly areas with soils on Tertiary and Quaternary formations usually |

|have limiting subsurface layers, such as bedrock, and under high erosion rates and hot and dry climatic conditions, cannot |

|economically support rainfed crops, leading to land abandonment and desertification. This booklet describes the causes of land |

|abandonment, and explains the problems, particularly in areas with agricultural terraces. It illustrates how land and soil are |

|affected by abandonment and the impact that this has on hydrology and vegetation. In addition, many marginal hilly areas are |

|cultivated today only for various socio-economical reasons and become subjected to high erosion rates. Protection measures, such |

|as maintenance of adequate vegetation cover, are essential. Strategies for reducing soil erosion and combating desertification |

|when agricultural land is abandoned and falls into disuse are analysed. For land that has already been abandoned recommendations |

|for sustainable management are made. |

|B5. Water use (C. Karavitis) |

|Water resources management requires urgent and holistic decisions to be made with regard to such problems as increasing water |

|demands by various users; changes in the physical environment (desertification, aridity, etc.) alteration of the water balance; |

|and the generation of pollutants that may contaminate streams and groundwater. One of the major consequences of desertification is|

|that water availability decreases but it is very difficult to separate shortages resulting from increased water demand from those |

|caused, for example, by soil erosion and degradation. This booklet presents the results of European research that illustrate the |

|changes that have occurred in both water resource availability and water demands. The European Water Framework Directive was set |

|up to protect the quantity and quality of surface and ground water, introduce water pricing policies, integrate watershed |

|management, and strengthen public participation. The implications of combining physical, economic and social strategies are |

|analysed. |

|B6. Littoralisation (P. Zdruli) |

|Today almost the entire coastline of mainland southern Europe has been in some way developed for tourism, irrigated agriculture or|

|industry. People are continually being attracted to developing coastal areas where living conditions are considered to be more |

|fulfilling. Littoralisation is a driver of desertification partly because labour and capital are lost from the hinterland where |

|non-intensive agriculture can no longer generate the capital needed to meet second millennium aspirations. This booklet documents |

|the process of littoralisation that occurred during the last century and explains how it is related to desertification through |

|competition for resources. European research is reviewed and policies for protecting coastal areas evaluated. Recommendations and |

|rules for managing or discouraging littoralisation are given and illustrated. |

|B7. Climate change (C. Goodess) |

|This book describes and explains how climate change is affecting desertification in Europe. It explains the basic processes |

|underlying the inter-relationships that exist between climate and desertification. It illustrates recent changes in the observed |

|trends in the climate of the Mediterranean and describes those now being predicted. It also discusses trends in extreme events |

|heat (temperature) droughts and rainfall that could be triggers of desertification including a consideration of aridity. The key |

|results of (selected) European research projects are presented. How is desertification affecting climate change? Is there any |

|evidence of feedbacks between land use change and climate? Are there local actions that can be taken that could reduce the impact |

|of desertification, for example by influencing the albedo, roughness or the latent heat effect (evaporative cooling)? Are there |

|hot spots where specific actions are needed? These are some of the questions that are explored and answered on this booklet. |

SERIES C: MEDITERRANEAN DESERTIFICATION LANDSCAPES

The word “landscape” is used to encapsulate all the physical, social and economic elements and processes of a particular environment.

|C1. Forests and natural landscapes (L. Serrano, R. Vallejo and A. Valdecantos) |

|Both natural Mediterranean type forests and forestry plantations are abundant in the Mediterranean and they provide characteristic|

|landscapes. These include areas of mattoral, and garrigue that have co-evolved with man under the influence of fire and grazing. |

|This booklet briefly reviews the different types of forest landscapes and show how they are in different ways related to or |

|affected by desertification. It shows how trees can improve land and soil quality, but also how this depends on climate and |

|management and how some severely degraded natural landscapes host important biodiversity to protect. Highlights from the many |

|European projects that included research on forests in relation to desertification are also discussed. Contrasted case studies are|

|used and thoroughly illustrated. Conclusions and rules for using trees for combating desertification are also presented. |

|C2. Traditional and new soil conservation and cultivation structures. (C. Kosmas, |

