Social Protection and Agriculture: Safety Nets or Safety Traps?
Earlier this year there were riots in … Continued
The WaterBlog
No stings attached: bee biodiversity in the Amazon
by Pablo Fajardo and Frank van Steenbergen The biodiversity epicenter that is the Amazon is reflected in the almost endless number of species of bees. They play a major role in the cross pollination of the Amazon’s diversity of trees species, with several bee species uniquely specializing in specific trees. Most of the bees in the Amazon belong to families of stingless bees, such as Melipona, Trigona sp, Tetragonisca angustula. The latter are lovingly called angel bees – for all the goodness they bring. The honey of the angel bees is high in nourishment but also very high in anti-inflammatory properties, comparable to the famous Manuka honey from New Zealand that has many medical applications. The medicinal properties of all the different species of Amazon bees need to be further documented, but traditional knowledge has it that certain honeys are very effective for certain ailments, such as eye diseases and respiratory defects. The working is said to come from resin of… Continued
Previous posts
Resistant, Efficient, Nutritious Rice for a Food-secure Future
Importance of Rice Rice is a very important food crop, 50% of the total world population consumes rice. 90% of … Continued
Water & Light: Visual Experiments
by Dr. Helmut Eigenmann, Thin Waters/ Laboratory and Design My experiments with thin water layers and light are the base for … Continued
Pastoralism, Land, Water and Climate Change
Securing the Future of a Culture of Resilience by Ilse Köhler-Rollefson, League for Pastoral Peoples and Endogenous Livestock development (LPP) Nature’s … Continued
The World of Pastoralists (Lest We Forget)
Who are pastoralists? Pastoralists are people who depend for their living primarily on livestock. They inhabit those parts of the … Continued
Video, Agriculture and Food Security: Innovations that link
The use of video in agriculture and rural development is not new. Anyone with any interest in the sector would … Continued
Remineralize now!
Production of chemical fertilizers used in agricuture is highly energy-intensive. The lowest estimate is that at least 1% of all … Continued
What is this?
This is a mousetrap (and a mouse in it, if you look closely) being used in Tigray, Ethiopia. The trap … Continued
The Fringe Benefits of Food Aid
posted by Abraham AbhishekJune 20, 2012 Food aid is crucial for countries still working their way up the poverty ladder, … Continued
Well, that looks like Africa…
posted by Abraham Abhishek June 10, 2012 This shallow well in Woukro, Ethiopia seems to be shaped like the African … Continued
Spate Irrigation: Lessons for Adaptive Management of a Variable Climate
COP 17 is quietly underway in Durban, South Africa. Compared to previous rounds of global climate negotiations, there has been … Continued
What is this?
posted by Lenneke KnoopMay 25, 2012 This stone is used by the community in Witu, Kenya to clean their drinking … Continued
Groundwater Security in Yemen: The Critical Role of Local Communities
Water-wise, Yemen is most commonly identified with scarce resources and arid landscapes. Less known are its longstanding, users-led groundwater management … Continued
Managing Groundwater Depletion: Pumping in the right mix of strategies
Groundwater depletion has been a major cause of concern worldwide, most recently as a contributor to rising sea levels. According … Continued
Small Farmers’ Productivity Key to Long-term Food Security in Horn of Africa
Even as you read this, more than 12 million people struggle to cope with the worst effects of the famine … Continued
Global Land Grab: The Ongoing Struggle (and a Lost Opportunity?)
Imagine one big foreign company owning half the arable land in a country. This almost happened a couple of years … Continued
Facing the Water-Crisis: ‘More Collective-Action’ or ‘Tapping Individual Vice’?
The 1977 UN Conference on Water, Mar del Plata, launched the era of collective action to address water-related issues. 33 … Continued