Modelling future potential livestock sector strategies
In this research line, we take a systems level perspective integrating land use, feed, and animal level indicators to produce simplified representations of key livestock system indicators. Such indicators allow assessment of interactions between competing objectives of climate mitigation and adaptation, conservation, productivity and livelihoods to better manage regional livestock systems for grand challenges in 21st century food systems. Our model applications in particular enable assessing the feasibility of livestock system interventions and policies ex-ante and can be run at a spatially disaggregated (gridcell) scale and in forward looking assessments, providing necessary criteria for policy makers and development practitioners to predict and design interventions across a diversity of regional livestock systems and future states.
Our current projects include:
Digital technologies to Increase the Sustainability of African Livestock systems under climate risks (DISAL)
African livestock stand at the forefront of global environmental change, including changing temperature and rainfall patterns, and downstream effects of market and societal shocks. Livestock on the continent also contribute significantly to global environmental burdens, including land degradation and deforestation, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and water pollution. Recent advances in the sophistication and affordability of digital technologies are enabling African farmers to overcome longstanding hurdles involved in management of livestock to improve environmental performance and profitability alike. Collaborating with partners at University of Queensland (UQ) and the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), this project combines in-field data collected from select East African sites with modelling tools to better understand potential impacts of transformative digital technologies on the sector. Through three doctoral studentships (2 with TUM and 1 with UQ), the project will provide a thorough examination of in-field methods using unmanned aerial vehicles or drones, combined with state-of-the art environmental and economic assessments resulting from adoption of novel digital technologies. This project is part of the International Project Teams program which fosters doctoral training in high-level research projects, and collaborations between TUM and international partners.