News | CSRio

Call for a PhD – candidate Group of synthesis in Ecology and Sustainability of the Atlantic Forest (SES-MA)

by Ana Castro 19/06/2017 0

The SES-MA group aims to develop synthesizing studies in ecology and sustainability of the Atlantic Forest Biome, Brazil, in order to provide scientific support for decision-makers and the development of public policies for landscape management and the biodiversity conservation. A specific objective of the group is to test hypothesis and respond key-questions in ecology and sustainability using an extensive pool of empirical data collected in the Atlantic Forest Biome. This database comprises information on richness as well as abundance of species at landscapes covering the entire range of the Atlantic Forest. At the moment, the data base includes information from more than 2.000 sampling sites, as well as different taxonomical groups including plants, invertebrates and vertebrates. The SES-MA group is located at the Centre for Conservation and Sustainability Science (CSRio /PUC-RJ; http://www.iis-rio.org/en/projeto/rio-conservation-and-sustainability-science-centre-csrio) and is coordinated by the following researchers: Jayme Prevedello (UERJ), Mauricio de Almeida Gomes (UFMS), Renato Crouzeilles (IIS/CSRio/UFRJ) e Thomas Püttker (UNIFESP). A series of researchers from different universities and institutions from Brazil and abroad are participating in the scientific committee of the group: Bernardo Strassburg (IIS/CSRio/PUC-RJ), Carlos Fonseca (UFRN), Cristina Banks-Leite (Imperial College – London), Jean Paul Metzger (USP), Marcelo Tabarelli (UFPE), Marcus Vinicius Vieira (UFRJ), Pedro Brancalion (ESALQ-USP) e Renata Pardini (USP). Additionally, a series of researchers who provided empirical data are part of the team. The purpose of this call is to select ONE candidate applying for the selection of PhD-positions at one of the before-mentioned Universities. Preferentially however, the candidate applies for the selection of PhD-position at UERJ, UFMS or UFRJ under the supervision of Jayme Prevedello, Mauricio de Almeida Gomes, or Renato Crouzeilles, respectively. Importantly, the student selected in this call does not immediately receive a scholarship, but will have to apply for a selection of PhD-positions and compete for available scholarships at the respective University. Considering the quantity of information available in our database as well as the participation of highly renowned researchers in the SES-MA group, we believe that the studies developed during the PhD will result in quality research with high scientific relevance. Requirements for the candidate – CV (preferentially in Lattes) – Letter of intention including: i) short presentation of the academic/scientific history of the candidate ii) justification of adequacy of the candidate for the position considering the criteria for selection (see below) iii) motivation of the candidate (why would you like to get the position?) iv) proposal of three questions or hypotheses which might be tested with the data of the SES-MA group including their theoretical and/or practical contextualization (maximum of 1 page) Criteria for selection – CV – strong basis in ecology – skills in statistics, ArcGIS and R – competence in English – preference for applying for a PhD at UFMS, UERJ or UFRJ – justifications provided in the letter of intention – suggestions of questions or hypotheses and their theoretical and/or practical contextualization Time schedule – deadline for submission of applications: 4th of august 2017; 12:00 p.m. (noon) Brasília time) – Send your application to contato@csrio.usuarios.rdc.puc-rio.br; subject: Chamada para seleção de candidato a doutorado SES-MA – publication of result: after deadline of submission – election of PhD candidates: UFRJ and UERJ – around end of November; UFMS – continuously, however depending on availability of scholarships; other universities: to be confirmed

Policies mix can avoid extinctions of historic proportions projected for the Cerrado, shows a study coordinated by Brazilians, published in Nature Ecology and Evolution

