Training forestry professionals – the key to optimise carbon sinks trough adapted forest management
EUKI project Forests for Future organised a series of workshops to educate decision makers and forestry professionals on the importance of active management in optimising the management of forest carbon stocks and adapting forests to the impacts of climate change.
This publications offers insight on methods on “how to improve humus balances in organic arable farms with low livestock numbers” and gives a short summary of the field trip in general.
Peatland Farming to Mitigate Climate Change
Climate Action Starts on Your Plate – Plant-Based Alternatives
Climate action starts on your plate and is thanks to a huge selection of plant-based alternatives very easy nowadays. Two EUKI projects raise awareness among young people and adults on this topic.
Training sessions for the new volunteers
September marked the arrival of 6 new volunteers from Germany and France to the Humus per la Biosfera project in Sicily. Most of them will stay for one year to contribute to our project on humus growth and environmental education with school children.
On the occasion of its 5th anniversary, the European Climate Initiative (EUKI) published an interactive e-paper. The previous achievements and future orientation of the initiative are clearly listed in words and figures.
Humus per la Biosfera – Start of Soil Analysis
From the community
©Giacche Verdi Bronte
In June we started a series of soil tests on experimental fields near Bronte with the University of Catania. The humus content and growth will be measured over the next ten years using various factors. This long term investigation aims to gain a better understanding of possible humus-building agricultural measures.
Group visit of project members on site ©Giacche Verdi Bronte
The research takes place in three different fields near Bronte: An organic olive grove, a traditional organic olive-pistachio grove and an intensively cultivated almond-pistachio grove. The last two directly border each other and are well suited for a comparison of soil attributes and soil biodiversity between organic cultivation and pesticide and artificial fertiliser use. Already in the winter semester 21/22, we conducted a comparative arthropoda study here with interns.
Prof. Paolo Guarnaccia (second from left) from the University of Catania and his students took vertical soil samples for lab analysis of porosity, CO2-oxygen respiration and other factors.
Students and volunteers placed a metal ring in the ground, covered with foil, to distribute a certain amount of water evenly in the ring by quickly pulling away the foil. The time during which the water percolates into the earth gives clues about the soil’s porosity and compression.
Surrounded by volunteers Dr. Andrea Zimone (left) took topsoil samples for analyzing the soil biological quality, based on microarthropods.
Prof. Domenico Longo (above) measured the soil respiration. The lower part of his self made CO2 accumulation chamber is an empty cylinder, which is open above the ground. The upper part contains the electronics which are able to measure the rise of CO2 concentration from the ground, starting with the amount equal to the surrounding air (400 ppm). The soil releases CO2 from the microbial respiration – the faster the graph rises, the more microorganisms are present. The device also measures temperature, humidity and pressure.
The analysis will continue regularly.
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Climate Action at Mount Etna – Years of Work bear Fruit
Planting trees, growing vegetables, composting waste – climate action and nature conservation can be very practical and fun. This is something the Manfred-Hermsen-Stiftung and local conservation organisation Giacche Verdi Bronte have been teaching for several years now through three projects funded by the European Climate Initiative (EUKI).
This guide is designed to inspire educators, organizations, and government agencies to address the connection between our eating habits and climate change in an educational and interactive way.
With food production accounting for up to 37 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions, changing individual dietary habits plays a critical role in combating climate change. In this toolkit “Educational Tools To Approach Food Sustainability – Toolkit of Activities”, the EUKI project Bringing Climate Action to the Table has put together activities that will serve as an inspiration for educators, organisations and government agencies to address the relationship between our eating habits and climate change in formal, non-formal or informal settings in an educational and interactive way.
Educational Tools To Approach Food Sustainability: Toolkit