|N. Yassoglou, K. Kounalaki, O. Kairis) |

|The technology of constructing terraces in order to improve cultivation or even make it possible at all is ancient, and nearly all|

|sloping lands in southern Europe have been affected in some way by ancient or modern terrace construction. This booklet looks at |

|all aspects of cultivation using terraces and similar structures and explains both the advantages and disadvantages. Case studies |

|illustrate the different types of characteristic terraced environment, demonstrating how, as far as agriculture is concerned, |

|these structures can protect soils as a form of capital. On the other hand, if the structures are not actively maintained they can|

|be a time-bomb waiting to erode, particularly as the result of storm events. The negative impacts of terrace construction, e.g. |

|using heavy road building equipments, as occurs in many places will be discussed, since modern terrace construction is in itself a|

|frequent cause of flooding and catastrophic soil loss. Rules and guidelines for soil protection using terraces and other |

|structures are described. |

|C3. Intensive agricultural production using irrigation (F. López-Bermúdez and J. Gomez) |

|The expansion of intensive agricultural production using irrigation can be both a source of wealth and of widespread concern |

|regarding sustainable land use and desertification. The potentially negative environmental impacts of this type of land use on a |

|number of other economic and ecological functions have been analysed. These include the depletion of groundwater resources, the |

|partial or temporary disappearance of lakes, wetlands and rivers, seawater intrusion in coastal areas and salinisation and soil |

|contamination. There has been a recent trend for this type of agriculture to expand from the traditional areas of irrigation, for |

|example along river flood plains, to former areas of dryland farming. This booklet illustrates the impact of intensive irrigated |

|farming but also explain the principles and practises that can be applied to the management of irrigated areas. Research results |

|are used to underpin the development of management guidelines and indicators that can play a role in preventing the |

|overexploitation of aquifers, soil contamination and salinisation. Strategies of restoration are outlined and golden rules for |

|managing intensively irrigated areas are proposed. |

|C4. Dry agriculture (G. Quaranta) |

|Dry farming is the most widespread landscape within Mediterranean Europe and land used for this kind of agriculture is extremely |

|sensitive to the land management measures taken by farmers. In this context agricultural practices are particularly important |

|because they strongly influence the rate of erosion and degradation processes, leading to desertification. This booklet looks at |

|all aspects of dry farming issues (environment, socio-economics, institutions and policies), then it describes and analyses, |

|through case studies, the best agricultural practices. The economic and environmental interrelationships are discussed together |

|with the structure of the agricultural sector that influences the patterns of adoption of practices. This investigation gives wide|

|support to the regional compliance guidelines, related to dry farming, for the CAP (Annex IV- EC Regulation no 1782/03) and to the|

|implementation of WFD (EC Directive 2000/60). |

|C5. Grazing Lands and Pastoral Landscapes (V. Papanastasis) |

|A large part of Mediterranean marginal and mountain lands are used for grazing by domestic animals resulting in characteristic |

|pastoral landscapes. These landscapes may include natural grasslands, dwarf and tall shrub lands and open forests (including |

|montado and dehesa), the latter also known as silvo-pastoral systems. Most of them are highly degraded due to the habits of |

|livestock and are characterised by low biodiversity and accelerated soil erosion. The booklet describes all these landscapes and |

|how livestock grazing is causing their degradation. In addition, the socio-economic factors involved and the national and European|

|policies behind their degradation are presented. Finally, measures and management guidelines to restore their productivity on a |

|sustained basis are also proposed. |

Description of the methodologies and approaches employed and relation to the achievements of the project and state-of-the-art

A wide range of important results from 28 Research Projects addressing Mediterranean desertification and land degradation was analyzed and synthesized by expert authors. Research results from the projects listed below were explicitly exploited. Many are building on or developed from projects in earlier framework programmes. A communication specialist designed the layout and appearance of the products included in the pack and web site.

