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Section 5: Methods of Knowledge and Data Integration in Coupled Natural-Human Systems

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https://hdl.handle.net/10217/195530

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Browsing Section 5: Methods of Knowledge and Data Integration in Coupled Natural-Human Systems by Subject "climate change"

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    Evaluating the impact of climate change based on herders' observations and comparing it with hydro-climatic and remote sensing data
    (Colorado State University. Libraries, 2015-06) Jigjsuren, Odgarav, author; Baival, Batkhishig, author; Nayanaa, Kherlentuul, author; Jargalsaikhan, Azjargal, author; Dash, Khurelbaatar, author; Badamkhand, Bayarmaa, author; Bud, Amarzaya, author; Nutag Action and Research Institute, publisher
    Studying the impact of recent years' climate change on Mongolian rangeland livestock husbandry and on pastoral herders' livelihoods, based on herders' observations and their experience, is an approach that is of considerable interest to many scientists. Our research identifies changes in natural conditions and climate, as well as the changes in rangeland conditions, as observed by herders, and compares them against weather stations' multi-year observations and remote sensing data. Our research region of Khanbogd, Manlai and Bayan-Ovoo soums of Umnugobi aimag has been, in the recent years, experiencing a rapid development of the mining industry and human population growth. According to local herders, current rangeland quality greatly decreased compared to the period before the year 2000, while the area of barren land, sand movement and soil erosion increased. Herders also said that the amount of rainfall diminished and the rainy season's duration shortened, short high intensity rains grew in number, and it became extremely hot in summer. Soum weather station records of air temperature, precipitation and evaporation confirmed herders' observations, and were consistent with Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) or the results of observations of rangeland vegetation phenology. To develop local adaptive capacity in the face of changing social-ecological systems it is important to use and integrate multiple sources of information that are essential for making policy implementation mechanisms and measures more locally appropriate and relevant.
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    Integrating herder observations, meteorological data and remote sensing to understand climate change patterns and impacts across an eco-climatic gradient in Mongolia
    (Colorado State University. Libraries, 2015-06) Fernandez-Gimenez, M. E., author; Angerer, J. P., author; Allegretti, A. M., author; Fassnacht, S. R., author; Byamba, A., author; Chantsallkham, J., author; Reid, R., author; Venable, N. B. H., author; Nutag Action and Research Institute, publisher
    Mongolia has one of the strongest climate warming signals on Earth, and over 40% of the human population depends directly or indirectly on pastoral livestock production for their livelihoods. Thus, climate-driven changes in rangeland production will likely have a major effect on pastoral livelihoods. We examined patterns of climate change and rangeland production over 20 years in three ecological zones based on meteorological records, remote sensing and herder observations. We found the strongest trends in both instrument records and herder observations in the steppe zone, where summers are getting hotter and drier, winters colder, and rangeland production is declining. Instrument records and herder observations were most consistently aligned for total annual rainfall, and consensus among herders was greatest for changes in rainfall and production and lowest for temperature changes. We found more differences in herder observations between neighboring soums within the same ecozone than expected, suggesting the need for more fine-scale instrument observations to detect fine-scale patterns of change that herders observe.