ifwfabs6

=2-Pager Abstract Template for NBDC Contributions to South Africa Forum=

1. Authors
Authors: **Mulugeta Lemenih*, Deborah Bossio, Katherine Synder, Bahrat Sharma and Tilahun Amede** Project Number: **N2** E-mail address of lead author: **m.lemenih@cgiar.org**



2. Forum session
//Which session this 2-pager is contributing to (delete whatever does NOT apply)//

2. Core TWG Resilience

3. Title
Ecosystem services and socio-ecological resilience of a landscape: case study from three catchments in the Blue Nile basin of Ethiopia

4. Key message/highlights
The **s** tate of the existing bundle of ecosystem services of a landscape is a useful proxy for assessing trends in socio-ecological resilience (SER) for two reasons:
 * 1) the state of the bundle of ecosystem services is the product of interaction of the four core variables in the Socio-Ecological System (SES) structure proposed by Ostrom (Ostrom, 2007, 2009, Figure 1A); hence determine the outcome or the SER;
 * 2) the state of ecosystem services of a landscape determine the response diversity (e.g. livelihood diversity, institutional diversity, etc.), buffering capacity (persistence), adaptive potential as well as transformability in SES, hence its SER.

This study demonstrates the use of the bundle of ecosystem services (ESs) as proxy to assess development trajectories in SES, and thus trends in SER. It is based on study from three Nile Basin districts in Ethiopia namely Fogera, Diga and Jeldu. Both primary (qualitative) and secondary data were collected. Analysis employed Ostrom’s proposed SES structure (Figure 1A). The followings were the major findings: 1) In the Resource System, there has been a progressive intensification of extraction of ecological resources in all three sites, through a successional transformation of livelihood activities including the use of technologies such as inputs (improved varieties and fertilizers) that enhance adaptive capacities of SES; 2) In the governance system in general, social capitals are thinning, traditional collective actions are waning and traditional knowledge and practices are declining, while state supported social capital are trying to replace the traditional systems; 3) The sites exhibited different SES dynamics due to differences in the natural resource base, cultural conditions and differences in disturbance regimes; 4) Overall, the landscape supply of ecosystem services is declining, except for crop production and biomass (e.g. Figure 1B); 5) Development trajectories showed a downward spiral in all sites but along different paths for the three cases, and 6) It is proposed that this trajectory results in weakening resilience or increasing vulnerability (Figure 2).
 * //Short abstract//** //(150 words) including://

Generally, evidence of links between the bundle of ecosystem services in a landscape and SER is rare and this makes this particular study interesting. The findings of this study suggest management of a landscape should focus to enhance supply of diversity ecosystem services to insure SER.


 * //Add a visual representation (i.e. graph, chart or figure to highlight emerging results)//**


 * //Your preliminary highlights for the Forum capitalizing sessions//**

ESs affect response diversity, buffer capacity, adaptability and/or transformability of SES, hence affect SER. Therefore, the current state of the bundle of ESs in a landscape provides a useful proxy for analyzing trends in SER. The implication is that to manage a landscape for sustainability there is a need to target managing multiplicity of ESS.