Research results exploited (listed in order of start date)

|Project acronym |Dates |Programme acronym |Framework Programme |

|AID-CCD |2003-2006 |EESD |FP5 |

|ARID CLUSTER |2003-2006 |EESD |FP5 |

|REACTION |2003-2005 |EESD |FP5 |

|OLIVERO |2003-2005 |Life Quality |FP5 |

|RIADE |2002-2006 | |Italian National Program of Research, Technological |

| | | |Development and High Level Training |

|MEDCOASTLAND-NET |2002-2006 |INCO 2 |FP5 |

|MEDIS |2002-2006 |EESD |FP5 |

|LADAMER |2002-2005 |EESD |FP5 |

|SCAPE |2002-2005 |EESD |FP5 |

|WATERSTRATEGYMAN |2002-2005 |EESD |FP5 |

|AQUADAPT |2002-2005 |EESD |FP5 |

|DESERTLINKS |2001-2004 |EESD |FP5 |

|GEORANGE |2001-2004 |EESD |FP5 |

|MEDACTION |2001-2004 |EESD |FP5 |

|MEDRAP |2001-2004 |EESD |FP5 |

|COST 623 |1998-2003 |INCO 2 |FP5 |

|MWISED |1998-2001 |ENV 2C |FP4 |

|REDMED |1998-2001 |ENV 2C |FP4 |

|TERON |1997-2000 |FAIR |FP4 |

|MEDAFOR |1997-2000 |ENV 2C |FP4 |

|MEDALUS III |1996-1999 |ENV 2C |FP4 |

|FAIR ICT95-0274 |1996-1999 |FAIR |FP4 |

|DEMON-II |1996-1998 |ENV 2C |FP4 |

|LAND USE |1995-1998 |AIR |FP3 |

|HYPRES |1995-1998 |HCM |FP3 |

|MEDALUS II |1993-1995 |ENV 1C |FP3 |

|MEDIMONT |1992-1995 |PECO/COPERNICUS |International Cooperation |

|MEDALUS I |1991-1992 |EPOCH |FP2 |

LUCINDA has gather and summarise (in a simple, scientific, useful and organised way) the most up to date knowledge about processes and mechanisms that lead to land degradation and desertification, and produced guidelines for mitigation actions and measures.

By combining the research results of a number of projects in a single information pack, for distribution through an extensive and already established network of stakeholders, LUCINDA has been able to exploit and diffuse a vast amount of research results at a level far over and above the activities of the individual projects.

The collaboration with the UNCCD Annex IV National and Local Focal Points has been reinforced thus promoting stronger links between desertification R&D and stakeholders in target areas of Annex IV Countries, and promoting and facilitating the dissemination and transfer of scientific knowledge into Regional and Local Action Plans to Combat Desertification.

Dissemination of the information pack in five languages (EN; PT; IT; IT; GK) allows a more effective public awareness about land degradation processes and the need for land care actions that can effectively conserve soil and water resources.

From the methodological point of view, LUCINDA has addressed desertification and land degradation in an innovative and systematic manner, by:

• Providing information and guidelines on the key issues of Mediterranean desertification; thereby assisting the stakeholders to develop strategies for land management in areas relevant to the UN Convention to Combat Desertification.

• Drawing on results from a wide spatial spread of study areas, thereby promoting tangible management strategies and illustrations of best practices and control measures.

• Addressing key themes such as raising public awareness of desertification, the challenge of combating desertification using public policies and other national and international commitments to combat desertification; thereby providing improved guidelines for the protection of land with a long-term perspective.

• Disseminating the information pack in digital formats through the world-wide web and by means of a DVD, and actively distribute it through the UNCCD Focal Points in Annex IV and other Annexes of the Convention, thereby promoting international co-operation with worldwide regions affected by desertification.

Key issues in Mediterranean desertification addressed in the information pack.

Desertification themes:

• General introduction to land degradation and desertification;

• Desertification indicators: what they are and how they can be used

• Remote sensing techniques for monitoring desertification;

• Warning society about desertification;

• Public policies: responding to the challenge of combating desertification;

• European policy and desertification: evidence from the local scale;

• Regional and national action programmes in UNCCD Annex IV

Desertification Processes:

• Soil erosion;

• Fire;

• Salinisation;

• Land abandonment;

• Water use;

• Littoralisation;

• Climate change.

Desertification-affected landscapes:

• Forests and natural landscapes;

• Traditional and new soil conservation and cultivation structures;

• Intensive agricultural production using irrigation;

• Dry agriculture;

• Grazing lands and pastoral landscapes.

