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Stakeholder Alliance Facilitates Re-Introduction Of Prescribed Fire On The Borana Plateau Of Southern Ethiopia, D. Layne Coppock, Getachew Gebru, Solomon Desta, Lemma Gizachew, Dadhi Amosha, Feyissa Taffa Dec 2007

Stakeholder Alliance Facilitates Re-Introduction Of Prescribed Fire On The Borana Plateau Of Southern Ethiopia, D. Layne Coppock, Getachew Gebru, Solomon Desta, Lemma Gizachew, Dadhi Amosha, Feyissa Taffa

Environment and Society Faculty Publications

The implementation of a new prescribed fire program to restore bush-encroached rangelands in southern Ethiopia—and hence increase herbaceous forage supplies for livestock—is given as an example of an integrated action involving multiple institutions to address resource-management problems. The resumption of planned fire—traditionally conducted over hundreds of years by pastoralists until the 1970s—was preceded by key activities including mobilization of the pastoral community, review of government proclamations regarding use of fire, interaction with policy makers, capacity building among pastoralists and agency personnel on how to implement and manage planned fires, development of an overall prescribed burn plan, selection of geo-referenced sites, …


Public Engagement To Prioritize The Pastoral Research Agenda At The Pastoral And Agro-Pastoral Research Center Of Oari In Ethiopia, D. Layne Coppock, Getachew Gebru, Lemma Gizachew, Sintayehu Mesele, Mohammed Hassena, Solomon Desta Dec 2006

Public Engagement To Prioritize The Pastoral Research Agenda At The Pastoral And Agro-Pastoral Research Center Of Oari In Ethiopia, D. Layne Coppock, Getachew Gebru, Lemma Gizachew, Sintayehu Mesele, Mohammed Hassena, Solomon Desta

Environment and Society Faculty Publications

The Oromia Agricultural Research Institute (OARI) has a mandate to conduct agricultural and livestock research throughout the Regional State of Oromia in Ethiopia. OARI has recently opened a facility near Yabello town on the Borana Plateau called the Pastoral and Agro-Pastoral Research Center. A meeting was held in August 2006 at Yabello that involved representatives from pastoral communities, the private sector, government, and non-governmental organizations. The aim was to engage stakeholders in a process of problem prioritization and set the stage to create new partnerships to better address pressing problems. The final priorities included: addressing a general decline in forage …


Changes In Land Cover And Soil Conditions For The Yabelo District Of The Borana Plateau, 1973-2003, D. Layne Coppock, Sintayehu Mesele, Heluf Gebrekidan, Lemma Gizachew Dec 2006

Changes In Land Cover And Soil Conditions For The Yabelo District Of The Borana Plateau, 1973-2003, D. Layne Coppock, Sintayehu Mesele, Heluf Gebrekidan, Lemma Gizachew

Environment and Society Faculty Publications

It has been proposed that the Borana Plateau has markedly changed in terms of land cover and land use in recent decades, but no hard data have been available to critically assess this claim. In addition, systematic analysis of soil properties has been limited. Research was designed to measure changes in land cover/land use over 30 years in the 400-km2 Yabelo District of southern Ethiopia using three satellite images taken at an average interval of 15 years. Samples were also collected to assess variation in the physical and chemical properties of dominant soils. Results indicated that Yabelo District has indeed …


From Herd Diversification To Livelihood Diversification As A Response To Poverty: The Case Of The Waso Boran Of Northern Kenya, D. Layne Coppock, Abdullahi D. Jillo, Abdillahi A. Aboud Dec 2006

From Herd Diversification To Livelihood Diversification As A Response To Poverty: The Case Of The Waso Boran Of Northern Kenya, D. Layne Coppock, Abdullahi D. Jillo, Abdillahi A. Aboud

Environment and Society Faculty Publications

The Waso Boran of northern Kenya used to have large, mobile, and diverse herds of livestock that exploited equally large and diverse rangelands. Forty years of human population growth, drought, environmental change, and lack of relevant policies have altered this situation, however, with the majority of Waso Boran today being livestock poor and engaged in a variety of non-pastoral activities to diversify their livelihoods. One-third of 540 households we surveyed in Isiolo District now have ten head of cattle or less, and a larger census suggests that only 15 percent of households can currently be categorized as mobile pastoralists. The …


Community Perceptions Concerning Key Ecological Resources At Risk In Baringo District, Kenya, D. Layne Coppock, Mark N. Mutinda, Abdillahi A. Aboud Dec 2006

Community Perceptions Concerning Key Ecological Resources At Risk In Baringo District, Kenya, D. Layne Coppock, Mark N. Mutinda, Abdillahi A. Aboud

