Taking Land Use Change out of Commodity Production in Savannahs and Grasslands through Policy Engagement, Land Use Planning and Best Management Practices

The species-rich savannahs, grasslands and wetlands in Llanos, Colombia and the Pantanal in Paraguay are being increasingly threatened by the expansion of agriculture. The project therefore plans and implements more climate-friendly land use and management in these two regions in order to increase agricultural production, while at the same time protecting natural areas and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. It disseminates knowledge on ecosystem services, sustainable land use and the relevant resources to national and regional authorities, and conducts pilot projects to demonstrate climate and biodiversity-friendly agriculture. Through cooperation with the financial sector, environmental and social risks are also to be integrated into financial strategies for oil palm, soya and livestock production. In this way, the project not only reduces soil degradation, it also has a positive impact on the forest ecosystems and water resources in the region .

Project data

Countries: Colombia, Paraguay
IKI funding: 4,255,950.73 €
Duration: 09/2016 till 09/2020
Status: completed
Implementing organisation: World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) - Germany
Political Partner: Government of Alto Paraguay Department - Paraguay

Institute for Hydrology, Meteorology and Environmental Studies (IDEAM) - Colombia

Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock - Paraguay

Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development - Colombia

Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development (MinAmbiente) - Colombia

Municipality of Bahia Negra - Paraguay

National Federation of Oil Palm Producers (Fedepalma) - Colombia

Paraguayan Institute of the Indigenous People (INDI) - Paraguay

Regional Environmental Authority of Meta - Colombia

Secretary of the Environment (SEAM) - Paraguay
Implementing Partner: World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) - Colombia

World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) - Paraguay
Online: https://globallandusechange.org/en/projects/land-use-change-in-savannas-and-grasslands/why-sulu2/

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State of implementation/results

WWF started the monthly online dialogue “Global Grasslands and Savannah Dialogue Platform” on zoom. The online format was chosen, as the IUCN World Conservation Congress 2020 in Marseille was cancelled due to the worldwide Covid 19 crisis. Agendas and recordings can be found here: sites.google.com/… The website will be moved to the Sulu project website www.globallandusechange.org
Within the “Global Grasslands and Savannah Dialogue Platform” the project held a closing conference on September 29th with presentations about the project and lessons learned in front of 63 participants from science, policy and civil society. The Minister of Environment and Sustainable Development of Paraguay acknowledged in a video message the support he received by IKI-BMU through the Sulu project. Link: www.youtube.com/…
The journal “Restoration Ecology” accepted an article of the project team for publication, “Grasslands and savannahs in the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration”: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/…
A dissertation of the Humboldt University of Berlin "A Framework for Community-based Governance in Grasslands and Savannahs of South America has been developed within and supported by the Sulu project: www.zalf.de/…
Colombia: The “Low-carbon best management practices associated with sustainable palm oil production in Colombia" have been published, which include the identification and description of low carbon BMPs for Palm Oil in Piedmont and the GHG inventory tool
Paraguay: A "Guide for Strengthening Community Governance in the Paraguayan Pantanal" has been designed and published as a result of the inclusive workshop on community governance in Bahía Negra. It was published in the institutional website of WWF Paraguay: www.wwf.org.py/…
A children's drawing contest "Draw how you imagine the Pantanal" was carried out by WWF Paraguay with the support of the Scouts Association of Paraguay to connect children with nature through art. The contest allowed more than 280 children to share their vision of the Pantanal and its biodiversity bit.ly/…
A virtual trip to National Parks was carried out to create awareness about their importance at the National Day of National Parks on 21 June 2020. Through educational videos, the most representative characteristics of seven conservation units with the highest category of protection were made known, one of them the Rio Negro National Park, which is located within the Sulu project region, Pantanal