Mid-mountain adaptation to climate change

Key Learnings

• Large-scale implementation: A more heterogeneous landscape with a mix of crops, forests and grazing areas increases ecosystem resilience. Enabling better climate change adaptation of communities in Mediterranean mountain areas.
• Ecological benefits: Adequate land management such as pasture recovery and appropriate livestock management, results in key ecological benefits. It improves soil quality, increases water runoff, controls soil erosion, supports biodiversity, and provides a buffer against extreme weather.
• Stakeholder engagement: This is key to achieving good governance, meaning more inclusive decision-making, better transparency and improved accountability in landscape management, as well as assuring more successful implementation.

Summary

The mountain areas of southern Europe are highly sensitive to climate change impacts, such as droughts and forest fires. During recent decades rural abandonment and the reduction of socio-economic activity have also caused the progressive loss of the characteristic landscape mosaic and led to a unification of the mountain slopes. These processes have reduced the Ecosystem Services the mountain areas provide, which is why it is important to promote the recovery of the agro-silvo-pastoral mosaic. This landscape management type contributes to reversing land abandonment and adapting the Mediterranean mid-mountain areas to climate change. Stakeholder involvement allowed prioritising tailormade adaptation actions and including them in public policies.

Contact

Diana Pascual Sánchez: d [dot] pascualcreaf [dot] uab [dot] cat (d[dot]pascual[at]creaf[dot]uab[dot]cat)