Progress 10/01/04 to 09/30/10
Outputs
OUTPUTS: The project completed all the activities and models indicated in the proposal. The project also met the objectives stated in the original proposal. Both qualitative and quantitative models were developed and applied on case studies in Southeast Asia, specifically, Indonesia and the Philippines. The models developed were participatory and applied in an environment where different stakeholders are involved, which is typical in community-based natural resource management. Based on these models, a new study is now underway looking at the qualitative and quantitative factors that can be used to identify and locate tree plantations in Indonesia. The new study expands on the results and output from this current project that has just terminated. The models were also applied within a Geographic Information Systems (GIS) platform. This involved a GIS-based study for examining the ecological values of urban trees using software developed by American Forests called CityGreen. Data sets for the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana, Illinois were generated and analyzed. PARTICIPANTS: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period. TARGET AUDIENCES: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Not relevant to this project.
Impacts
Domestically, the data sets generated for Urbana-Champaign were used to assess the ecological values of urban trees in terms of their contributions to carbon sequestration, pollution abatement, and reduction of surface run-off. The results from the study highlighted the ecological services and environmental contributions of trees in an urban setting. Internationally, the models developed were also applied in designing collaborative mechanisms and partnerships at different community-managed resources in southeast Asia, most of which were in the uplands. These models resulted in the development of management guides that are now being used for hundreds of thousands of community-managed forests in southeast Asia.
Publications
- Mendoza, G.A. 2010. Exploring the interface between community-based forest management and systems modeling. Small Scale Forestry. (In Press).
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Progress 01/01/09 to 12/31/09
Outputs
OUTPUTS: The project completed the development of models dealing with multi-stakeholder impact analysis. The project also completed the development of multi-agent systems models that simulate partnerships and collaborative relationships between local forest communities and other stakeholders, including NGO's, forest industries, and government institutions. These models were validated using case studies in Indonesia and the Philippines. Results of these studies have just been published. The project also completed the data collection and analysis of the ecological services from urban trees in a metropolitan area. The dataset and analysis were done using Geographic Information Systems (GIS) PARTICIPANTS: My graduate student was Ms. Katelyn Hilst. She was an M.S student. She was assisted by and undergraduate student, Mr. Jake Hendee. I also collaborated with Indonesian and Philippine colleagues, namely Dr. Herry Purnomo and Dr. Philippe Guizol of the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) at Bogor, Indonesia and Dr. Paolo Campo and Dr. Teodoro Villanueva at the University of the Philippines at Los Banos. TARGET AUDIENCES: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Nothing significant to report during this reporting period.
Impacts
The qualitative and quantitative models developed through the project have been instrumental in the collaborative development and preparation of partnership agreements between local forest communities and timber industries in Indonesia. The results generated from the project demonstrate the value of simple models as a medium for designing collaborative partnerships under multi-stakeholder resource management situations. The use of spatial analysis, particularly GIS, also demonstrated the values of trees in an urban setting. These values were calculated in terms of their ecological benefits such as energy conservation, pollution mitigation and control of surface run-off. This assessment was done using the twin cities of Urbana and Champaign, Illinois as a case study.
Publications
- Mendoza, G.A. and Prabhu, R. 2009. Evaluating multi-stakeholder perceptions of project impacts: A value-based multi-criteria approach. International Journal of Sustainable Development and World Ecology 16(3): 177-190.
- Campo, P., Mendoza, G.A and Guizol, P. 2009. Exploring management strategies for community-based forests using multi-agent systems: A case study in Palawan, Philippines. Journal of Environmental Management. 90(3607-3615).
- Purnomo, H., Guizol, P. and Mendoza, G. 2009. Exploring partnerships between local communities and timber companies: An experiment using the role-playing games approach. International Journal of Forestry Research. (In Press).
- Purnomo, H. and Mendoza, G.A. 2009. A system dynamics model for evaluating forest degradation and community well-being: A case study in Indonesia. Journal of Sustainable Development and World Ecology. (In Press).
