The project (NE-J ) is funded with support from the United Kingdom’s Ecosystem Services for Poverty Alleviation program (ESPA). ESPA receives its funding from the Department for International Development (DFID), the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) and the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC). | facebook/espaassets | The link between the health of our planet and the health and prosperity of people is becoming more understood and recognised. How can we assure that everyone – especially the world’s poorest people – have access to the services nature provides while also anticipating consequences that may negatively impact our environment? When we responsibly manage nature’s resources, we ensure the continued supply of fresh water, nutrient-rich soil, food and other ecosystem services. There is an urgent need for data and analytical tools that will inform and guide sustainable development. The ASSETS project is an interdisciplinary, four-year initiative that aims to undertake world-class research on how ecosystem services provided by forests interconnect with poverty alleviation. The overall goal is to explicitly quantify the linkages between the natural ecosystem services that affect – and are affected by – food security and nutritional health for the rural poor at the forest-agricultural interface. Methodological Framework The framework integrates the modelling tools and the DP-SIR approach to evaluate drivers, pressures and impact on ES over multiple spatial and temporal scales. inspiring leadership for a sustainable world Contact Professor Guy Poppy DPhil CBiol FSB Director of Multidisciplinary Research Director of University Strategic Research Groups Professor of Ecology Life Sciences Building University of Southampton Meet the Team Southampton University: Prof. Guy Poppy (PI) Prof. Nyovani Madise Prof. Barrie Margetts Dr. Kate Schreckenberg Dr. Felix Eigenbrod Dr. Malcolm Hudson Dr. Carlos Torres Vitolas Dr. Simon Willcock Mrs. Carolin Bothe-Tews Conservation International: Dr. Miroslav Honzak Dr. Celia Harvey Mr. Erwin Palacios Chancellor College, University of Malawi, and LEAD South East Africa: Prof. Sosten Chiotha Mr. Welton Phalira Dr. Dalitso Kafumbata WorldFish: Dr. Joseph Nagoli Rhodes University : Prof. Charlie Shakleton International Centre for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT): Dr. Andrew Jarvis Ms. Carolina Navarrete Frias Ms. Marcela Quintero Dr. Gisella Cruz-García BC3 Basque Centre for Climate Change: Prof. Ferdinando Villa Dr. Elena Pérez-Miñana Dundee University: Prof. Terry Dawson ASSETS will develop modeling and risk management tools that integrate three key components: 1.drivers, pressures and linkages between food security, nutritional health and ecosystem services 2.crises and tipping points: past, present and future interactions between food insecurity and ecosystem services at the forest-agricultural interface 3.the science-policy interface: How can we manage ecosystem services to reduce food insecurity and increase nutritional health? The project will deliver data from a range of sources and in various formats to inform policies affecting the lives of 2 million poor people living in three regions of Malawi and Colombia. It is hoped that our work can serve as an effective model to help 550 million people living in similar environments around the world. facebook.com/espaassets youtube.com/espaassets flickr.com/espaassets Attaining Sustainable Services from Ecosystems through Trade-off Scenarios - ASSETS Ecosystem Services for Poverty Alleviation (ESPA) funded multidisciplinary research project (May 2012 to April 2016) Example of the complex interactions of multiple ecosystem services from forests and their direct and indirect contribution to food security for different beneficiary groups. Note that most arrows could be multi-directional as feedbacks exist between all levels. References 1 Dawson, T.P. & Perryman, A.H Climate change impacts on food security: A re-analysis of malnutrition estimates under the SRES scenarios using the FEEDME model and historical famine events, Food Security and Environmental Change, University of Oxford, UK.; Pidgeon, J.D. et al. (inc Poppy, G.M.) Mitigation of indirect environmental effects of GM crops. Biol. Sciences, 274, Photos All photos were taken by ASSETS team members (Miroslav Honzak, Simon Willcock and Carlos Torres-Vitolas)