Rob Marchant
Dados Biográficos
| ID | 153280 |
|---|---|
| NOME | Rob Marchant |
| PRENOMES | Rob |
| SOBRENOME | Marchant |
| ASSINATURA | MARCHANT R |
| AFILIAÇÕES | University of York |
| ORCID | 0000-0001-5013-4056 |
| VERIFICADO | Sim |
| TOTAL DE OBRAS | 64 |
| TOTAL DE CITAÇÕES | 262 |
| TOTAL COMO AUTOR | 64 |
| TOTAL COMO EDITOR | 0 |
| PRIMEIRO ANO DE PUBLICAÇÃO | 1994 |
| ANO MAIS RECENTE DE PUBLICAÇÃO | 2026 |
| ÍNDICE H | 8 |
High resolution multi-proxy analyses document Mid to Late-Holocene environmental change in arid Marsabit County, northern Kenya, East Africa
Pastoralism was first established in East Africa in the arid lowlands adjacent to Lake Turkana, northern Kenya, ~4800 years ago. Currently, there are limited palaeoecological records documenting the environmental conditions at the time of this transition, especially for areas east of Lake Turkana. To address this knowledge gap, sedimentary cores were recovered from the Chalbi Basin, Marsabit County, Kenya. These document a detailed environmental …
Long-term vegetation dynamics, environmental changes, anthropogenic records, and carbon accumulation during 3,800 years in Krabi mangroves, Thailand
A multi-proxy paleoenvironmental study of the Khlong Thom mangroves in Krabi, Thailand reconstructed long-term vegetation and fire dynamics, sea-level changes, human impacts, and carbon accumulation rates over the past ca. 4,000 years. A period of marine dominance between 3,780 and 3,480 cal bp, characterised by Rhizophora dominance with increased carbon accumulation, coincided with a gradual sea-level decline following a mid-Holocene sea-level h…
Perceived climate change impacts and adaptation responses in ten African mountain regions
Mountain regions are particularly vulnerable to climate change impacts. Yet, little is known about local adaptation responses in African mountain regions, especially if these are incremental or transformational. First, using household questionnaires, we interviewed 1,500 farmers across ten African mountain regions to investigate perceived climate change impacts and adaptation responses. Second, through a reflective process involving all co-author…
Forest cover and land use change trajectories within gazetted forest reserves in Nasarawa State, North Central Nigeria (1966–2020)
The rapid losses of Protected Areas (PAs) and forest reserves has led to negative environmental, social, and economic impacts globally. This study examines land use and land cover change (LULCC) in Nasarawa State, North Central Nigeria, focusing on the timing and patterns of change in three gazetted forest reserves since 1966. Systematic and purposive techniques were used to select three forest reserves for the study, one in each of the state's g…
Demand for mangrove ecosystem services and livelihood dependency in Lamu County, Kenya
Mangroves play a crucial role in many livelihoods in coastal areas worldwide. Unfortunately, these ecosystems are increasingly threatened, leading to their loss and degradation. In Lamu County, Kenya, mangrove forests are threatened by port expansion, urbanisation and heavy exploitation to meet local household needs. Studies addressing the demand for mangroves’ provisioning ecosystem services (ES) from the perspective of household dependency are …
Multiple paleofire proxy metrics from tropical lake sediment and soil in the Greater Serengeti Ecosystem
Black carbon is a paleofire proxy that has been measured from glacial ice, snow, soils and lake sediments, though relatively few comparisons have been made with other fire indicators in sedimentary geoarchives. Microscopic charcoal, quantified from palynological microscope slides and macroscopic charcoal, quantified from wet-sieved deposits, are the most commonly applied methods for paleofire interpretation of Quaternary sediments. This research …
Understanding community perceptions of the importance of ecosystem services from gazetted forests
Community-centred scenarios development for water–energy–food security on Zanzibar
Small developing islands demonstrate strong social–ecological interactions as well as a high level of exposure to climate-related effects, which can result in intense land use pressures. Scenario methodologies are useful for reflecting on how competing pressures interact when planning for a more sustainable future. In small islands, local knowledge is integral to the development of scenarios because of the close connection between people and loca…
A record of change in oyster environment through high-resolution geochemical analysis of Late-Holocene sediments from Coastal Ghana
The near-coast environments where oysters occur are among the most impacted by humans globally, especially during the Late-Holocene. Yet, in West Africa, there is no documented historical record of change in these environments. We provide insight into the changing geochemical conditions of two oyster environments through high-resolution analysis of total organic carbon (C), total nitrogen (N), carbon and nitrogen isotope ratios (δ 13 C, δ 15 N), …