by fvg-admin 23/03/2017 0

Brazil may lose up to 1140 species if it follows the current model The advance of deforestation in Cerrado could result in the extinction of 1140 plant species over the next 30 years, a figure eight times greater than all plant species recorded as extinct since 1500 worldwide, shows an international study coordinated by Brazilian researchers published this thursday (23), in Nature Ecology and Evolution. On the other hand, the authors demonstrate that this scenario can be avoided without damaging agriculture. They point to a series of public and private policies already in progress or still in development that, if coordinated and focused on this objective, could avoid the projected extinctions. According to Bernardo Strassburg, coordinator of the study, Executive Director of the International Institute for Sustainability and coordinator of the Centre for Conservation and Sustainability Science of the Department of Geography and Environment of PUC-Rio, the Cerrado has lost almost half of its area, but still harbors 4600 plant species that do not exist anywhere else on the planet. If the pace of deforestation continues, 30 years from now the Cerrado will be even smaller, losing a third of its current size, due to the expansion of soybean, sugarcane and pasturelands. In recent years, the Cerrado has already lost 88 million hectares, 46% of its native cover. Between 2002 and 2011, deforestation rates in the region (1% per year) were 2.5 times higher than in the Amazon. “The Brazilian Cerrado is home to an enormous collection of globally unique plant species. What we have identified is that further deforestation will lead to plant extinctions on a scale that would dwarf all recorded plant extinction to date globally. This irreversible scenario would have serious impacts for national and international goals of safeguarding the diversity of life on Earth, and of avoiding dangerous climate change. It will also impact Brazil´s water and energy security”, says Bernardo Strassburg, coordinator of the study. A combination of public and private policies, however, could help to avoid the collapse of Cerrado biodiversity. The researchers list eight strategic policies –already under consideration, or being implemented elsewhere in Brazil – that, if properly financed and implemented, could reconcile agricultural expansion and conservation. For instance, the Soybean Moratorium – a market ban on soybean grown in newly deforested areas – is already credited with nearly eliminating direct conversion of forests to soybean in the Brazilian Amazon. If extended, as advocated by the Brazilian Minister of the Environment, this would remove a key driver of deforestation in the Cerrado. Other key policies include the expansion of public protected areas, increased conservation finance (including climate finance) and the identification of priority areas for conservation, restoration and agricultural expansion. “It is not necessary to reinvent the wheel, most of the necessary policies already exist and were used successfully in the Amazon in the recent past. What is needed now is to focus them on avoiding this looming extinction crisis. There is enough space to reconcile the increase in agricultural production and the conservation and restoration of critical habitats. It is not a simple task, but with a concerted effort of the stakeholders involved, both national and international, and the appropriate pressure from society so that key policies have the political and financial support needed, Brazil can turn a dismal scenario into a great success story”, says Dr. Strassburg. The stark projections presented in the study also reveal a potential risk for the Brazilian economy, still reliant on exporting agricultural commodities. “The magnitude of the potential extinction crisis would jeopardize Brazil’s international reputation as one of the leaders in green economy and sustainable development. It would also make Brazilian agribusiness responsible for one of the biggest anthropogenic tragedies for biodiversity ever recorded, precisely at a time when the main global markets are pursuing goals for excluding supply chains associated with deforestation and environmental degradation”, adds Strassburg. Researchers show that it is possible to meet all forecast increases in soybean, sugarcane and livestock production within already-cleared areas while also sparing additional land for restoration of native vegetation, as required by the Brazilian Forest Code. By increasing livestock productivity in already converted areas from 35% to 61% of its sustainable potential, it would be possible to accommodate more than 15 million hectares of expansion of soy and sugarcane, and 6.4 million hectares of restoration of native vegetation. “The key to unlocking a sustainable future for the Cerrado lies in the potential for increasing cattle stocking rates – to make space for predicted crop expansion while at the same time sparing and restoring natural habitats for the region’s remarkable biodiversity. Given robust political support, disaster can be avoided”, Professor Andrew Balmford, Cambridge University. ‘’Increased cattle ranching productivity can be achieved through techniques that already exist, such as rotational grazing or feed supplementation. However, several obstacles, such as rural labour scarcity and financial constraints, must be overcome to assist producers in this transition” adds Dr. Agnieszka Latawiec, Executive Director of the International Institute for Sustainability and Coordinator of the Centre for Conservation and Sustainability Science of PUC-Rio. This recovery of native vegetation plays a key role in preventing the projected biodiversity collapse: if it is carried out in priority areas for biodiversity, it could avoid up to 83% of projected extinctions. “The new National Policy for the Recovery of Native Vegetation, created by presidential decree last month, can help to promote this restoration in priority areas,” says Carlos Scaramuzza, Director of Ecosystems Conservation at the Ministry of Environment and one of the authors of the article. The article entitled “Moment of truth for the Cerrado hotspot” was written by researchers from Brazil and other countries. The Brazilian researchers are from the Centre for Conservation and Sustainability Science of the Department of Geography and Environment of PUC-Rio; International Institute for Sustainability – IIS; Federal Universities of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ), Minas Gerais (UFMG) and Goiás (UFG), the National Centre for Flora Conservation, and the Brazilian Foundation for Sustainable Development. The other authors are from the

