Transcript Document

Break-out session 1: Group 2
Chair: Olago, Daniel
Rapporteur: Olowoyo, Joshua
Transition Team member: Abrahamse, Tanya
Participants:
 Clover, Jenny
 Colvin, John
 Francis, Julius
 Hewiston, Bruce
 Jakob, Rhyner
 Matose, Frank
 Niassy, Saliou
 Thombiano, Adjima
 Yanda, Pius
Future Earth Research Theme: Global Development
Providing the knowledge for sustainable, secure and
fair stewardship of food, water, health, energy,
materials and other ecosystem services.
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1. Research priorities relevant for Africa that can be linked to
/ integrated within the Future Earth research framework
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MAIN RESEARCH PRIORITIES (INCORPORATES BOTH DYNAMIC EARTH AND GLOBAL
DEVELOPMENT PERSPECTIVES)
Water (scarcity, efficiency, quality, quantity, availability, biodiversity, forests, equity,
conflict and migration, institutions and management at regional level, pollution,
transboundary, governance).
Land use and land management (access, productivity, degradation, use, management,
land tenure system, land lease, population).
Coastal zones (biodiversity, lack of resources, capacity building, fisheries, resource use,
pollution, processes e.g. biogeochemical).
Critical zones (mountains, (rain)forests, marginal lands)
Disease vulnerability
Megacities and impacts (urbanization, unplanned growth, resources demands,
wastewater)
Human well-being (social sustainability)
Knowledge systems and practices (dealing with complex systems – Institutions, Networks,
Markets, Hierarchies) to learn how to deal with transformational issues
Uncertainties ( lack of data, what to do in the face of uncertainty – some information is
independent of uncertainty)
Research priorities relevant for Africa that can be linked
to / integrated within the Future Earth research
framework (continued)
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CROSS-CUTTING RESEARCH PRIORITIES
Uncertainty (data and models)
Knowledge systems and practice
Pollution (e.g. trace metals, pop, monitoring system,
mitigation, peri and urban agriculture)
Institutional arrangements and scale
Livelihoods
Food security
Climate change
Migration (cross boarder migration)
2. On-going regional activities / programmes, already
dealing with these priorities. Gaps not being addressed
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Water: Rhodes UNESCO NODE, Collaborative Water Research
Network, Water Research Commission, WITS University
Land: ICRAF, PLAS, AIAS, CODESSRIA
Mountains: Afromont, Saeon
Coastal Zone: Marine RI (UCT)
Megacities: African Centre for Cities
Disease Vulnerability
Uncertainties
Knowledge system vulnerability: SANBI,MEDUNSA, UKZN,
CSIR,SAEON
Pollution: Enda, Medunsa
Institutional Arrangement: Cordesria
3 (GAPS IN RESEARCH)
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Megacities, urbanization and planning
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Integrated rather than sectoral or fragmented issues
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Climate change not taken into account
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Research cooperation
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Networking
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Data
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ICT
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Capacity of stakeholders to take up information
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Uncertainty limits and knowledge about limits of uncertainty
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Research on co-design of knowledge systems that work in complex
transformational situations
Appropriate information packaging and communication
. Opportunities for collaboration between Future
Earth and existing regional activities
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Cross fertilization
Learning across networks
Identification of experts and linking them, databases of researchers
Optimize and make use of existing centres of excellence (examples
are Global Framework for Climate Services; UNESCO Groundwater
Centres of Excellence)
Match centre of excellence with networks
Creating new centre of excellence around existing knowledge gaps
Align research priorities with AU/sub-regional and national policies.
Continental: AU, AMCOST, NEPAD, AMCOW, AMCEN, ADB, ICSUROA, ECA,
Regional: ECOWAS, EAC, ECCAS, SADC, DbSA, SARUA, RUFORUM,
RCMRD, RECTAS, START, Special Development Initiatives (SDI’s)
Future Earth Research Theme: Transformation
towards Sustainability
Understanding and evaluating strategies for governing and
managing the global environment across scales and sectors,
to move towards a sustainable Future Earth.
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Rethink curricula
Popular communication
Innovative student fora
Integration of knowledge for problem-solving
Lessons from Africa for the world
Foster transdisciplinarity by addressing common “grand” challenges
Active engagement with civil societies and/or form civil societies
Think big – beyond national borders