Pathways from research to sustainable development
Drawing on collective experience from ten collaborative research projects focused on the Global South, we identify three major challenges that impede the translation of research on sustainability and resilience into better-informed choices by individuals and policy-makers that in turn can support transformation to a sustainable future. The three challenges comprise: (i) converting knowledge produced during research projects into successful knowle…
A–Z of cost-effective adaptation strategies to the impact of climate change among crop farmers in West Africa
A people-centred framework for exploring water, energy and food security in a small developing island
Small developing islands face a number of environmental and social pressures which impact resource security. This study uses a people-centred framework to investigate social-ecological interactions for water, energy and food security. Ten semi-structured focus group discussions were conducted in Pemba and Unguja islands with village elders and leaders. Results demonstrate that shocks and stresses affecting resource security are attributed to land…
High-Resolution Multiproxy Record of Environmental Changes and Anthropogenic Activities at Unguja Ukuu, Zanzibar, Tanzania during the Last 5000 Years
A high-resolution multiproxy sedimentary record comprising pollen, charcoal, trace element, stratigraphy and particle size data is used to reveal environmental changes from the mangrove ecosystem at Unguja Ukuu, Zanzibar, Tanzania, over the last 5000 years. Historical human–environment interactions over the last millennia are explored by a comparison of the stratigraphic and archaeological data. The area was characterised by a mixture of mangrove…
Climate change and hunter-gatherers in montane eastern DR Congo
Mountain environments experience more rapid changes in temperature than lower elevations. However, little is known about the climatic changes already observed in African mountains, or the adaptation strategies used by hunter-gatherer communities. Semi-structured interviews were administered to 100 Twa hunter-gatherers living around Mt Kahuzi in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DR Congo). We also organized 10 focus-group discussions with …
Documenting a thousand years of environmental and anthropogenic changes on mangroves on the Bangkok coast, the upper Gulf of Thailand
Late Holocene environmental change and anthropogenic
East African ecosystems have been shaped by long-term socio-ecological–environmental interactions. Although much previous work on human–environment interrelationships have emphasised the negative impacts of human interventions, a growing body of work shows that there have also often been strong beneficial connections between people and ecosystems, especially in savanna environments. However, limited information and understanding of past interacti…
A 3000-year record of vegetation changes and fire at a high-elevation wetland on Kilimanjaro, Tanzania
Kilimanjaro is experiencing the consequences of climate change and multiple land-use pressures. Few paleoenvironmental and archeological records exist to examine historical patterns of late Holocene ecosystem changes on Kilimanjaro. Here we present pollen, phytolith, and charcoal (>125 μm) data from a palustrine sediment core that provide a 3000-year radiocarbon-dated record collected from a wetland near the headwaters of the Maua watershed in th…
Mainstreaming nature-based solutions for climate resilient infrastructure in peri-urban sub-Saharan Africa
Despite a growing recognition of the importance of designing, rehabilitating, and maintaining green infrastructure to provide essential ecosystem services and adapt to climate change, many decision makers in sub-Saharan Africa continue to favour engineered solutions and short term economic growth at the expense of natural landscapes and longer term sustainability agendas. Existing green infrastructure is typically maintained in more affluent subu…
East Africa’s Human Environment Interactions
Mountain Observatories
Mountainous regions are globally important, in part because they support large populations and are biodiverse. They are also characterized by enhanced vulnerability to anthropogenic pressures and sensitivity to climate change. This importance necessitates the development of a global reference network of long-term environmental and socioeconomic monitoring—mountain observatories. At present, monitoring is limited and unevenly distributed across mo…
Scenario archetypes reveal risks and opportunities for global mountain futures
Science with society
Assessing the impacts of land use and climate interactions on beekeeping livelihoods in the Taita Hills, Kenya
