Conservation for Restoration: Identifying priority areas for in situ and ex situ conservation and restoration of native trees
The C4R tool helps to identify priority areas for the conservation and restoration of native tree species. The tool can be used to identify:
- Areas where human threats to the target tree species remain limited, where large and relatively undisturbed populations are predicted to occur. These areas are suitable for expanding in situ conservation through protected areas and other effective area-based conservation measures (OECMs), and as high-quality seed sources for forest restoration.
- Areas where most natural habitats have been converted to other land uses, but which are predicted to remain suitable for the target tree species under future climate conditions. These areas are suitable for forest and landscape restoration with the target tree species.
- Areas predicted to become unsuitable for the target species in a changing climate. These areas should be prioritized for germplasm collection for ex situ conservation of the species’ genetic diversity.
The tool currently covers the following target regions: Southeast Asia, Kenya and Borneo. For Southeast Asia, the tool carries out a region-wide analysis using ecoregions as units of analysis at a spatial resolution of 5 km, while it uses finer-scale seed zones as unit of analysis for Kenya and Borneo, at 1 km resolution. Seed zones are areas with similar environmental conditions, within which planting material can be moved with little risk of maladaptation, and that can be used as proxies for genetic conservation units.
How it works
The tool combines species-specific vulnerability maps with maps of land cover, tree cover, protected areas and tree species richness. Species vulnerability maps are based on a combination of exposure and trait-based sensitivity.
The tool takes into account five main threats to the species’ persistence:
- Habitat conversion (based on cropland coverage and tree plantations)
- Overexploitation (based on human population density, travel time to cities and designated protected areas)
- Fire (based on fire frequency)
- Overgrazing (based on livestock density)
- Climate change (based on the predictions of general circulation models – GCMs)
In the first step, the tool classifies the ecoregions (for Southeast Asia) or seed zones (for Borneo and Kenya) where the selected species occurs into four groups, based on thresholds set by the user: zones that are already sufficiently protected, zones for in situ conservation, zones for restoration, and zones for ex situ conservation. In the second step, the tool identifies, based on criteria weighed by the user, those landscapes within the prioritized zones that are most suitable for conservation and restoration. Possible criteria include the vulnerability of the species to the threats mentioned above, tree cover, the amount of natural habitat in the surroundings, tree species richness, and proximity to protected areas. The resulting maps with prioritized areas for conservation or restoration are shown on an interactive map and can be downloaded as GeoTIFFs. For details on the methodology, see Gaisberger et al. 2021.
Acknowledgements
This work was made possible by the following projects and funding partners:
- The project ‘Benefits of Biodiverse Restoration for Ecosystems and Livelihoods in Borneo’ (BREL), funded by the Global Centre on Biodiversity for Climate (GCBC) and led by the Royal Botanic Garden of Edinburgh (RBGE)
- The project ‘Seed to Tree: Value Chains and partnerships for resilient restored forests’ (2024-2027), funded by the UK Mission to ASEAN through the ASEAN-UK Green Transition Fund programme (GTF).
- The OneCGIAR Initiatives on Nature-Positive Solutions (2022-2024), which address climate resilience and biodiversity conservation, and Mixed Farming Systems (2022-2024), which explore sustainable land-use practices that integrate tree planting with agricultural productivity.
- The project APFORGIS – Establishing an Information System for Conserving Native Tree Species and Their Genetic Resources in Asia-Pacific (2017-2019), which aimed to enhance the conservation and management of native tree species through improved information systems.
Credits
Concept and methodology: Riina Jalonen, Hannes Gaisberger, Tobias Fremout, Evert Thomas
Distribution modelling and vulnerability mapping: Hannes Gaisberger, Tobias Fremout
Trait data compilation: Emmy Goh, Audace Ndikumana, Quincy Mutira, Hannes Gaisberger, Tobias Fremout
Tool development: Tobias Fremout, Camilo Rodríguez
Web development: Camilo Rodríguez