The Third Pole of the Planet:The Mountain Research

Initiative

Dr. Gregory GreenwoodMRI Executive Director

mriMountainresearch initiative

Outline

1. What is the MRI?2. The Importance of

Mountains in Global Change Research

3. GLOCHAMORE4. Real Projects in

Real Places (RP2)

1. What is MRI?

• Origins in IGBP/IHDP (MRI as mountain GLP)

• Endorsements: MAB, GTOS

• Supported by SNSF as expression of Swiss foreign and scientific policy

MRI and the Global Mountain Biodiversity Assessment are cooperative and complementary programs

What is MRI?: Synthesis and Networks

2. Why Are Mountains Important in the Context of Global Change Research?

• Future climate changes will be amplified in mountain regions

• Mountains are marginal environments, sensitive to change

• Changes affecting mountains are felt far beyond mountain regions

• Population pressures exacerbate environmental changes in mountain regions

• Significant knowledge gaps hinder our ability to assess changes in mountain regions and to develop adaptation and mitigation strategies

• Mountains are places where global change will have important repercussions on PEOPLE.

-50 -40 -30 -20 -10 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70

Latitude

0

1000

2000

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4000

5000

6000

7000

8000

9000

m

1.00

1.25

1.50

1.75

2.00

2.25

2.50

2.75

3.00

3.50

°C

IPCC model simulations with 2x CO2 show temperature increases with altitude

°N°S

Climate change is amplified in mountain regions

Example: The American Cordillera

Mountains are important for water supply

• ALL flow is from mountains

• Seasonal low flow is all from mountain regions

Outside of the tropics, mountains cover 24% of the surface, but yield 46% of the runoff.

(% of watershed)

Mountains are important for water supplyThese river basins frequently provide essential water to semi-arid and hyper-arid regions, many tropical

70 % of humanity lives between 30° N and 30° S...

Mountains are important for biodiversity

Mountain ranges have some of the highest levels of biodiversity on earth

3.glochamoretranslating “concerns” into “strategy”… establish a framework for long-term research efforts by taking advantage of the infrastructure and ongoing research activities in UNESCO MAB’s Mountain Biosphere Reserves in European countries with the explicit goal of implementing the strategy in mountain Biosphere Reserves around the world, in both developed and developing countries (DoW 2003).

• Funded under EU Framework Program 6

• November 2003 to October 2005 (2 years)

• Consortium: 13 European, 1 Indian partner

• Scientific project management : MRI

• Coordination Office: University of Vienna

glochamorefacts

glochamoreapproach

Global change scientists

UNESCOMountain Biosphere Reserves

GLOCHAMORE research strategy

UNESCO MABMountain biosphere reserves

glochamoreactivities

1) Global environmental and social monitoring May 2004, Vienna, Austria

* Global Change Research in Mountain Biosphere Reserves Nov 2003, Entlebuch, Switzerland

2) Projecting Global Change impacts in Mountain Biosphere Reserves (modeling) Nov/Dec 2004, Gran Sasso, Italy

4) Sustainable land use and natural resource management in Mountain Biosphere Reserves Mar 2005, Sierra Nevada, Spain

3) Process studies along altitudinal gradients Jul 2005, Samedan, Switzerland

GLOCHAMORE results:Research Strategy by December 2005

but also: Strong community of global change researchersand Mountain Biosphere Reserves

glochamore

Glochamore Open Science Conference: PerthScotland - http://fp3demo.mediasite.com

Climate

Land Use

HydrologicalSystems

Terrestrial EcosystemsStructure and Function

Hazards

Pests and Diseases

Economies

Institutions

Cryosphere

1) Decide on the objectives together

glochamoreprinciples of research partnership*

4) Share responsibility

2) Build up mutual trust

5) Create transparency

3) Share information; develop networks

6) Monitor and evaluate the collaboration

7) Disseminate the results

8) Apply the results

9) Share profits equally

10) Increase research capacity

11) Build on the achievements*KFPE 2003

1) Decide on the objectives together

glochamoreprinciples of research partnership*

2) Build up mutual trust

10) Increase research capacity

*KFPE 2003

.