Beekeeping is commonly adopted as an additional livelihood activity that can help smallholder farmers diversify and enhance their livelihoods. However, it is unclear whether it is resilient to environmental shocks and stresses. This article investigates beekeepers’ experiences and perceptions about challenges to beekeeping in the Taita Hills Mountains, Kenya. Key findings demonstrated that beekeeping has the capacity to substantially increase hou…
Climate-human-landscape interaction in the eastern foothills of Mt. Kilimanjaro (equatorial East Africa) during the last two millennia
The Mt. Kilimanjaro region is known for its long history of intensive agriculture, but the temporal extent of human activity and its impact on the regional ecosystem are not well known. In this study, climate-human-landscape interactions during the past ~2200 years were examined using climate and vegetation proxies extracted from the continuous and high-resolution sediment record of Lake Chala. Ancient-to-modern regional human activity is documen…
Transparency in benefit sharing and the influence of community expectations on participation in Redd+ Projects
Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD+) projects have the potential to conserve forest, generate income and attain development targets; but the level of transparency in benefit sharing and the community expected benefits are relatively unknown. Using cluster multi-stage random sampling, data were collected from 259 respondents living around Mount Cameroon National Park REDD+ project site. Results, analysed with SPSS a…
Neolithic agriculture on the European western frontier
Redd+, hype, hope and disappointment
We explore the dynamics of expectations in international forest conservation and development programs, and the impacts and implications of (unfulfilled) expectations for actors involved. Early stages of new international conservation and development programs, often involving pilot projects designed to test intervention concepts at village level, are characterized by large amounts of resources and attention, along with high expectations of success…
Science with society
Social-ecological systems in the Anthropocene
Understanding social-ecological system dynamics is a major research priority for sustainable management of landscapes, ecosystems and resources. But the lack of multi-decadal records represents an important gap in information that hinders the development of the research agenda. Without improved information on the long-term and complex interactions between causal factors and responses, it will be difficult to answer key questions about trends, rat…
Human impact in the Interlacustrine region
The interlacustrine region of Africa has a rich heritage of human remains and artefacts, and has long attracted archaeological debate. The authors maintain that, when rigorously applied, palaeoecological data can make a significant contribution to this debate and to understanding the pattern of agricultural and industrial dispersal and innovation in the region. Situated on the western margins of the interlacustrine region, the Rukiga highlands ha…
Past perspectives for the future
Views from two mountains
African mountains are characterized by high levels of biodiversity and provide ecosystem services to millions of people. Due to steep environmental gradients, growing human populations and geographical isolation, these coupled socio-ecological systems are highly vulnerable to climate change impacts. The capacity of local stakeholders to anticipate future changes and to assess their potential impacts is paramount for enhancing adaptation and resil…
Radiocarbon dating of mangrove sediments to constrain Holocene relative sea-level change on Zanzibar in the southwest Indian Ocean
Mangrove sedimentary deposits are sensitive to changes in sea level and can be used to reconstruct mid- to late Holocene sea-level fluctuations in intermediate and far-field locations, distant to the former polar ice sheets. However, they can be difficult to date using 14 C because mangrove sediment can contain mixtures of carbon of different ages. The two main potential causes of error are younger mangrove roots penetrating down through the sedi…
Environmental change and political-economic upheaval in precolonial western Uganda
This paper reassesses available evidence for environmental and cultural changes in western Uganda since 1000 bc. The period of study includes the introduction of iron working in the region, as well as the transition to nucleated settlement patterns and the apparent decline of these settlements, prior to the colonial period. Several oscillations in climate conditions, from relatively dry to relatively wet, are recorded by palaeo-climate data. Some…
Redd herrings or Redd menace
Scenario archetypes reveal risks and opportunities for global mountain futures
