Periodic Reporting for period 1 - INSA (Integrated Nitrogen Studies in Africa)
Periodo di rendicontazione: 2020-02-01 al 2023-01-31
The Integrated Nitrogen Studies in Africa (INSA) project seeks to unpack and analyse the different aspects of the nitrogen budget in Africa, bringing together expertise from different fields in the environmental and social sciences through a network of scientists from Europe and Africa.
Nitrogen is one of the essential nutrients for plant growth and food production at the global scale. However, an imbalance appears between “too much” and “too little” nitrogen supplied regions in the world. This paradox is particulary valid at the scale of Africa. Agriculture in sub-Saharan Africa is struggling with low nitrogen supplies to crops and insufficient yields to feed its growing population, whereas anthropogenic pollution has harmful impacts in large cities. These processes perpetuate food insecurity in terms of supply and quality on the one hand, and lead to environmental pollution on the other hand. Increasing nitrogen supply without increasing (or ideally while decreasing) emissions of pollutants remains an important societal challenge. Nitrogen management should strive to simultaneously improve the efficiency of nitrogen use, increase farm productivity, enhance soil health, conserve resources and reduce losses of reactive nitrogen to the environment.
These main objectives will be developed as:
I- To provide the most up-to-date view of studies on nitrogen processes and budgets involving the different terrestrial compartments (hydrosphere, atmosphere, biosphere): build a scientific review and synthesis of existing studies and data around nitrogen in Africa with scientists from Europe and Africa working on ecology, atmospheric chemistry, water quality, soil science, biogeochemistry, agriculture and livestock.
II- To create synergies and adopt new approaches for the study of nitrogen and its environmental impacts: assess the impact of nitrogen on the chemical composition of the atmosphere, greenhouse gas emissions, ecosystems, eutrophication, biodiversity, food security, nitrogen use efficiency, sustainable agriculture.
III- To share knowledge and foster exchanges between African and European institutions, and raise awareness on nitrogen and its impacts on the environment, through: secondments; dissemination and communication activities; building and sharing knowledge within the INSA consortium; including decision-makers, field actors, and users in discussions; developing new skills in a sustainable way and enhancing career prospects for project participants; and disseminating results in a useful and direct way to transfer this knowledge to the public (schools, general population, governments, etc). The INSA project will develop educational materials and disseminate information on the sustainable use of nitrogen as the key action to mitigate harmful societal impacts while ensuring food security.
Nitrogen is one of the essential nutrients for plant growth and food production at the global scale. However, an imbalance appears between “too much” and “too little” nitrogen supplied regions in the world. This paradox is particulary valid at the scale of Africa. Agriculture in sub-Saharan Africa is struggling with low nitrogen supplies to crops and insufficient yields to feed its growing population, whereas anthropogenic pollution has harmful impacts in large cities. These processes perpetuate food insecurity in terms of supply and quality on the one hand, and lead to environmental pollution on the other hand. Increasing nitrogen supply without increasing (or ideally while decreasing) emissions of pollutants remains an important societal challenge. Nitrogen management should strive to simultaneously improve the efficiency of nitrogen use, increase farm productivity, enhance soil health, conserve resources and reduce losses of reactive nitrogen to the environment.
These main objectives will be developed as:
I- To provide the most up-to-date view of studies on nitrogen processes and budgets involving the different terrestrial compartments (hydrosphere, atmosphere, biosphere): build a scientific review and synthesis of existing studies and data around nitrogen in Africa with scientists from Europe and Africa working on ecology, atmospheric chemistry, water quality, soil science, biogeochemistry, agriculture and livestock.
II- To create synergies and adopt new approaches for the study of nitrogen and its environmental impacts: assess the impact of nitrogen on the chemical composition of the atmosphere, greenhouse gas emissions, ecosystems, eutrophication, biodiversity, food security, nitrogen use efficiency, sustainable agriculture.
III- To share knowledge and foster exchanges between African and European institutions, and raise awareness on nitrogen and its impacts on the environment, through: secondments; dissemination and communication activities; building and sharing knowledge within the INSA consortium; including decision-makers, field actors, and users in discussions; developing new skills in a sustainable way and enhancing career prospects for project participants; and disseminating results in a useful and direct way to transfer this knowledge to the public (schools, general population, governments, etc). The INSA project will develop educational materials and disseminate information on the sustainable use of nitrogen as the key action to mitigate harmful societal impacts while ensuring food security.
From February 2020 to January 2023, 35 people were seconded over 117 person-months.
- 1 kick off meeting was organized in Bruxelles in February 2020.
- A web site was created (see address below) as well as a twitter account (@NitroAfrica).
- A flyer was developed for communication purpose (version available on the web site).
- 3 articles were published, 2 are under review, 3 are in preparation
- 6 steering committee meetings (April 2020, October 2020, May 2021, October 2021, February 2022, October 2022) were organized (5 on-line, 1 hybrid).
- The first INSA workshop held in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire, in February 2022.
- The mid-term meeting was held on line in March 2022.
- An amendment request was sent and accepted by the Agency for a one year extension of the duration of the project, and the addition of a new TC partner. The project will last until 31 January 2025 (60 months).
- The INSA project was presented at different workshops and seminars
- Science popularisation and communication towards school pupils, teachers, university students and the general public are being organized in coordination with APDOC, specialists in educational conception, scientific facilitation, and training via active teaching and experimental approaches.
- Two APDOC facilitators were seconded to Côte d'Ivoire for 2-months in January 2022, to run a series of workshops in secondary schools in Côte d'Ivoire.
- 1 kick off meeting was organized in Bruxelles in February 2020.
- A web site was created (see address below) as well as a twitter account (@NitroAfrica).