.

.

1) Decide on the objectives together

glochamoreprinciples of research partnership*

2) Build up mutual trust

10) Increase research capacity

*KFPE 2003

.

.

.

1) Decide on the objectives together

glochamoreprinciples of research partnership*

2) Build up mutual trust

10) Increase research capacity

*KFPE 2003

.

.

.

• Premise: implementation of a research program will require adaptation to conditions and issues in each reserve: a generic research strategy will remain “on the shelf”

• Observation: workshops insufficient to gather information from reserves

• First step: a survey of individual MBRs

glochamoresurvey of mountain biosphere reserves

The Questions

• Which different groups care about the reserves and why?• Which resources and which interest groups are likely to be

affected by global change, especially climate change as it affects the reserve?

• Will climate change exacerbated any existing or create any new natural hazards?

• What are the contentious scientific issues associated with your reserve?

glochamoresurvey of mountain biosphere reserves

• Top Five:• Active Recreation

(16/20)• Water supply or

quality (16/20)• Tourism (16/20)• Forests, timber,

fuel wood (15/20)• Grazing lands,

meadows (13/20)

glochamoresurvey of mountain biosphere reserves

Theme

No. of MBRsciting theme

(out of 20 total)Tourism and associated infrastructure 16Water supply, water quality, transboundary water issues 16Active recreation 16Forests, forest restoration, timber, fuel wood 15Grazing lands, meadows 13Fire 12Earth movements 12Research site 12

Resource conflict, governance, population movements,sustainable harvest 11Endangered species 11Floods, lake outbursts 11Snow cover 11Avalanches 10Glaciers 10Hunting and fishing 10Invasive species 8Lakes, wetlands 8Charismatic species, wildlife, migratory waterfowl 8Pests and diseases 7Medicinal plants, non-timber forest products, bees andhoney 6Vegetation (other than forests or meadows) 6Hydroelectric power 5Agriculture 5Permafrost 6Spiritual site 4Mining 2Desertification, soil erosion 2Coastal resources 2Severe winters 1

• Next Seven:• Fire (12/20) • Earth movements

(12/20)• Research or education

(12/20)• Resource conflict,

governance (11/20)• Endangered species

(11/20)• Floods (11/20)• Snow cover (11/20)

glochamoresurvey of mountain biosphere reserves

Theme

No. of MBRsciting theme

(out of 20 total)Tourism and associated infrastructure 16Water supply, water quality, transboundary water issues 16Active recreation 16Forests, forest restoration, timber, fuel wood 15Grazing lands, meadows 13Fire 12Earth movements 12Research site 12

Resource conflict, governance, population movements,sustainable harvest 11Endangered species 11Floods, lake outbursts 11Snow cover 11Avalanches 10Glaciers 10Hunting and fishing 10Invasive species 8Lakes, wetlands 8Charismatic species, wildlife, migratory waterfowl 8Pests and diseases 7Medicinal plants, non-timber forest products, bees andhoney 6Vegetation (other than forests or meadows) 6Hydroelectric power 5Agriculture 5Permafrost 6Spiritual site 4Mining 2Desertification, soil erosion 2Coastal resources 2Severe winters 1

• MRI effort to define “real projects in real places with real people that really work”

• MRI seeks involvement of not just MBRs but any sites

• RP2 seeks to move from “research priorities” to “who will do what, where, when and for how much?”

4. RP2

real projects in real places

RP2

real projects in real places A final strategy

would show• What (the

themes and the levels) will happen in

• Which MBRs and• WHAT OTHER

SITES• Inside each cell,

Who will do monitoring, modeling, etc.

• RP2 sites which might be appropriate for SHARE-Asia?•Existing or proposed high-elevation sites appropriate for RP2?•IGBP/IHDP context for observational studies?•Planning for impact principles

RP2 and SHARE-Asia

Thank you

A Program for the Third Pole