Late-Holocene savanna dynamics in the Amboseli Basin, Kenya
Pollen, microscopic charcoal and radiocarbon data are used to document changes in vegetation dynamics during the late Holocene from Namelok Swamp in the Amboseli Basin (Kenya). The data reveal changes in savanna vegetation composition driven by an interaction of climate change, anthropogenic and herbivore activities. The abundance of Celtis, Podocarpus and Syzygium reflects a relatively moist climate from around 3000 to 2400 cal. yr BP. Increased…
Ecosystem change in the South Pare Mountain bloc, Eastern Arc Mountains of Tanzania
Palaeoecological evidence is used to investigate climatic and anthropogenic drivers of vegetation and fire dynamics through the past ~1200 years in the Eastern Arc Mountains, Tanzania. Pollen and charcoal analyses are supported by a chronology derived from five accelerator mass spectrometry ages, a 137 Cs activity profile and marker horizons from two exotic pollen taxa. Pollen indicator taxa are used to develop a series of environmental indices, …
A palaeoecological investigation into the role of fire and human activity in the development of montane grasslands in East Africa
Tropical Environments
Dynamics of montane forest in central Africa during the late Holocene
According to the results from a number of palaeoecology-based studies, montane forest appears to have been present across a broad range of altitudes in western Uganda throughout much of the Holocene (before increased levels of human impact over the past 2000 years or so resulted in extensive clearance). Critically for pollen-based studies of vegetation history, clearance has limited investigations into the late-Holocene history of montane forest,…
Quantifying local community voices in the decision-making process
One key component in community development is the ability to negotiate and make contentious environmental decisions that have sustainable environmental and livelihoods benefits. This study examines the community voice during the consultation and decision-making process to evaluate if the inclusion of community delegates is meant to legitimise REDD+ or leads to community development. Likert-scale questionnaire, focus-group discussions and intervie…
An 800 year record of mangrove dynamics and human activities in the upper Gulf of Thailand
Unraveling the Notion of “Fair Carbon”
Standards organizations and NGOs have begun to refer to “fair carbon” projects, and “fairly traded” carbon credits. “Fairness” is a fuzzy notion, subject to multiple and competing interpretations. This paper draws on a framing used by standards organizations, which encompasses issues of access and benefits, to critically examine challenges and opportunities for achieving desired “fair” outcomes as discussed in the literature. Arising knowledge ga…
Pathways from research to sustainable development
Drawing on collective experience from ten collaborative research projects focused on the Global South, we identify three major challenges that impede the translation of research on sustainability and resilience into better-informed choices by individuals and policy-makers that in turn can support transformation to a sustainable future. The three challenges comprise: (i) converting knowledge produced during research projects into successful knowle…
High-Resolution Multiproxy Record of Environmental Changes and Anthropogenic Activities at Unguja Ukuu, Zanzibar, Tanzania during the Last 5000 Years
A high-resolution multiproxy sedimentary record comprising pollen, charcoal, trace element, stratigraphy and particle size data is used to reveal environmental changes from the mangrove ecosystem at Unguja Ukuu, Zanzibar, Tanzania, over the last 5000 years. Historical human–environment interactions over the last millennia are explored by a comparison of the stratigraphic and archaeological data. The area was characterised by a mixture of mangrove…
Late Holocene environmental change and anthropogenic
East African ecosystems have been shaped by long-term socio-ecological–environmental interactions. Although much previous work on human–environment interrelationships have emphasised the negative impacts of human interventions, a growing body of work shows that there have also often been strong beneficial connections between people and ecosystems, especially in savanna environments. However, limited information and understanding of past interacti…
Archaeology has no Relevance
Archaeologists are under pressure to demonstrate that their work has impact beyond the discipline. This has prompted some archaeologists — and in particular environmental archaeologists and palaeoecologists — to argue that an understanding of past environmental changes is essential to model future outcomes in areas such as climate change, land cover change, soil health and food security. However, few archaeological studies have explored how to pu…