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Progress 01/01/08 to 12/31/08
Outputs
OUTPUTS: The project completed collecting data needed to evaluate the ecological services of urban trees in Urbana-Champaign. Scope of data collection includes residential, industrial, and urban areas. The data collected has been sent and is now being analyzed by USDA Forest Service Northeastern Research Station as required by the software used in the study, namely, Urban Forest Effects (UFORE) model, and the Street Tree Management Tool for Urban Forest Managers (STRATUM). In addition, the data collected has also been organized and digitized so that they can be analyzed using geographic information system (GIS) tools and software. Ecological services measured include: reduction of surface runoff, mitigating pollution, carbon sequestration, and energy conservation. The project also continued collaboration with the Center for International Forestry Research. This collaborative effort is now in the process of completing the development of a Manual or Guideline entitled "Leveling the Playing Field: A tool for environmental mediation for the tropics - A User's Guide". PARTICIPANTS: Two undergraduate students (one senior and a junior) were invovled in data collection and data entry and analysis. Part of the funding was provided by the Illinois Arborist Association, which was also a collaborator on a similar project involving the use of Street Tree Management and Analysis Tool. Dr. Philippe Guizol and Dr. Herry Purnomo from the Center for International Forestry Research based in Bogor, Indonesia continued the research collaboration on environmental mediation and community-based forest management. TARGET AUDIENCES: Two general types of audiences can benefit from the project, namely, City Arborists and Planners, and local communities in the tropics engaged in community-based forest management agreements. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Not relevant to this project.
Impacts
The project partly supported a 25 percent time graduate assistant and two student assistants to collect data over the summer 2008. The results obtained in terms of the estimated ecological value and service provided by urban tress in Urbana-Champaign were reported earlier. In addition to these results, the data is now being analyzed for better description of the structure and composition of the urban trees in the twin cities. The Manual or Guideline on Environmental Mediation has undergone some review, and is now being validated using real world cases in Indonesia. The Manual is expected to improve the management of thousands of community-managed forests in southeast Asia, particularly Indonesia and the Philippines.
Publications
- Mendoza, G.A. and Vanclay, J. 2008. Trends in forestry modeling. Invited review submitted to Perspectives in Agriculture, Veterinary Science, Nutrition and Natural Resources. 3(10): 1-7.
- Mendoza, G.A. 2008. Exploring the Interface between Community-Based Forest Management and Systems Modeling. Small Scale Forestry. (In Press).
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Progress 01/01/07 to 12/31/07
Outputs
OUTPUTS: Locally, the project was instrumental in completing a Masters thesis dealing with the evaluation of ecological services of trees in urban landscapes. This research was conducted within the cities of Champaign and Urbana, Illinois. The study included trees both along streets and residential areas, considering different land uses, land cover, and industrial and residential infrastructures such as pavement, parking lots, drainage, and others. Results from this study will be presented at the Illinois Arboriculture Meeting in Spring 2008. The project also continued its collaboration with international colleagues at the Center for International Forestry Research. Through this collaborative effort, new initiatives and proposals have been drawn developed to conduct further research on community-based forest management, particularly in the tropics.
PARTICIPANTS: Mr. Nathan Deppe, Graduate student, Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences, University of Illinois. Ms. Linda Jacobs, Undergraduate student, Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences, University of Illinois. Ms. Abby Hahne, Undergraduate student, Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences, University of Illinois. Dr. Herry Purnomo, Center for International Forestry Research (h.purnomo@cgiar.org) Illinois Arborist Association
TARGET AUDIENCES: Urban planners and city arborists. Forest management scientists, university professors, research scientists, community and non-governmental organizations, local communities in-charged of managing community-based natural resources, including forests.
Impacts
The project supported a half-time research assistantship to study the economic and ecological values derived from trees in an urban environment. The study combined methods in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and ecosystem modeling to estimate these values. Specifically, the project used two models, namely: CityGreen (developed by the American Forests), and STRATUM (developed by the U.S. Forest Service) to obtain the estimates of economic and ecological values, such as: a) energy savings from amount of energy conserved because of the trees, b) reduction in the stormwater surface run-off, c) carbon sequestration and storage, and d) mitigation of air pollution. Sample estimates of these values are: 1) 500 to 1800 kilowatt hours/ha/year energy conserved, 2) 0.1 to 0.30 Metric tons/ha/year of carbon stored, 3) 11 to 20 kg/ha/year of associated pollutants, and approximately 75 cubic meters of stormwater run-off was mitigated because of the urban trees. Research with
international colleagues have led to the development of a Guideline for Consensus Building and Participatory Management of Natural Forests in southeast Asia.
Publications
- Deppe, N. 2007. Evaluating diverse canopy cover and ecological services of trees in urban landscapes. M.S. Thesis. Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences. University of Illinois.
- Mendoza, G.A. 2007. Exploring the interface between community-based forest management and systems modeling. In: Harrison, S., Bosch, A. and Herbohn, J. (Eds). Proceedings of IUFRO 3.08 Conference 'Improving the Triple Bottom Line Returns from Small-scale Forestry'. Ormoc City, Philippines. June 17-21, 2007. 273-281.
