RS2PRM: Remote Sensing to support Participatory Rangeland Management planning

Swiss partners

• Bern University of Applied Sciences BFH: Pascale Waelti-Maumier (main applicant), Matteo Jucker Riva

Partners in the MENA region

• Ecole nationale forestière d'ingénieurs ENFI, Salé, Morocco: Mohamed Qarro (main applicant)

Presentation of the projet

The Remote Sensing to Participatory Rangeland Management RS2RPM project aimed at building a prototype methodology to create remote-sensing based assessment of vegetation that can support participatory planning processes, especially with reference to semi-arid areas where conflicts between forest-conservation and grazing arise. BFHHAFL (main partner) and the ENFI (Ecole National Forestière d’Ingénieurs, MENA region partner) collaborated to identify needs and knowledge gaps in rangeland management processes, and how they could be addressed by remote sensing. The project used two watersheds in the region of Midelt (High Atlas) as case study for the RSPRM project, collaborating with existing rangeland management and rehabilitation projects (FAO project FAO/GCP/MOR/048/SWI- Gestion participative et Intégrée des bassins versants pour la lutte contre l'érosion), in order to verify the outcomes of RS2PRM project in a “real-world” setting. 

In summary, the following activities have been undertaken:

1. The BFH-HAFL and ENFI teams have been engaged in an exchange of literature and knowledge related to: a) Rangeland and forest management experiences in Morocco b) Current understanding and implementation of participatory methodologies for land management c) Remote sensing methodologies and applications relevant to the study case. This knowledge exchange process led to the organization of a conference / workshop, organised at the Ecole Nationale Forestière d’Ingénieurs (MENA partner) on the 13.06.2019 titled “Tool and experience for the participatory management of rangelands and forests”.
2. In collaboration with the FAO Midelt office, the BFH-HAFL and ENFI teams have evaluated and selected tools for disseminating information derived from remote sensing to non-experts, developing a prototype web page and presenting it to users through multiple rounds of improvements. This process took the shape of informal exchanges between Foresters, FAO personnel and the BFH-HAFL and ENFI teams over multiple rounds, were a hybrid GIS-remote sensing Information System was set up.
3. Through networking in Morocco and beyond project participants have sought to find further financings that could allow to continue project activities. Project participants have thus built a proposal submitted to the MENA innovation call and have collaborated with a consortium of institutions in the development of an extensive proposal submitted for funding to EU Horizon2020 call “Human Dynamics of climate Change: Climate services for Africa”. Further, results from the project were presented to the « Haut Commissariat aux Eaux Et Forêts et à la Lutte Contre la Désertification » (HCEFLCD) and the Midelt region authorities.

More on this project

Webpage presenting the main outputs of the project