The organizational and decision making structure set for the development of the project has contributed largely for the results obtained and the final products of the project are of great importance to raise social awareness of desertification and inform the public in general about natural resources rational management and particularly about the issues related to desertification themes, processes and affected landscapes among communities at different levels.

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Another important management aspect is the organization of the project’s work plan through the definition of different implementation phases for the development of the work packages and the organization of the different inter-related tasks.

The work plan is in three phases: initiation (development and clarification of the design and contents of the information pack); implementation (writing and producing the booklets, leaflets, PowerPoint presentations and making them available on the website and on DVD) and dissemination (distributing the information pack to stakeholders within and outside Europe). The initiation phase has culminated in a plan for all the products, including templates for booklets, leaflets and PowerPoint presentations, and preliminary designs for the website and DVD contents. The implementation and production phase ended in month 27 with all products available for dissemination. The dissemination phase has begun as soon as some products were ready and proceeded down to month 27 and will continue afterwards through the web and by means of other activities of all the people involved in LUCINDA, both participants and expert authors. Within these phases the activity was further broken down into nine work packages (see diagram).

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Explain the impact of the project in the research sector.

Include diagrams or photos illustrating the work of the project, a project logo and a reference to the project website

Logo

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Website

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Three examples of the front cover of one Booklet, one Leaflet, and one Powerpoint presentation were selected to include in this report as examples.

Booklet,

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Leaflet

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Powerpoint presentation

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2. Dissemination and use

The LUCINDA website is to be the best tool for the dissemination of results deriving from the Project it self and from other correlated projects addressing desertification, where participants and expert authors participate or have participated.

In addition, the distribution of the 500 DVD’s, which is one of the most important and comprehensive deliverables of LUCINDA, will also guarantee a focused distribution through the selected institutions of LUCINDA Network of institutional and individual stakeholders and communication channels.

At the end of this report, a complete list of all the events where the participants have presented the project, and disseminated its results.

Compatible products for specific audiences

The use and dissemination of LUCINDA’s products and information is done by means of compatible products that are developed for specific audiences

The main audiences are the regional and local authorities, those who are be responsible for local action plans regarding desertification. These groups include policy makers and technicians, and there is a list of identified organisations for each country described below. There are also summary leaflets that can be distributed to farmers, colleges, schools, etc. all advertising the LUCINDA website for further information.

The list of contacts has been provided by project partners who have been working with stakeholders for many years. The range of needs of these groups was explored and addressed by the LUCINDA products.

The products (booklets, leaflets, website, 500 DVDs) target mainly the policy makers and technicians, and are planned to give sufficient information to help in decision-making. The products are also of interest to farmers’ organisations, enquiring individual farmers, teachers and students. The products are produced in five languages: Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, Greek and English. The objective is to disseminate the results of former EU desertification projects, by describing the most important findings in terms of guidelines for policy makers, in non-technical language.

In the future, the booklets, and leaflets may be reproduced in hard copy by the EU Publications Office after, but the internet plays the key role in disseminating the information pack, in electronic format. The full information pack of booklets, leaflets, PowerPoint presentations, photographs, and film clips can be directly downloadable from the LUCINDA web site and are also freely distributed on DVDs. The PowerPoint presentations highlight desertification issues for educational training purposes.

Links to the site will also be available from related organisations and projects such as the UNCCD and FAO, CLEMDES, DISMED, DESERTNET, the EU-MEDIN portal and also from the sites of the individual National Committees. The 500 DVDs will be distributed directly to the target audience groups identified in each country, to the Focal Points of each country, to participants at conferences and international meetings, and from demonstration desertification field sites.

Following the work of past projects (especially DESERTLINKS and MEDRAP) there exist known networks of stakeholders, at both the national and local level, in Spain, Portugal, Italy and Greece who are already accustomed to attending workshops on desertification themes. The LUCINDA products have been tested and advertised through the networks of stakeholders. The existence of the LUCINDA website, and the availability of the products for downloading, has also been advertised electronically throughout administrative, scientific and educational email and website networks.

