The SUPER-G project is organising a Stakeholder webinar on January 17th, 2022. The webinar will approach the topic of “Improving Permanent Grasslands for ecosystem services and biodiversity”.
Well-managed permanent grasslands are of great importance for food production, nature conservation and other ecosystem services such as regulating water flow and mitigating climate change. However, several risk factors can degrade permanent grasslands and threaten the delivery of these services, requiring sustainable strategies to protect and restore them. For example, intensifying grassland management has led to a considerable change in grassland biodiversity, with significant impact on associated services such as pollination and landscape aesthetics. This webinar will present current research on strategies to combat grassland degradation and manage grasslands for biodiversity, multifunctionality and food production. Approaches to stimulate interest and aid communication around this challenge will also be discussed.
OUR SPEAKERS
James Bullock – UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology
James is a sustainability researcher working on habitat restoration, control of invasive species, ecological farming, and valuing nature. He leads research tackling some of today’s most critical ecological problems, stemming from the need to maintain healthy and diverse ecosystems in the face of growing demands for food, water, housing, and transport.
Bettina Tonn – Research Institute of Organic Agriculture (FiBL)
Bettina is a grassland scientist working at the Department of Livestock Sciences of FiBL Switzerland. Bettina’s work aims at sustainable forage production and grassland management, for which she investigates and communicates effects of the management and especially grazing on grassland nutrient cycling, plant diversity and other ecosystem services.
Mark Whittingham – Newcastle University
Two major challenges shape Mark’s research: First, the rate of species extinction on earth is requiring a comprehensive understating of the drivers on biodiversity loss and the seeking for strategies how to halt this. Second, providing enough food for people is of major societal importance but if it is not to directly conflict with biodiversity loss then there is a need for sustainable farming.
Valentin Klaus – ETH Zürich
Valentin Klaus work at the Institute of Agriculture at ETH Zürich, Switzerland, tackles questions related to the biodiversity and multifunctionality of grassland ecosystems, and how these relate to grassland management. Valentin’s current work includes the restoration of plant biodiversity in permanent grasslands and subsequent effects on ecosystem functioning.
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