Authors:Jaime Martinez-Valderrama, Emilio Guirado, Fernando T. Maestre Abstract: Hyper-arid, arid, semi-arid and dry-sub-humid climate zones (all of them considered drylands) occupy over 40 % of the Earth’s land surface and are home to more than 2 billion people. Contrary to the popular image of this important set of biomes, drylands are home to 36 % of carbon stores, 30 % of forested areas, 50 % of the world’s livestock, and 44 % of croplands. These figures give an idea of their social, economic, and ecological importance – the focus of the monograph’s first article – and argue for the need to know and understand their functioning and manage human activities in an increasingly changing climate scenario. This is key to enabling their development and preventing their desertification. PubDate: 2022-04-06 DOI: 10.7203/metode.13.24248
Authors:Jaime Martinez-Valderrama, Emilio Guirado, Fernando T. Maestre Abstract: Drylands occupy approximately 40 % of the Earth's surface. Their peculiar hydrological regime, with water as the main limiting factor, together with other characteristics, such as the variability of rainfall and their ecological heterogeneity, turn these regions into one of the main and most relevant sets of biomes on the planet. Beyond their stereotypical conception as places with a low economic and ecological profile, these territories have enormous biodiversity and support 40 % of the world's population. Global warming is increasing atmospheric aridity and the strategies developed over millennia by their inhabitants are a model to learn from. Preserving these places is essential to combat climate change, and to do so, it is essential to have an in-depth understanding of their structure and functioning. PubDate: 2022-04-01 DOI: 10.7203/metode.13.22006
Authors:Víctor M. Castillo Sánchez Abstract: Desertification is a controversial concept whose nature, extent, causes, and potential solutions are still debated. This paper reviews the arguments put forward to consider desertification a global environmental challenge and analyses the institutional response within the United Nations framework, in particular that of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD). The most significant elements of the desertification debate are analysed with respect to their scientific and political dimensions. The text concludes discussing the need to establish an integrated framework for desertification assessment and response validated by a science-policy interface. PubDate: 2022-04-01 DOI: 10.7203/metode.13.21901
Authors:Laura Yahdjian, Lucas J. Carboni, Sergio Velasco Ayuso, Gaston R. Oñatibia Abstract: Livestock grazing modifies and even degrades dryland ecosystems, which threatens the sustainability of livestock farming itself. It is essential to learn more about the effects of grazing on vegetation and soil in order to design strategies to avoid desertification, perhaps the most serious problem faced by dryland ecosystems. In this paper, we evaluate the changes in the functional traits of the plant community and the biological soil crust induced by the intensification of grazing in Patagonian ecosystems. This description, together with changes in diversity, composition, and ecosystem performance, can help us to understand the mechanisms by which the intensification of sheep grazing could degrade dryland ecosystems. PubDate: 2022-04-01 DOI: 10.7203/metode.13.21553
Authors:Anahi Ocampo, América Lutz-Ley, Adriana Zuñiga, Claudia Cerda, Silvana Goirán Abstract: The drylands of Latin America sustain their countries’ economies. However, governance and economic models focused on exports and the short term have resulted in environmental injustice, unsustainable development, and the promotion of desertification. Addressing development challenges in water-limited ecosystems requires a thorough understanding of their complex socio-environmental interactions. In this document, we examine two of the most important economic activities in Latin American drylands: agriculture and mining. We use representative cases from Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, and Mexico to illustrate the complexity of socio-environmental interactions in which climate change affects the availability of water resources and results in power struggles. We also discuss how the approach to ecosystem services and transdisciplinary research can result in development models that benefit and protect ancestral communities and the ecosystems that make these territories unique. PubDate: 2022-04-01 DOI: 10.7203/metode.13.21458
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