Environment and Society Faculty Publications

Key ecological resources in arid and semi-arid lands are often characterized by small patches of seasonal grazing and important water points that lend critical support to entire production systems. When key resources are degraded or lost, production systems can be badly compromised. The Baringo District of north-central Kenya is well known for enduring decades of environmental degradation and food relief. As an initial part of an effort to map and characterize key ecological resources at risk in Baringo, we interviewed 136 resident leaders from pastoral and agro-pastoral areas. We asked them to identify and rank their most vulnerable ecological resources, …


Collective Action By Women’S Groups To Combat Drought And Poverty In Northern Kenya, D. Layne Coppock, Solomon Desta, Getachew Gebru, Adan Wako, Ibrahim Aden, Chachu Tadecha, Seyoum Tezera Dec 2006

Collective Action By Women’S Groups To Combat Drought And Poverty In Northern Kenya, D. Layne Coppock, Solomon Desta, Getachew Gebru, Adan Wako, Ibrahim Aden, Chachu Tadecha, Seyoum Tezera

Environment and Society Faculty Publications

Collective action can be an effective means of local development and risk reduction among rural people, but few examples have been documented in pastoral areas. We conducted extensive interviews for 16 women’s groups residing in northern Kenya. Our objectives were to understand how groups were formed, governed, and sustained and what activities they have pursued. The groups we interviewed were 10 years old, on average. Charter memberships averaged about 24 women, 20 of whom were illiterate. Half of the groups formed after facilitation by a development partner and half formed spontaneously. Groups are governed under detailed constitutional frameworks with elected …


Agro-Pastoralists’ Wrath For The Prosopis Tree: The Case Of The Il Chamus Of Baringo District, Kenya, D. Layne Coppock, Abdillahi A. Aboud, Phillip K. Kisoyan Dec 2005

Agro-Pastoralists’ Wrath For The Prosopis Tree: The Case Of The Il Chamus Of Baringo District, Kenya, D. Layne Coppock, Abdillahi A. Aboud, Phillip K. Kisoyan

Environment and Society Faculty Publications

Indigenous to Peru, Chile, and Argentina, the woody plant called Prosopis juliflora (also known by the American common name of “Honey Mesquite”) has spread world-wide in recent decades, including rangelands throughout Latin America, North America, south and central Asia, Australia, and sub-Saharan Africa. A species known for rapid establishment, high adaptability, and fast rates of growth, its dispersal has primarily been a consequence of intentional introduction by well- meaning “technical experts” who wanted to provide a new source of fodder, fuel wood, or a means to combat desertification in arid and semi-arid lands. One problem, however, is that unless Prosopis …


Linking Pastoralists And Exporters In A Livestock Marketing Chain: Recent Experiences From Ethiopia, D. Layne Coppock, Solomon Desta, Getachew Gebru, Seyoum Tezera Dec 2005

Linking Pastoralists And Exporters In A Livestock Marketing Chain: Recent Experiences From Ethiopia, D. Layne Coppock, Solomon Desta, Getachew Gebru, Seyoum Tezera

Environment and Society Faculty Publications

The Boran of southern Ethiopia have been traditionally viewed as unwilling or unable to engage in large scale, commercialized livestock trade. Here we report on the creation of a new livestock marketing chain from the Borana Plateau to export outlets largely serving the Gulf States. Since 2003 various meetings and exchange tours were organized by collaborating agencies and PARIMA to directly link pastoral producers with livestock exporters and policy makers. This occurred against a backdrop of growing export demand for small ruminants, rapid development of private export industry, formation of well-trained pastoral marketing groups (often dominated by women), and provision …


Degree Of Sedentarization Affects Risks And Conflicts For The Waso Boran In Northern Kenya, D. Layne Coppock, Abdullahi D. Jillo, Mark N. Mutinda, Abdilla A. Aboud Dec 2005

Degree Of Sedentarization Affects Risks And Conflicts For The Waso Boran In Northern Kenya, D. Layne Coppock, Abdullahi D. Jillo, Mark N. Mutinda, Abdilla A. Aboud

Environment and Society Faculty Publications

The Waso Borana have lived for over a century in northern Kenya. In the last few decades, however, their ability to maintain their traditions has been severely challenged. Here we report survey results from 540 households in Isiolo District, stratified among three groups differing in terms of lifestyle: sedentary, semi-sedentary, and mobile. In some cases these groups vary with respect to important perceived risks, causes of natural-resource related conflict, and possible solutions to conflict. For example, sedentary respondents often noted concerns over land tenure problems, human diseases, and political incitement. Mobile respondents, in contrast, often noted primary concerns over drought, …


