Patrick Jantz represented the GEODE lab in Ecuador 24-27 April, 2019 for a kickoff-meeting of the NASA-funded Project “Maintaining Life on Land (SDG15) under Scenarios of Land Use and Climate Change in Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru”. The meeting was held at the Maquipucuna Reserve in the Andean cloud forests ~2 hours from Quito, within the Chocó Andino de Pichincha Biosphere Reserve.
Attendees included representatives from Colombia (Instituto de Hidrología, Meteorología y Estudios Ambientales (IDEAM), Instituto Humboldt (IaVH), Ministerio de Ambiente y Desarrollo Sostenible (Minambiente)); Ecuador (Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos (INEC), Ministerio del Ambiente del Ecuador, PNUD Ecuador); Perú (Ministerio del Ambiente, PNUD Perú); the Science Team (Montana State University, Northern Arizona University, the University of Northern British Columbia, and the University of Queensland); NASA, and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) Nature for Development program.
Over the course of two days, the group developed a scope of research and a project workplan aimed at supporting the Sustainable Development Goal reporting needs of the partner countries. In between work sessions, there were hikes through second growth forest and delicious food accompanied by the ubiquitous ají de tomate de árbol, a spicy sauce made from tamarillos. Patrick, Scott, and a Ph.D. student will work to develop forecasts of risk to water resources designed to inform planning and policy in the three countries.