Being the main objective of the LUCINDA project to raise public awareness of desertification issues this is has been done by translating the results of European science into products that will help those involved in local action programmes to combat desertification to formulate policies and educate land users. To this end the target audience (to whom the LUCINDA products are distributed) has been identified at national, regional and local levels: in the research community, in the media, in the civil society, in SMEs, in farmers’ associations, etc. LUCINDA products have been also advertised and distributed from a number of demonstration desertification field sites.

In Portugal the distribution network include:

Administration: (National level) Portuguese UNCCD Focal Point Direcção Geral de Florestas; Ministério da Agricultura, do Desenvolvimento Rural e das Pescas; Ministério das Cidades, Ordenamento do Território Europe Ambiente; Instituto de Conservação da Natureza – Parque Natural do Vale do Guadiana; Instituto da Água. (Regional level) Direcção Regional de Agricultura do Alentejo; Comissão de Coordenação e Desenvolvimento Regional do Alentejo; Associação de Municípios da Margem Esquerda do Guadiana. (Local level) Câmaras Municipais da NUTS III.

Research community: Universidade Nova de Lisboa; Universidade de Évora; Escola Superior Agrária de Serpa

Media (Regional and local) Diário do Alentejo; Noticias do Alentejo; Jornal do Baixo Guadiana; Imenso Sul Magazine, Rádio Castrense (local radio station)

Civil society (NGOs) Associação de Defesa do Património de Mértola; Associação de Desenvolvimento Local Raia do Chanca; Rota do Guadiana. (Farmers Associations) ACOS; Associação de Agricultores de Serpa; Cooperativa do Guadiana. Businesses. Teachers and Students. Local residents.

SMEs – Several agri-business enterprises are interested: fertilizers, cheese, olive oil, cork, etc.

In Spain the distribution network include:

Institutional National level: Spanish Focal Point Team for UNCCD, including Spanish responsible for the development of Spanish NAP to combat Desertification. Dirección General para la Biodiversidad . Ministry of Environment; Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Dirección General del Agua, Ministry of Environment and Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas

Institutional Regional level: Technical services of the Agricultural and Forest Administration the 17 Autonomous Regions (50 provincial offices)

Institutional Local level: Technical Offices of the Municipalities included in the Risk 4 (maximum) of desertification according to the NAP-S (Estimated over 500 municipalities) Research community: Ministry of Science and Technology, Universities located in provinces with territory with Risk 3 or 4. Estimated 20 Universities.

Private sector: Companies, foundations, professionals organisations and individuals included in the Record of Private Sector Linked to Desertification contained in the Spanish National Action Programme to Combat Desertification.

In Italy the distribution network include the National Committee, Regional Environmental Protection Agencies, Authorities of Basin, Farmers associations, Media, NGOs, National Union of Mountains Territories, National Parks, Local stakeholders. More specifically:

SMEs (Agribusiness System) Aziende Agricole Di Persia; Azienda Agricola Acinapura; Consorzio Agrario Regionale –CAR Lucania; Vivai Cupo, Azienda Agrituristica Le Taverne.

Administration: (National level) National Committee to Combat Desertification and Drought, Italian UNCCD Focal Point. (Regional level) Assessorato regionale all’ambiente e al Territorio, Assessorato regionale all’agricoltura, Assessorato regionale alle attività produttive, Autorità di Bacino, Agenzia regionale per la Protezione dell’ambiente, Local Committee to combat desertification and drought -LCCDD, Camera di Commercio, Industria, Artigianato e Agricoltura.

Research community: Dipartimento Tecnico-Economico per la Gestione del territorio Agricolo-Forestale, Università degli studi della Basilicata (DITEC-UNIBAS); MEDES Osservatorio Mediterraneo per lo Studio dei problemi economici delle aree a rischio di desertificazione, Scuole di Agricoltura locali.

Media (National, regional and local newspapers) La nuova Basilicata; La Gazzetta del Mezzogiorno, Il Quotidiano; (TV network) RAI3.

Civil society (NGOs) WWF- Basilicata, SOS-Lucania (Farmers Associations) Associazione Giovani Imprenditori Agricoli –AGIA, Confederazione Italiana Agricoltori, Confagricoltura, Coldiretti, Confcooperative. Unione Nazionale Comuni ed enti Montani –UNCEM, Teachers and Students. Local residents and community representatives.

