Acknowledging, assessing and enabling the multiple functions of grasslands livestock systems through a participatory process

28 May 2021, 11:00 AM CET

The next Global Agenda for Sustainable Livestock’s webinar “ACKNOWLEDGING, ASSESSING AND ENABLING THE MULTIPLE FUNCTIONS OF GRASSLAND LIVESTOCK SYSTEMS THROUGH A PARTICIPATORY PROCESS” will look at the multiple functions that are provided by livestock grazing systems. 

The webinar will include a plenary session that will outline the context for Action Network 2’s, Restoring Value to Grasslands,  work on Multifunctionality of livestock grazing systems and introduce you to a multifunctional framework; followed by four parallel case study sessions that applied the framework in various regions of the world, and a final plenary session with feedback from the parallel sessions and open discussion.

By participating, you will broaden your understanding of the environmental, economic, social and local development impacts of livestock grazing systems. Hear how to organise constructive conversations with multiple stakeholders around these outcomes and how to factor these outcomes into your thinking and actions (farmer, policy, teacher, researcher, community, and agribusiness).

More information on the parallel sessions:

Parallel Session 1: Multifunctional Services in the Puna grasslands: interdisciplinary work to improve our approach to the pastoralist and natural grasslands in arid environments. One of the most important productive activities in the Puna high plateau (NW Argentine) is the breeding of camels, sheep and goats. The Puna pastoralists their complex web of interactions and provision of multiple functions offered an environment to test the use of a multifunctional framework. You will hear how this framework facilitated an interdisciplinary approach to addressing the issues facing Puna pastoralists. Taking a multifunctionality approach has allowed us to construct a suite of diverse indicators and we share how we have done this. You will learn how we have used this approach to reflect on the present conditions, future scenarios, and how we frame the discussion on sustainability, and put value on goods and services provided by agropastoral systems’. 

Parallel Session 2: Addressing multifunctionality in Sahelian dairy farming with a simulation tool : a multi stakeholders approach to design territorial resilience. Pastoral systems in the Sahel produce a large amount of milk during the rainy season but struggle to maintain their level of production during the dry season. Our case study is based on a dairy company, located in northern Senegal, organizing a milk collection system aiming to provide better access to markets by pastoralists. Farmers adapt every year to access a diversity of biomass, especially along the Senegal river, and the milk collection system must adjust to this. Stakeholders with a diversity of economic & technical interests need to interact collectively to develop a sustainable dairy value chain. The GASL-AN2 team developed a simulation tool based on international & local stakeholder indicators & knowledge to address this issue and you will hear how it is used to encourage exchange of ideas and develop new strategies. 

Parallel Session 3: Uncertain futures for pastoral livestock farming: a multifunctional approach helping a French local community design the future. Trapped between intensification and ecosystem services provision, pastoral farming in the European Mediterranean is under question. Using a multifunctional approach, local debates incorporating the divergent views of local stakeholders about the future of livestock farming were held. These debates were filmed, to support further local discussions. You will see exerts of the film followed by a round table discussion with local attendees, focused on designing  a sustainable future for livestock that is aligned with community perspectives. 

Parallel session 4: Multiple function of grazing systems to support beef cattle development in Northwest Vietnam Increasing animal production and improving the economy of households and territories, through the intensification and development of beef cattle farming systems, is one of the priorities of the mountainous regions of Northwest Vietnam. We will present the use of a multiple function assessment tool of grazing systems to enrich discussions with a diversity of local stakeholders involved in territorial management, investment, and the development of different livestock systems. You will hear from these actors and how their point of view on grazing systems for sustainable development was influenced, by listening to the views of representatives from local authorities, livestock farmer cooperatives, livestock farmers, and extension service workers.