Andean ecosystems, through their rich biodiversity and ecological processes like supply and control of water fluxes, soil carbon fixation by vegetation and soil, among others, provide some Ecosystem Services (like production of nutritious food and fiber, clean water, carbon sequestration in the soil, ecotourism, among others) that have been vital for the well-being of the Andean communities, and adjoining cities. However, perturbations caused by our activities like irresponsible mining, non-appropriated agricultural management, overgrazing, and others join with climate change, have reduced the capacity of Andean ecosystems to provide those precious resources.
On the other hand, there are some particularities among the sectors in charge of the elaboration of governmental policies, contribution to the scientific knowledge, and society, which are associated with the management of Ecosystem Services. All of that requires coordinated efforts among these sectors, and the creation of contexts that allow joining action.
This webinar pretends to gather the governmental, science and society sectors representatives through a virtual space to promote the dialogue through an exchange of experiences in different Andean countries, to try to answer the question raised in the title of this webinar.
Issues to be discussed
- Tools for the measurement and quantification of Ecosystem Services
- Monitoring and restoration of Ecosystem Services in the Andes
- Public policies focused on compensation mechanisms for Ecosystem Services and their viability in the Andes.
- Analysis of organizational and governance experiences in the region aimed at financing for the conservation and restoration of Ecosystem Services
Dr. David a. Ramírez is an Ecologist and Scientist at the International Potato Center. Dr. Ramirez coordinates the Climate Action efforts of the Andean Initiative, under the Regional Program for the Latin America and the Caribbean. In 2015 he was pre-selected for the young outstanding scientist Scientific Prize and received the Antunez de Mayolo 2015 merit award for research in science, granted by the Peruvian Academy of Science. With 43 publications in magazines with a contribution in science and nature, his research focuses on: – irrigation management for water saving without affecting the yield of tubers, – features in leaves that highlight the functional response of the plants to droughts in the farming systems, – crops resistance to help resolve the increasing restriction of water for agriculture due to the higher demand of food, and how the vegetation structure interacts with multifunctional ecosystem processes.
DAVID RAMÍREZ
Scientist
Andean Initiative, CIP-LAC
Miguel Angel Gonzales Aldana holds a master´s degree in Agricultural Innovation for Rural Development from the National Agrarian University of La Molina (UNALM), with postgraduate studies in higher education from the Mayor San Andres University (UMSA), specialized in the management of Andean production systems, from the quality of seed production (formal and informal systems) to the development of strategies to access the markets. Mr. Gonzales has a wide experience in the organizational strengthening of farmers through participatory methodologies, technical validity for national legislation (Article 144) and local legislation (municipal regulations), strengthening seed production, government procurement and development and protection of the local economy. Mr. Gonzales has published, together with national and international researchers, many articles about climate change related with the behavior of pests, markets, soil and biodiversity, and others related with the use of technologies in mechanic planting systems. Currently, he is a Consultant for CIP in Bolivia and is working to promulgate the Law for the creation of the National Potato Day and the National Strategy of the potato in Bolivia. Also, Mr. Gonzales is a professor at the Mayor San Andres University (UMSA) and the Public University of El Alto (UPEA).
MIGUEL ANGEL GONZALES
Technical Consultant
CIP-LAC
Professional with more than fifteen years of work experience in the discipline of Sustainable Development. Manager of activities combining technical aspects with social and environmental awareness. Consultant in development projects to various companies and public and private institutions at the national and international levels.
Mention of Researcher REGINA (no. 16439) from the Peruvian Scientific Council (CONCYTEC). Ph.D. candidate at Polytechnic University of Valencia (Spain), developing a thesis based on the promotion of ecosystem services and spatial planning in Andean social-ecological systems. A Master´s degree from Pablo Olavide University of Sevilla (Spain) with a thesis consisted of the analysis of the sustainability of social-ecological systems based on natural resources.
Eight years of experience in the university sector (private and state) in Perú working in different universities (Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos, Universidad Nacional Agraria La Molina, Universidad Ricardo Palma). Founder and manager of the postgraduate program of Land Management and Sustainable Development during the eight editions (from 2012 to 2017) in the Universidad Nacional Agraria La Molina. Member of the organizing committee in academic congresses in Peru and Colombia.
SANTIAGO MADRIGAL MARTÍNEZ
Master Professor on Architecture and Sustainability of the Post-Graduate School at the Ricardo Palma University, Peru
Deputy Minister for Strategic Development of Natural Resources Ministry of the Environment of Peru.
Professional in environmental and natural resources management, with 20 years of experience. Expertise in environmental policy formulation, implementation and evaluation with emphasis in climate change, sustainable development financing and biodiversity conservation. He has been Regional Director Northern Andes Amazon for Conservation Strategy Fund, Deputy Minister for Strategic Development of Natural Resources – Ministry of the Environment of Peru, Co-chair of the Green Climate Fund and Peru Representative of The Nature Conservancy. Consultant for the Inter-American Development Bank, AVINA Foundation, GIZ, and the Costa Rica Tourism Institute. B.A. in Sociology by Universidad de la República (Montevideo, 1992) and Master in Natural Resources Management by INCAE Business School (Alajuela, 1995).
GABRIEL QUIJANDRÍA
Vice Minister of Strategic Development of Natural Resources, Ministry of Environment, Peru
Bert De Bièvre is the Technical Secretary of FONAG, Quito’s Water Fund. Bert has 25 years of experience in the Tropical Andes. For more than 10 years, he worked in academia at the Universidad de Cuenca, Ecuador, where he helped to form what is now a consolidated research group in soil and water management with an emphasis in Andean hydrology. Subsequently, Bert worked for 10 years leading projects in Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru focused on Andean ecosystems such as the paramo, watershed management, and hydrology of Andean catchments. In a two years mission, based at CONDESAN in Lima, Peru, he has been advising the Peruvian Ministry of Environment and drinking water regulator, SUNASS, on the design and implementation of policies supporting incentives and compensation for hydrological ecosystem services. Since October 2015, he leads FONAG in the fulfillment of its mission of conserving and restoring the source water areas for Ecuador’s high altitude capital Quito.
Bert holds a PhD in Applied Biological Sciences (2002), an MSc in Water Resources Engineering (1991), and a Degree in Civil Engineering (1990) from Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Belgium.
BERT DE BIEVRE
Technical Secretary, Fund for the Protection of Water (FONAG), Ecuador
Steven Vanek is a researcher within the Department of Soil and Crop Sciences at Colorado State University. He conducts research and develops farmer and field staff training activities in partnership with a variety of organizations internationally, most of which are within the McKnight Foundation’s Collaborative Crop Research Program, where Dr. Vanek forms part of a soils support team along with Dr. Steven Fonte and several graduate students. His research focuses broadly on soil fertility in smallholder systems, including the use of improved fallows, phosphorus inputs, and biochar to sustain soil productivity in these systems. He recently helped to develop a tool kit of methods for more easily assessing soil health, described at www.smallholder-sha.org, and has also taught about food systems and conducted larger-scale analyses such as comparing the agroecological functioning of land uses in the Andes, and linkages between aboveground and belowground biodiversity. He has worked extensively in the Andes and has experience in eastern and southern Africa.
STEVEN VANEK
Scientific Researcher, Colorado State University, United States