In Greece the distribution network include public administration, farmers’ associations, individual farmers and the scientific community. Specifically:

Administration authorities: Greek Ministry of Agriculture Development and Food, Ministry of Environment, Physical Planning, and Public Works, Ministry of Development, Ministry of the Aegean, Greek National Committee for Combating Desertification; Prefectural Authorities, Regional Development Authorities of the 13 Greek regions, municipalities (prioritizing those in desertification-affected regions),

Farmer’s association: Panhellenic Association of Greek Cooperatives, Elaiourgiki Farmers’ Associations of Olive Products, Farmers’ Association of Vines of Thiva, local farmer’s associations such as: Antissa (Lesvos), Kaloni (Lesvos), Astros Kinourias (Peloponnesus), and other rural regions, individual farmers in desertification-sensitive areas such as: Thessaly region, Thiva, Crete, etc.

Research community: All 18 Universities of Greece, Institute of Subtropical Plants and Olive Trees of Chania (ISPOT), Institute of Soil Survey and Classification of Larissa, Institute of Tobacco (Agrinio), Institute of Forest Research (Athens), National Research Foundation, Social Science Research Center.

Demonstration desertification field sites

There are some demonstration field sites associated with desertification where local stakeholders have advertised the LUCINDA website and will distribute LUCINDA products including DVDs.

Sites in the Valencia region, Spain where local stakeholders have collected experience and data include:

• Albatera (Alicante province). Pilot project wildland restoration to Combat Desertification. Contact person: Miguel Garcia-Bartual, Forest Manager, Alicante Forest Administration.

• Ayora (Valencia province). Field plots for fuel management and reforestation, to reduce fire hazards and to improve forest ecosystem biodiversity. Contact person: Jorge Suárez, Forest Manager, Fire Prevention Unit, Regional Forest Administration.

At Picarcho, Cieza, (Murcia), Spain, there is a Pilot project to combat desertification under a semiarid climate. The contact person: Jose Antonio Martinez Artero, Forest Manager, Murcia Office of the Ministry of Environment.

In the Agri basin, Italy, Aziende Agricole Di Persia is a private farm of about 400 hectares where desertification mitigation measures have been implemented for the last 6 years.

In Portugal the Vale Formoso Erosion Centre – Herdade de vale Formoso, is owned by the State. This is a demonstration site visited by many schools and technicians where experiments on controlling soil erosion and soil conservation have been carried out over many years. Also, due the collaboration of Câmara Municipal de Mértola and Associação de de Defesa do Património de Mértola, the experimental farm – Herdade do Monte do Vento is being accounted.

Dissemination to other non-European Mediterranean countries

The availability of the LUCINDA products, downloadable from the LUCINDA website in English, Portuguese, Spanish, Italian and Greek will make them of interest beyond Europe wherever similar climate and land use conditions prevail.

However, since the LUCINDA products are based on the experience of past European projects on desertification, they are primarily targeted at a European audience with a European history of land use and socio-economic changes.

LUCINDA products have been already presented in a large number of international conferences and meetings, and it is envisaged that it will be so in many more, especially in association with the UNCCD.

Dissemination activities during the project

Below, there are some of the dissemination activities were developed by the Project participants along the full duration of the Project.

The LUCINDA products have been already advertised by the participant 1 – UNL-FCSH in several conferences and meetings:

• “Desertificação e Desenvolvimento”, Jornadas de “Desertificação e Despovoamento”, Universidade Lusófona de Humanidades e Tecnologias, 20 e 21 de Novembro

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• “Como Encarar a Desertificação”, Seminário “Desertificação uma Perspectiva Multidisciplinar”, Sociedade de Geografia de Lisboa, Lisboa, 14 de Junho

• “Adaptação e Mitigação o Desafio do Futuro”, Fórum “Alterações Climáticas”, Departamento de Engenharia Geofísica da Universidade de Aveiro, Aveiro, 30 de Maio

• “Apresentação do Centro Experimental de Erosão de Vale Formoso” na Workshop de “Fotografia da Desertificação e das Acções para a Combater em Portugal (Sudeste do Alentejo e Noroeste Algarvio), Escola de Artes Visuais do Instituto Europeu de Design em Turim, Mértola, 22 de Maio

• “Combate à Desertificação: A Necessidade do Uso Racional dos Recursos Naturais – Caso da Herdade de Vale Formoso – Mértola”, Seminário “Restauro de Ecossistemas em Paisagens Mediterrâneas”, ADPM, Mértola, 26-27 de Maio.