- A flyer was developed for communication purpose (version available on the web site).
- 3 articles were published, 2 are under review, 3 are in preparation
- 6 steering committee meetings (April 2020, October 2020, May 2021, October 2021, February 2022, October 2022) were organized (5 on-line, 1 hybrid).
- The first INSA workshop held in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire, in February 2022.
- The mid-term meeting was held on line in March 2022.
- An amendment request was sent and accepted by the Agency for a one year extension of the duration of the project, and the addition of a new TC partner. The project will last until 31 January 2025 (60 months).
- The INSA project was presented at different workshops and seminars
- Science popularisation and communication towards school pupils, teachers, university students and the general public are being organized in coordination with APDOC, specialists in educational conception, scientific facilitation, and training via active teaching and experimental approaches.
- Two APDOC facilitators were seconded to Côte d'Ivoire for 2-months in January 2022, to run a series of workshops in secondary schools in Côte d'Ivoire.
Progress beyond the state of the art
So far, three scientific papers have resulted from project secondments, providing new knowledge on:
1- Rain chemistry in the Lake Victoria basin (Bakayoko et al., 2021), especially on nitrogenous mineral and organic compounds. As 80% of the water input to the lake comes from rain, it is especially important to understand the nitrogen load of rain water. Furthermore, the nitrogen input through wet and dry deposition in the basin was quantified and compared to other inputs resulting from fertiliser use. The N budget was calculated in the lake and in the basin, showing nitrogen mining in the terrestrial part and nitrogen eutrophication in the lake.
2- Optimal herd composition (Rahimi et al., 2021). In north sub-Saharan Africa’s drylands, a shift from cattle to camel and goat farming can sustain milk production while decreasing inputs and emissions, hence supporting resilience against climate change.
3- The nitrogen budget and critical load at a Sahelian grazed grassland site (Delon et al., 2022). The budget and critical load were determined thanks to in situ measurements, remote sensing and previously published data. The assessment of the critical load in Sahelian landscapes depends heavily on livestock participation to the ecosystem equilibrium.
Expected results until the end of the project
The integrative and multidisciplinary research network will continue to synthesise and extend past studies and existing literature on nitrogen flows, to provide a holistic and up-to-date picture of nitrogen flows in Africa. The project will also promote new multi-disciplinary analysis as well as the opportunity to highlight studies not yet published in accessible literature. Moreover, building and analysing this integrative and multidisciplinary database will provide advances in our comprehension of the biogeochemical nitrogen cycle in the different environmental compartments.
The results will be based on academic research, and outcomes will be converted into policy briefs adapted to a non-scientific public.
Potential impacts
The INSA project aims to reinforce existing links and to create new collaborations between European and African institutions. A strong impact is foreseen concerning capacity building for young researchers thanks to secondments, allowing them to build their own research teams and develop new networks both with-in their own universities and internationally.
Dissemination of popularised science in schools will raise awareness of the impact of nitrogen on the environment to young students, who will become the decision makers of tomorrow.
In addition, INSA has identified decision makers and stakeholder groups through which to communicate and disseminate results to end users. The innovation and research potential of INSA lies in the ability to: (1) improve understanding of the nitrogen budget and flows in Africa, and provide inputs for an African N assessment on sources, effects and policy perspectives, and (2) build a multi-actor network to share and integrate the knowledge between researchers, education institutions, decision makers and end-users.
So far, three scientific papers have resulted from project secondments, providing new knowledge on:
1- Rain chemistry in the Lake Victoria basin (Bakayoko et al., 2021), especially on nitrogenous mineral and organic compounds. As 80% of the water input to the lake comes from rain, it is especially important to understand the nitrogen load of rain water. Furthermore, the nitrogen input through wet and dry deposition in the basin was quantified and compared to other inputs resulting from fertiliser use. The N budget was calculated in the lake and in the basin, showing nitrogen mining in the terrestrial part and nitrogen eutrophication in the lake.
2- Optimal herd composition (Rahimi et al., 2021). In north sub-Saharan Africa’s drylands, a shift from cattle to camel and goat farming can sustain milk production while decreasing inputs and emissions, hence supporting resilience against climate change.
3- The nitrogen budget and critical load at a Sahelian grazed grassland site (Delon et al., 2022). The budget and critical load were determined thanks to in situ measurements, remote sensing and previously published data. The assessment of the critical load in Sahelian landscapes depends heavily on livestock participation to the ecosystem equilibrium.
Expected results until the end of the project
The integrative and multidisciplinary research network will continue to synthesise and extend past studies and existing literature on nitrogen flows, to provide a holistic and up-to-date picture of nitrogen flows in Africa. The project will also promote new multi-disciplinary analysis as well as the opportunity to highlight studies not yet published in accessible literature. Moreover, building and analysing this integrative and multidisciplinary database will provide advances in our comprehension of the biogeochemical nitrogen cycle in the different environmental compartments.
The results will be based on academic research, and outcomes will be converted into policy briefs adapted to a non-scientific public.
Potential impacts
The INSA project aims to reinforce existing links and to create new collaborations between European and African institutions. A strong impact is foreseen concerning capacity building for young researchers thanks to secondments, allowing them to build their own research teams and develop new networks both with-in their own universities and internationally.
Dissemination of popularised science in schools will raise awareness of the impact of nitrogen on the environment to young students, who will become the decision makers of tomorrow.
In addition, INSA has identified decision makers and stakeholder groups through which to communicate and disseminate results to end users. The innovation and research potential of INSA lies in the ability to: (1) improve understanding of the nitrogen budget and flows in Africa, and provide inputs for an African N assessment on sources, effects and policy perspectives, and (2) build a multi-actor network to share and integrate the knowledge between researchers, education institutions, decision makers and end-users.