Lack of labour is pointed as the main barrier for the adoption of good agricultural practices in Brazil – A study with 250 producers from Mato Grosso was conducted by the CSRio and IIS

by fvg-admin 20/03/2017 0

A study coordinated by the Executive Director of the International Institute for Sustainability (IIS), coordinator of the Centre for Conservation and Sustainability Science (CSRio) and Assistant Professor of the Department of Geography and the Environment of the Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro (PUC-Rio), Agnieszka Latawiec, and 10 other experts from collaborating institutions from Brazil and abroad, shows that the lack of labour is the principal barrier that affects the adoption of good agricultural practices in Brazilian cattle ranching (indicated by 36% of the 250 producers from the Amazon; Mato Grosso state). The high costs of implementing these good practices were pointed out as the second most important bottleneck (according to 18% of the interviewed producers). It was also found that even though credit is theoretically available it is not necessarily accessible to the producer because of bureaucracy issues. Shortfall in access to technical extension services was also identified to be a significant problem because 40% of the technical assistance is currently provided by vendors of fertilizers and other chemicals. The study, which generated the article ‘Improving land management in Brazil: A perspective from producers’ published in a scientific journal Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment also identified that for the most of respondents (60%) the main benefit of adopting good agricultural practices was increased productivity, followed by an increase in income (43%) and a better administrative management of the farm (34%). According to Agnieszka, this is the first study to systematically and quantitatively assess the barriers and conditions for adopting good agricultural practices in Brazilian pasturelands, taking into account the opinions of the key actors involved in the implementation of these practices in the Amazon – the producers. “It is absolutely essential to listen to producers’ voices in order to achieve more sustainable land use in Brazil. There are few studies of this kind and it is necessary to bridge the gap between the producer (in a systematic, quantitative and statistically robust way) and bring this information to decision makers.” “In Brazil low productivity pasturelands are still predominant in relation to their sustainable potential and that has important social and environmental consequences, such as deforestation. Currently, the average productivity of pasturelands in the studied region is approximately one animal head per hectare. The sustainable potential is at least double that. In some areas of Brazil current productivity of pasturelands is even lower than one head per hectare. In the past, vast areas were deforested to support extensive cattle ranching’’ Agnieszka explained. Adoption of good practices in cattle ranching can help rural producers improve pasture quality and increase productivity (heads per hectare). But the study also points to the possible opposite effect of this ‘sustainable intensification’ – a so called rebound effect. “It is very important that any intervention on land, such as intensification, is done in an indeed sustainable way: increase productivity but not increase too much, without over intensification and complemented with public policies focused on conservation to avoid expanding of this new intensive systems that could cause more deforestation” underlines Bernardo Strassburg, coauthor of the paper and the Executive Director of IIS. The study also highlights other possible impacts of extensive cattle ranching such as soil degradation, water pollution, compromising animal wellbeing and rural poverty. ‘’Therefore, failure to consider the producer’s opinion will contribute to the continued clearance of native vegetation and the environmental degradation of existing pasturelands, in addition to the persistence of widespread poverty among cattle ranchers’’ concluded Agnieszka.

CSRio publishes two articles in the special volume on natural regeneration of Revista Biotropica (volume 48, issue 6)

by fvg-admin 20/03/2017 0

With great satisfaction CSRio disseminates the publication of two articles, in partnership with renowned researchers, in the special volume on natural regeneration of Biotropica Magazine (volume 48, issue 6). The articles “Natural regeneration and biodiversity: a global meta-analysis and implications for spatial planning” and “The role of natural regeneration to ecosystem services provision and habitat availability: a case study in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest” are free to read and download.

Inauguration of CSRio

by fvg-admin 20/03/2017 0

On April 15, 2016, The Rio Conservation and Sustainability Sience Centre (CSRio) was officially launched. CSRio was created on November 5, 2015 by the General Commission of the Department of Geography and Environment of the Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro (PUC-Rio) in partnership with the International Institute for Sustainability (IIS). The launch was attended by former Environment Minister Izabella Teixeira, the director of the Rio de Janeiro Botanical Garden (JBRJ), the vice-rector of PUC-Rio Josapá Carlos de Siqueira, the directors of IIS and coordinators of CSRio Bernardo Strassburg and Agnieszka Latawiec, the IIS team, representatives from different departments of PUC-Rio, among others.

Project with Opole University

by Ana Castro 13/02/2017 0

According to the terms of the project, our are eligible for a mobility grant to Opole University for seven days in the second semester of the 2016/17 academic year. The applicant must meet the following requirements: Satisfactory knowledge of English (B2 level); A field of expertise common to both institutions. The chosen applicants will receive a scholarship and travel expenses. To apply, please transmit the following documents in English: CV; A photocopy of the first page of your international passport; A reference from the Head of Department; A motivation letter (maximum size – 1 page A4). All documents should be sent as required a scanned copy in one file in PDF; maximum size – 15MB). Information about Opole University: http://erasmusplus.uni.opole.pl/show.php?id=85&lang=en&m=10 Selection criteria: The selection of lecturers for the mobility program will be according to the following criteria: – Academic profile – evaluation of CV (30%); – Knowledge of languages (30%); – Teaching/ Internship plan (30%); – A letter of support from the Host University (10%). Preference will be given to the lecturers who have developed courses in a foreign language and expressed their readiness to teach foreign students in the framework of Erasmus+ exchange program at Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio de Janeiro.