Pastoral Risk Management In Southern Ethiopia: Observations From Pilot Projects Based On Participatory Community Assessments, D. Layne Coppock, Solomon Desta, Seyoum Tezera, Rancis K. Lelo Aug 2004

Pastoral Risk Management In Southern Ethiopia: Observations From Pilot Projects Based On Participatory Community Assessments, D. Layne Coppock, Solomon Desta, Seyoum Tezera, Rancis K. Lelo

Environment and Society Faculty Publications

The Borana pastoral system has come under increasing pressure as human populations grow and per capita availability of resources declines. Livestock exhibit large, periodic die-offs that threaten wealth accumulation and food security. Several types of interventions may improve risk management here. For example, there may be opportunity for some pastoralists to diversify their livelihoods. Here we report on a community-based process involving pilot projects begun since 2000. We have embraced Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) and Action Research (AR) as tools for investigation and empowerment of local people. Full PRAs were conducted for semi-settled communities, located near towns, to identify priority …


Long-Range Transportation Planning In Utah: Summary Of Research Results From A Statewide Telephone Survey., Douglas Reiter, Dale Blahna, Steve Burr, Christina Klien, Joanna Endter-Wada, Judith Kurtzman, Michael Butkus, Douglas Gibbons Sep 2003

Long-Range Transportation Planning In Utah: Summary Of Research Results From A Statewide Telephone Survey., Douglas Reiter, Dale Blahna, Steve Burr, Christina Klien, Joanna Endter-Wada, Judith Kurtzman, Michael Butkus, Douglas Gibbons

Environment and Society Faculty Publications

This is the final Report from Phase I of the 2003 Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT) Benchmark Study. The study involved two phases and the USU research team produced two final reports, one for each phase of the research project, and an overarching Executive Summary. The purposes of the 2003 UDOT Benchmark Study conducted by Utah State University (USU) were to provide the Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT) with information for use in its statewide, long-range transportation plan and to provide benchmark data for tracking trends over time. The study was conducted jointly by the Institute for Outdoor Recreation and …


For Pastoralists The Risk May Be In The Drinking Water: The Case Of Kargi, N. Kenya, D. Layne Coppock, William A. Shivoga May 2003

For Pastoralists The Risk May Be In The Drinking Water: The Case Of Kargi, N. Kenya, D. Layne Coppock, William A. Shivoga

Environment and Society Faculty Publications

Inadequate quantity of water is a common problem for pastoral people in East Africa. For the Rendille community of Kargi in northern Kenya, however, water quality has also been identified as a critical issue. Residents report that water-borne diseases commonly affect human health in dry seasons, and livestock may die soon after drinking water from some of the older, deep wells. We collected water samples from four key wells and one earthen dam to analyze physiochemical and bacteriological quality. Preliminary results indicated that the centrally located, oldest wells tested far below technical quality guidelines in several respects. Especially notable were …


Pastoralism Under Pressure: Tracking System Change In Southern Ethiopia, D. Layne Coppock, Solomon Desta May 2003

Pastoralism Under Pressure: Tracking System Change In Southern Ethiopia, D. Layne Coppock, Solomon Desta

Environment and Society Faculty Publications

While economic development has proven elusive in African pastoral systems, change is pervasive. The Kajiado Maasai, for example, have endured declines in terms of per capita livestock holdings and other aspects of human welfare over the past 50 years. Activity diversification has occurred in Maasailand as the population copes with pressure from human population growth. We surveyed up to 317 Borana households during the late 1990s to see if similar patterns occurred in southern Ethiopia. Once viewed as an example of sustainable pastoralism, the Borana system now confronts numerous challenges. Decline in per capita cattle holdings has spurred household-level diversification …


Linking Ethiopian And Kenyan Pastoralists & Strengthening Cross-Border Collaboration, D. Layne Coppock, Solomon Desta Jan 2002

Linking Ethiopian And Kenyan Pastoralists & Strengthening Cross-Border Collaboration, D. Layne Coppock, Solomon Desta

Environment and Society Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.


Risk Mapping For Northern Kenya And Southern Ethiopia, D. Layne Coppock Dec 2001

Risk Mapping For Northern Kenya And Southern Ethiopia, D. Layne Coppock

Environment and Society Faculty Publications

We used results from 120 group interviews collected in 1998 to quantify how inhabitants across northern Kenya and southern Ethiopia perceive and rank various risks to their livelihoods. We also mapped risk patterns using Global Positioning System (GPS) coordinates. Respondents recognized 15 sources of risk overall, with the most common being reliable access to food and water. Other risks were not mentioned by a majority of respondents and reflected diversity in local situations. Country of residence, wealth class, gender, and predominant means of food production (pastoralism, agro-pastoralism, and farming) influenced risk ranking. For example, wealthy males were most concerned about …