• “Lucinda Project”, EU WPIEI Desertification Group – Expert Meeting, Monitoring, Targets and Indicator from Strategic and Operational Objectives of the UNCCD Ten-Year Strategic Plan 2008-2018: Follow-up Steps and New Developments Required at EU Level, Brussels, 27 th November.

• "Processos de Degradação dos Recursos Naturais no Sul de Portugal – Alentejo", Departamento de Ciencias Ambientales de la Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha, Toledo, 25 de Abril

The LUCINDA products have been already advertised by the participant 3 - AUA in:

(a) Stakeholder’s meetings organized by the EU research project DESIRE, held in Municipality of Agia Barbara, Heraklion, Crete, 27 November 2007.

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(b) Series of seminars organized after the forest fires occurring in Greece in 2007 by the Ministry of Agriculture in the areas of Peloponnesus, Arkadia (Tripoli), Achaia (Patras), Helia (Pyrgos), Messinia (Kalamata) as well as in Evia (Chalkis) for informing local stakeholders on actions to be undertaken for protecting the land from soil erosion and desertification.

(c) The Greek National Committee for Combating Desertification which plans to print and distribute to various organizations, institutes, policy makers, etc.

(d) The Institute of Subtropical Plants and Olive Trees of Chania (ISPOT), Institute of Soil Survey and Classification of Larissa, Institute of Forest Research (Athens).

(e) Stakeholder’s meeting organized by the OLIVERO project funded by INTERREG IIIB - ARCHIMED held in Chania, Crete, 13 June 2008.

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The dissemination activities in Italy: DITEC were as follows:

(a) Advertisement of the Lucinda website providing links to relevant national web site (NCCDD, Affected Regions, Schools, NGOs)

(b) Dissemination of information pack to:

Students; Farmers; Agricultural Technicians; Policy makers

The dissemination activities in Italy: CEAM were as follows:

The project has been publicized on other technical, educational and scientific meetings:

• Workshop on Adaptation to Climate Change in Mediterranean Forests Conservation and Management, organized by IUCN/WWF. Athens, 14-16 April 2008.

• Technical Course on Production of Forest Plants in Nurseries, organized by Cabildo de Tenerife (Canary Islands). La Laguna, 16-17 June 2008.

• Advanced Course on New Perspectives on Revegetation, organized by Cabildo de Tenerife (Canary Islands). La Laguna, 18-20 June 2008.

• Course on Experiences and Techniques on Ecological Restoration under Water Limiting Environments, organized by Font Roja Natura Scientific Station - University of Alicante. Alcoy, 25-27 September 2008.

In this period CICANT also presented a paper on the international conference PERSCL 2008, Lisbon 2-4 September on its work in this project

Furthermore, when the LUCINDA products will be available will be distributed in public administration (Ministries of Agriculture, Environment- Physical Planning- Public Works, Development, etc.), regional development authorities prioritizing those in desertification-affected regions, farmers’ associations, individual farmers and the scientific community.

A broad dissemination and communication plan will be implemented focusing on major media channels, addressing the public in general, and aiming at transferring knowledge and understanding of the desertification subject and of the materials produced and made available through the Internet.

Conclusion

The Lucinda project succeeded in producing a unique and comprehensive set of deliverables that provide a record of the achievements of European Desertification Research projects in the Northern Mediterranean, from which the following can be concluded:

▪ There is evidence from the indicators of desertification that most of the region is in many ways affected and that this is resulting in the dramatic loss of natural resources and ecosystem services

▪ Human induced land degradation and erosion are today largely inadvertent consequences of land use policies. They are surprisingly easy to control with sustainable land management practices.

▪ European research results are a valuable resource that gives policy makers both support and direction.

▪ There is an urgent need for promoting public awareness about desertification and land degradation among all communities and societal groups, paying special attention to young people, women and active farmers in rural communities, local politicians and technicians dealing with land use planning and all territorial issues.

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