TRAILS: A pilot agroforestry project for oil palm-dominated landscapes
Through the loss of structurally complex habitats, biodiversity is drastically reduced in oil palm-dominated landscapes and deforestation impairs key ecosystem services. Despite its commercial success, intensive oil palm monoculture must cope with constraints imposed by climate change and labour shortages. Deep changes are needed to adapt the traditional plantation model and to innovate on more resilient cultivation systems. Oil palm-based agroforestry is expected to regenerate biodiversity in monocultural landscapes while providing sustainable income to farmers. The TRAILS Project has established an international consortium linking a research organization (CIRAD), a community-based environmental NGO (HUTAN), a Malaysian University (Universiti Putra Malaysia), and a commercial oil palm plantation (Melangking Oil Palm Plantations). The consortium has set up experimental oil palm-based agroforestry plots in a commercial plantation located in Sabah, Malaysia, a global hotspot of biodiversity. Our agroforestry trials seek to assess the ability of a forest species (either as an individual or mixed planting) to be successfully associated with oil palm and to create more viable complex diversified agrosystemswhich will be able to support wildlife in a sustainable way. The Sabah Biodiversity Centre (SaBC) is currently preparing the nomination of the Kinabatangan landscape as a UNESCO Man and Biosphere Reserve, and Hutan has been appointed as the consultant to assist in this initiative. Partners are organising a workshop on the draft management plan for the Kinabatangan Biosphere Reserve (KBR) that will include key stakeholders from state government agencies, community leaders, oil palm companies, and tourism operators. We would be honoured if you could present a brief introductory talk about "the TRAILS project: Innovative agroforestry designs in oil palm plantations" as a key project conducted in the Kinabatangan.
| Main Authors: | , , , , , |
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| Format: | conference_item biblioteca |
| Language: | eng |
| Published: |
SaBC
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| Online Access: | http://agritrop.cirad.fr/609468/ http://agritrop.cirad.fr/609468/2/ABSTRACT%20KBR%20WORKSHOP.pdf |
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