Limnology Unit, D epartment of Biology, Ghent University (academic)

1. Limnology Unit, Department of Biology, Ghent University (academic) K. L. Ledeganckstraat 35, B-9000 Gent, Belgium http://www.ecology.ugent.be/limno Using multiple-proxy paleodata from lake-sediment records to reconstruct (pre-)historical Climate-Human-Ecosystem interactions in tropical East Africa: the long-term dynamics of climate, fire, vegetation, water resources and quality; land-use and land-cover changes Contact: Prof. Dr. Dirk VerschurenTel. +32-9-2645262; dirk.verschuren@UGent.be

2. Objective: Reconstruct the long-term historical perspective of today‘s climate-human-ecosystem interactions across the climatic (effective-moisture) gradient from humid western Uganda to arid eastern Kenya 3: well-irrigated sisal plantation 2: lake-irrigated flower farm Equator 1 2 3 UNESCO 1977: Man and the Biosphere Technical Report. 1: rain-fed maize cultivation

3. Principal in-house research tools: Parallel analysis of moisture-balance indicators & environmental indicatorsin the same, well-dated lake-sediment archives 1000 1200 1400 1600 1800 2000 Naivasha lake level ~moisture Partnerships sought for: i) Present-day land-use/land-cover classification using remote-sensing data ii) Pollen-assemblage calibration of present-day vegetation ecotones ratio woodland trees vs grasses ratio forest trees vs grasses Mahlatuledrought Nyarubangadrought Wamaradrought oral traditions cultural history historical sources 1st Age of Prosperity 2nd Age of Prosperity population Past experience: i) ESF-EuroCLIMATE project CHALLACEA ii) BelSPO SSD project CLANIMAE iii) US-NSF IDEAL project on Lake Victoria eutrophication maize 1000 1200 1400 1600 1800 2000 Calender year AD Selected refs: Verschuren, D. et al., Nature (2000); Lamb, H. et al., The Holocene (2003); Verschuren, D. et al., Ambio (1999); Verschuren, D. et al., Proc.Roy. Soc.lond.B (2002); Eggermont, H. & Verschuren, D., Biol. Conserv. (2003).