| dc.description.abstract | Ethiopia’s economy heavily depends on traditional rain-fed agriculture. However, the Guba Lafto, Amhara region in Ethiopia is highly susceptible to climate change and has a fragile highland ecosystem threatened by land degradation. This results in crop productivity being about 1/3 of the potential. This yield gap and climate change threats highlight the importance of building climate change resilience and increasing agricultural capacity. Effectively managing the microclimate can help increase a farm’s resilience to climate change. For Ethiopian farmers and watershed managers to effectively manage the microclimate, an assessment tool that provides guidance is desired. Therefore, this study aims to create an effective and valid assessment tool that assists Ethiopian watershed managers in guiding land and water management practices to improve microclimate conditions for optimal crop production.
First, a solid scientific knowledge base on the microclimate system and its influence on crop production was created. This was done by an in-depth literature study. Second, human interactions with the system regarding land- and water management interventions were defined. This was done by consulting land- and water management guidelines and experts with field experience. Third, by conducting an in-depth literature study, it was researched how these interventions influence microclimate components and crop production. Finally, this knowledge of microclimate processes and human interactions was translated into questions and decision options for an effective and valid assessment tool in the form of a decision tree. To justify, support and improve the decision tree, farmers and watershed managers operating in Guba Lafto, Amhara, were consulted through interviews and focus groups. The evaluation of the decision tree was an iterative process to improve the validity of the decision options and outcomes. This face validation process involving farmers and watershed managers in the tool creation also touches upon the importance of incorporating end-users in an early stage of tool development.
The results of this research are twofold. First, a scientific knowledge base on the microclimate’s workings, its effect on crop production and the effect of human interventions on the microclimate. Second, a valid and effective assessment tool that translated the above-mentioned scientific knowledge base into a directly usable form of knowledge that guides its users in improving the microclimate. Increasing a farms’ resilience to climate change and enhancing crop production conditions will strengthen local value chains and lead to a higher-value agricultural sector. | |
