1. The Third Pole of the Planet: The Mountain Research Initiative Dr. Gregory Greenwood MRI Executive Director Mountain research initiative

2. Outline 1.What is the MRI? 2.The Importance of Mountains in Global Change Research 3.GLOCHAMORE 4.Real Projects in Real Places (RP 2 )

3. 1. What is MRI? Origins in IGBP/IHDP (MRI as mountain GLP) Endorsements: MAB, GTOS Supported by SNSF as expression of Swiss foreign and scientific policy

4. MRI and the Global Mountain Biodiversity Assessment are cooperative and complementary programs

5. What is MRI?: Synthesis and Networks

6. 2. Why Are Mountains Important in the Context of Global Change Research? Future climate changes will be amplified in mountain regions Mountains are marginal environments, sensitive to change Changes affecting mountains are felt far beyond mountain regions Population pressures exacerbate environmental changes in mountain regions Significant knowledge gaps hinder our ability to assess changes in mountain regions and to develop adaptation and mitigation strategies Mountains are places where global change will have important repercussions on PEOPLE.

7. IPCC model simulations with 2x CO 2 show temperature increases with altitude °N°S Climate change is amplified in mountain regions Example: The American Cordillera

8. Mountains are important for water supply ALL flow is from mountains Seasonal low flow is all from mountain regions Outside of the tropics, mountains cover 24% of the surface, but yield 46% of the runoff. (% of watershed)

9. Mountains are important for water supply These river basins frequently provide essential water to semi- arid and hyper-arid regions, many tropical 70 % of humanity lives between 30° N and 30° S...

10. Mountains are important for biodiversity Mountain ranges have some of the highest levels of biodiversity on earth

11. 3.glochamore translating “concerns” into “strategy” … establish a framework for long-term research efforts by taking advantage of the infrastructure and ongoing research activities in UNESCO MAB’s Mountain Biosphere Reserves in European countries with the explicit goal of implementing the strategy in mountain Biosphere Reserves around the world, in both developed and developing countries (DoW 2003).

12. Funded under EU Framework Program 6 November 2003 to October 2005 (2 years) Consortium: 13 European, 1 Indian partner Scientific project management : MRI Coordination Office: University of Vienna glochamore facts

13. glochamore approach Global change scientists UNESCO Mountain Biosphere Reserves GLOCHAMORE research strategy

14. UNESCO MAB Mountain biosphere reserves

15. glochamore activities 1) Global environmental and social monitoring May 2004, Vienna, Austria * Global Change Research in Mountain Biosphere Reserves Nov 2003, Entlebuch, Switzerland 2) Projecting Global Change impacts in Mountain Biosphere Reserves (modeling) Nov/Dec 2004, Gran Sasso, Italy 4) Sustainable land use and natural resource management in Mountain Biosphere Reserves Mar 2005, Sierra Nevada, Spain 3) Process studies along altitudinal gradients Jul 2005, Samedan, Switzerland

16. GLOCHAMORE results: Research Strategy by December 2005 but also: Strong community of global change researchers and Mountain Biosphere Reserves glochamore Glochamore Open Science Conference: Perth Scotland - http://fp3demo.mediasite.com

17. Climate Land Use Hydrological Systems Terrestrial Ecosystems Structure and Function Hazards Pests and Diseases Economies Institutions Cryosphere

18. 1) Science content glochamore main lessons learnt 2) Science process Climate Change research must incorporate LUCC Three possibilities to organize Global Change research: Places - Themes - MRI activities Guiding principles

19. 1) Decide on the objectives together glochamore principles of research partnership* 4) Share responsibility 2) Build up mutual trust 5) Create transparency 3) Share information; develop networks 6) Monitor and evaluate the collaboration 7) Disseminate the results 8) Apply the results 9) Share profits equally 10) Increase research capacity 11) Build on the achievements *KFPE 2003

20. 1) Decide on the objectives together glochamore principles of research partnership* 2) Build up mutual trust 10) Increase research capacity *KFPE 2003......

21. 1) Decide on the objectives together glochamore principles of research partnership* 2) Build up mutual trust 10) Increase research capacity *KFPE 2003......

22. 1) Decide on the objectives together glochamore principles of research partnership* 2) Build up mutual trust 10) Increase research capacity *KFPE 2003......

23. Premise: implementation of a research program will require adaptation to conditions and issues in each reserve: a generic research strategy will remain “on the shelf” Observation: workshops insufficient to gather information from reserves First step: a survey of individual MBRs glochamore survey of mountain biosphere reserves

24. The Questions Which different groups care about the reserves and why? Which resources and which interest groups are likely to be affected by global change, especially climate change as it affects the reserve? Will climate change exacerbated any existing or create any new natural hazards? What are the contentious scientific issues associated with your reserve? glochamore survey of mountain biosphere reserves

25. Top Five: Active Recreation (16/20) Water supply or quality (16/20) Tourism (16/20) Forests, timber, fuel wood (15/20) Grazing lands, meadows (13/20) glochamore survey of mountain biosphere reserves

26. Next Seven: Fire (12/20) Earth movements (12/20) Research or education (12/20) Resource conflict, governance (11/20) Endangered species (11/20) Floods (11/20) Snow cover (11/20) glochamore survey of mountain biosphere reserves

27. MRI effort to define “real projects in real places with real people that really work” MRI seeks involvement of not just MBRs but any sites RP 2 seeks to move from “research priorities” to “who will do what, where, when and for how much?” 4. RP 2 real projects in real places

28. RP 2 real projects in real places A final strategy would show What (the themes and the levels) will happen in Which MBRs and WHAT OTHER SITES Inside each cell, Who will do monitoring, modeling, etc.

29. RP 2 sites which might be appropriate for SHARE-Asia? Existing or proposed high-elevation sites appropriate for RP 2 ? IGBP/IHDP context for observational studies? Planning for impact principles RP 2 and SHARE-Asia

30. Thank you A Program for the Third Pole