Unit 1.3. Entry Points for assessing landscape level measures

Organizations and situations that may benefit from measuring landscape performance are many and varied. ‘Entry points’ are defined as the reasons different actors have for initiating an outcome measures activity’. It is useful to characterize prospective `entry points’ into landscape performance assessment to help anticipate how and by whom the process might be initiated and managed under different circumstances. This insight can help inform the choice of partners, their roles in the process, and also help identify where to seek assistance.
Cocoa inspection

Some characteristic ‘entry points’ into multifunctional landscape assessment include the situations identified below. In some instances, we have provided links to case studies of the various situations:

Bilateral development assistance programs investing in agriculture initiatives that are intended to positively affect biodiversity conservation and local livelihoods, wish to know in which of several regions the approach is likely to be feasible, and how coordination of interventions at different scales affects the outcome. (Madagascar, ERI, Freudenberger).
Farming communities promoting the adoption of alternative agricultural practices that are hypothesized to have positive outcomes at landscape scale want to know what the effects would be of scaling up ecofriendly agricultural practices from household to community and regional scales, so that it can qualify for grant support from different environment and development organizations. (KENVO in Kijabe)
Policy makers want to know the effects on deforestation of competing land uses in extractive reserves in the central Amazon. (Central Brazil, CI, Schroth) Field managers and coordination entities of multi-sectorial landscape level government projects need to document and justify external investments in transboundary protected area management (IUCN, Mt Elgon MERECP). Consortia of companies and conservation organizations wish to show that biodiversity offsets can have landscape level impacts (Central America, BBOP). C
Conservation organizations aim to generate local support for national or international protected area delineation or boundary modification (IUCN).
A multi-lateral lending organization investing in landscape restoration wants to know what the environmental, social and economic effects are of a variety of forestry interventions. (W. Bank forestry sector sourcebook)
A federation of farmers organizations wants to know if investment in organic bananas results in better ecoagricultural outcomes than conventional production practices, and under what conditions. (Atlantic rainforest, Brazil, A. Gonzales)
A conservation organization that has supported cacao-based agriculture in a biodiversity hot spot wonders how to adapt its intervention strategy if the production system succumbs to disease and reduced profit margins. (Bahia, Brazil, Schroth)

A PES pilot initiative seeks information to link payments to farmers for land use performance (Land Use on Cattle Farms, Center for Research on Sustainable Agriculture Systems and CATIE).
A research group using a ‘negotiation support’ approach seeks to know the effects of farmers adapting their agricultural practices to emerging markets for eco-brands (ICRAF in SE Asia).
A forest certification entity seeks to establish certification standards for wood production in mixed landscape mosaics. (Model Forests in Central America).
Federations of Landcare organizations seek to learn what the landscape scale impacts are from community-based initiatives to adopt agroecological practices. (Landcare in Philippines, Ethiopia/Uganda, Australia).
Crop and soil science researchers develop ecoagricultural landscape performance indicators from chronosequence of land use history and soil fertility. (Cornell University-ICRAF in Western Kenya).
A grassroots development organization promoting sustainable agriculture as a livelihood enhancement strategy examine impacts of SRI (system of rice intensification) practices on productivity and livelihood security. (RASTA in India).