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Progress 01/01/06 to 12/31/06
Outputs
The project has made significant progress in the development of participatory modeling tools to evaluate the sustainable management of forests. The project continues to pursue collaborative studies with partners in Asia and Africa to further advance the development of participatory modeling tools for participatory planning and management. In addition, the project is now developing and implementing methods to estimate the contribution of urban trees in reducing surface run-off, assessing amount of carbon sequestration, energy conservation, and improving air quality. Preliminary results from applying the methods indicate that forest structure (i.e. forest canopy structure) significantly affects the amount of ecological services urban trees are able to provide. These prelimanry results were obtained from sample plots taken from three canopy classes (low - 10 - 15 %; medium - 15 - 25 %; and large - 25 - 35 %).
Impacts
The project, through the application of the models developed so far, has instigated efforts by institutions and organizations (both governmental and non-governmental) in Asia and Africa to sustainably manage their forests. The participatory modeling activities conducted through the project resulted in specific management guides developed by community groups, which in turn positively influenced the management of approximately 500,000 hectares of publicly owned forests. Results obtained from the project served as the basis for pursuing other initiatives and projects designed to enhance the capacity of community groups to manage their resources collaboratively. Locally, the project has demonstrated how to estimate the total value of trees, i.e. the ecological services they provide. Results from this local study led to a collaborative effort with local organizations to pursue an assessment of the conribution and significance of trees, particularly in reducing surface
run-off.
Publications
- Mendoza, G.A. 2006. Collaborative management through a structured participatory approach: A call for participatory modeling. Proceedings of the International Conference on Applications of Statistics, Information Systems and Computers in Natural Resources Monitoring and Management. National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan. June 7-11. (In Press).
- Mendoza, G.A. and Martins, H. 2006. Multicriteria decision analysis in natural resource management: An overview of methods and paradigms. Forest Ecology and Management 230(1-3):1-22.
- Mendoza, G.A. and Martins, H. 2006. New modelling paradigms in using multi-criteria decision analysis for sustainable forest management. Proceedings of the International Conference on Sustainable Forestry in Theory and Practice. K. Reynolds (Ed). PNW Research Station (USDA Forest Service). Edinburgh, Scotland. (In Press).
- Mendoza, G.A. and Golshani, Z. 2006. Integrating multi-criteria analysis and GIS in participatory modeling: A framework for prioritizing wetlands for restoration. Proceedings of the First International Workshop on Digital Forestry. Beijing International Hotel. Beijing, China. June 14-20. (In Press).
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Progress 01/01/05 to 12/31/05
Outputs
The project has developed a number of tools that can enhance the capabilities of local communities to be engaged in collaborative planning and participatory approaches to managing forests and other natural resources. Many of these tools have been tried and applied in a few case studies in Southeast Asia, Africa, and North America. Feedback received from local communities indicate that the tools are useful, relevant, and easy to implement. Linkages with other scientists and research centers have been established and will facilitate the implementation of the project's future activities. Results obtained from the project have also opened new opportunities to pursue collaborative management approaches under various resource management regimes, including common property strategies.
Impacts
The project, in collaboration with other development initiatives in southeast Asia and Africa, has been instrumental in improving the management of at least 500,000 hectares of community-managed forest and natural resource-based systems, including thousands of acres of forests in North America. Just as significant are the project's contributions to the empowerment of local communities in terms of their increased capacities to be actively involved in the planning and decision-making processes that underlie the effective management of these community-managed resources. Increased awareness and improved capacities of local communities are likely to have major impacts on the sustainable management of natural resources not only in North America, but in many forests in the developing world, most of which are degraded and under severe pressure.
Publications
- Mendoza, G.A. 2005. Recent developments in decision analysis for forest managemen.: Innes, J.L., Hickey, G.M. and Hoen, H.F. (eds.). The Socio-Economic Implications For Forestry Of A Changing Physical And Policy Environment. 239-256.
- Purnomo, H., Mendoza, G.A. and Prabhu, R. 2005. Analysis of local perspectives on sustainable forest management: An Indonesian case study. Journal of Environmental Management. 74: 111-126.
- Purnomo, H., Mendoza, G.A. and Prabhu, R. 2005 Developing multi-stakeholder forest management scenarios: A multi-agent system simulation approach. Forest Policy and Economics. 7(4): 475-491.
- Mendoza, G.A. and Prabhu, R. 2005. Combining participatory modeling and multi-criteria analysis for community-based forest management: Overview and applications. Forest Ecology and Management. 207:145-156.
- Mendoza, G.A. and Dalton, W. 2005. Multi-stakeholder assessment of forest sustainability: An overview of methods and the case of the Ontario forest assessment system. Forestry Chronicle. 81(2): 222-228.
- Mendoza, G.A. and Prabhu, R. 2005. Participatory modeling and analysis for sustainable forest management: Overview of soft system dynamics models and applications. Forest Policy and Economics (In Press).
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