The intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC, 2012) predicts increases in the frequency of heavy precipitation in the 21st century over many areas of the globe. Thus, climate change will increase flood and drought frequencies, alter stream geomorphology and habitat availability, as well as increase water temperature, sediments, and nutrient concentration (Sabater & Tockner, 2010).
A growing body of evidence suggests that criminal activities associated with drug trafficking networks are a progressively important driver of forest loss in Central America. However, the scale at which drug trafficking represents a driver of forest loss is not presently known.
Key Messages
• A governance approach, combining public policy and private initiatives was effective in slowing down deforestation, but
was unable to support a transition to more sustainable production systems.
• New technical intensification models must be identified for low-productivity systems in degraded lands, adapted to the
Improving land productivity is essential to meet increasing food and forage demands in hillside and mountain communities. Tens of millions of smallholder terrace farmers in Asia, Africa, and Latin America who earn $1-2 per day do not have access to peer-reviewed knowledge of best agronomic practices, though they have considerable traditional ecological knowledge.
Central America is undergoing an important transition. Urban populations are increasing at accelerated speeds, bringing pressing challenges for development, as well as opportunities to boost sustained, inclusive and resilient growth. Today, 59 percent of the region’s population lives in urban areas, but it is expected that 7 out of 10 people will live in cities within the next generation.
Peru has the fourth largest area of peatlands in the Tropics. Its most representative land cover on peat is a Mauritia flexuosa dominated palm swamp (thereafter called dense PS), which has been under human pressure over decades due to the high demand for the M. flexuosa fruit often collected by cutting down the entire palm.
The forest transition framework describes the temporal changes of forest areas with economic development. A first phase of forest contraction is followed by a second phase of expansion once a turning point is reached. This framework does not differentiate forest types or ecosystem services, and describes forests regardless of their contribution to human well-being.
