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World Overview of Conservation Approaches and Technologies

Knowledge Management and Decision Support for Sustainable Land Management

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WOCAT is…

• …a global network of specialists working in the field of Sustainable Land Management (SLM)

• … a framework for Knowledge Management and Decision Support for SLM

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WOCAT’s Vision

WOCAT’s vision is that land and livelihoods are improved through sharing and enhancing knowledge about sustainable land management.

Photo: H.P. Liniger

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WOCAT supports innovation and decision-making processes in Sustainable Land Management by:

WOCAT's Mission

1) building up and coordinating a global network of SLM specialists

2) developing standardized tools and methods for knowledge management and decision support

3) managing a global knowledge base on SLM and presenting the information through different media

4) enhancing capacity of involved actors (research, training, education)

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The WOCAT Network

- Established in 1992

- Network 2014: Over 60 institutions worldwide (incl. Ministries, Universities, NGOs, International Centres, UN-Organisations, etc.)

- SLM experts, technicians, extension workers, planners, and decision makers (WOCAT target group)

- WOCAT is the primary recommended database for UNCCD reporting on SLM Best Practices

- Biennial International Workshop and Steering Meeting

The WOCAT Network

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National Initiatives

Individual Members

Institutional Members

International

Regional / National

Regional Initiatives

Steering Committee consisting of Consortium Partners, Director,

and Nominated Experts

Ad hoc Independent Expert Group

Secretariat (Director, Coordinator, required staff)Consortium

Partners

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New set-up

since June 2014

Steering Committee has 9 Consortium Partners: •CDE•CIAT•GIZ•FAO•ISRIC•ICIMOD•ICARDA•SDC•University Kwa Zulu Natal (South Africa)

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WOCAT tools and methods

• Standardized questionnaires for documentation and evaluation of SLM technologies and approaches

• A global database for storage, search and exchange of SLM technologies and approaches

• A mapping tool for local and regional assessment of degradation and SLM (area coverage, degree and impacts)

• A decision support tool for selection and up-scaling of identified best practices using a 3-step framework

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SLM specialists and land users document best practices in the field.The collected information will be entered in the WOCAT Database.

Photo: H.P. Liniger

Documentation and evaluation of best practices

9Photo: H.P. Liniger

Decision Support

Select appropriate SLM practices for upscaling.

Assess the costs and impacts.

Identify priority areas of intervention.

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Knowledge base – WOCAT outputs

• Database • Books and Brochures• Videos on Sustainable Land Management• Country Maps on Degradation and Conservation

(LADA)• Manuals, etc.• All available on Internet! www.WOCAT.net

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WOCAT Database

- More than 500 SLM Technologies and 250 Approaches from over 50 countries

- accessible online- linked to Google Earth- standardized and comprehensive, covering various land use

degradation and conservation types…- technical as well as socio-economic information

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SLM in Practice• Guidelines for Sub-

Saharan Africa• Principles of

Sustainable Land Management

• 47 case studies (best practices)

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WOCAT Overview book:where the land is greener

Setting new standards:• Global selection of

case studies: - 42 Technologies &- 28 Approaches

• Standardized presentation

• Analysis• Policy implications

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Desire for Greener Land•Options for Sustainable Land Management in Drylands •30 Technologies & 8 Approaches•17 mapping case studies

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Water Harvesting•Guidelines to Good Practice•18 Technologies of floodwater, macro-catchment, micro-catchment, and rooftop and courtyard water harvesting from all over the world

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Case study: Conservation Agriculture

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Case study: Agroforestry

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Case study: Level bench terrace

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Case study: Rotational grazing

Audio-visual messages from land user to land user

documented and presented in standardized WOCAT format

… enhanced through messages from land users

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• over 500 SLM specialists from 40 countries trained

• approx. 30 MSc and PhD studies

• studies on socio-economic and environmental impacts on-/off-site

• area cover: satellite image & ground truthing

WOCAT in research, training and education

Photo: H.P. Liniger

Hot Spots

Bright Spot

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Visit www.wocat.net

and join the network