Integrating evidence of land use and land cover change for land management policy formulation along the Kenya-Tanzania borderlands
Late Holocene wetland transgression and 500 years of vegetation and fire variability in the semi-arid Amboseli landscape, southern Kenya
The semi-arid Amboseli landscape, southern Kenya, is characterised by intermittent groundwater-fed wetlands that form sedimentary geoarchives recording past ecosystem changes. We present a 5000-year environmental history of a radiocarbon dated sediment core from Esambu Swamp adjacent to Amboseli National Park. Although radiocarbon dates suggest an unconformity or sedimentary gap that spans between 3800 and 500 cal year BP, the record provides a u…
Human impact in the Interlacustrine region
The interlacustrine region of Africa has a rich heritage of human remains and artefacts, and has long attracted archaeological debate. The authors maintain that, when rigorously applied, palaeoecological data can make a significant contribution to this debate and to understanding the pattern of agricultural and industrial dispersal and innovation in the region. Situated on the western margins of the interlacustrine region, the Rukiga highlands ha…
Late Pleistocene and Holocene History at Mubwindi Swamp, Southwest Uganda
Deposits beneath Mubwindi Swamp provide a partial record of vegetation history since at least 43,000 yr ago. We studied pollen from two cores and obtained nine radiocarbon ages from one of these cores and three radiocarbon ages from the other. Pollen deposited before and soon after the last glacial maximum represents vegetation very different from the modern vegetation of the Mubwindi Swamp catchment. Although species now associated with higher a…
Dynamics of montane forest in central Africa during the late Holocene
According to the results from a number of palaeoecology-based studies, montane forest appears to have been present across a broad range of altitudes in western Uganda throughout much of the Holocene (before increased levels of human impact over the past 2000 years or so resulted in extensive clearance). Critically for pollen-based studies of vegetation history, clearance has limited investigations into the late-Holocene history of montane forest,…
Tropical Environments
Environmental change and political-economic upheaval in precolonial western Uganda
This paper reassesses available evidence for environmental and cultural changes in western Uganda since 1000 bc. The period of study includes the introduction of iron working in the region, as well as the transition to nucleated settlement patterns and the apparent decline of these settlements, prior to the colonial period. Several oscillations in climate conditions, from relatively dry to relatively wet, are recorded by palaeo-climate data. Some…
Vegetation disturbance and human population in Colombia - a regional reconstruction
Palaeoecologists using pollen to map vegetation since the last ice age have noted numerous changes - which they feel increasingly obliged to blame on humans. These changes, such as deforestation or the dominance of certain plants, may happen suddenly or take place over thousands of years. The authors study the pollen record in Colombia, identify plants diagnostic of cultivation or disturbed ground ("degraded vegetation") and use them to map human…
Special issue
Late Quaternary vegetation reconstruction from the Eastern Arc Mountains, Tanzania
Pollen, spore, macrofossil and stable isotope (C and N) analyses from a 266-cm sediment core collected from a swamp on the Eastern Arc Mountains, Tanzania, are used to reconstruct vegetation and environmental history. An estimated time scale based on five 14 C ages records approximately 38,000 yr. This palaeorecord is the first from this biodiversity hotspot and importantly extends through the last glacial maximum (LGM). The altitudinal transitio…
Late Quaternary vegetation dynamics in a biodiversity hotspot, the Uluguru Mountains of Tanzania
Late Quaternary vegetation history and environmental changes in a biodiverse tropical ecosystem are inferred from pollen, charcoal and carbon isotope evidence derived from a ∼ 48,000-yr sedimentary record from the Uluguru Mountains, a component of the Eastern Arc Mountains of Kenya and Tanzania. Results indicate that Eastern Arc forest composition has remained relatively stable during the past ∼ 48,000 yr. Long-term environmental stability of the…
Analysis of the carbon sequestration costs of afforestation and reforestation agroforestry practices and the use of cost curves to evaluate their potential for implementation of climate change mitigat…
Understanding complexity in savannas
Late-Holocene savanna dynamics in the Amboseli Basin, Kenya
Pollen, microscopic charcoal and radiocarbon data are used to document changes in vegetation dynamics during the late Holocene from Namelok Swamp in the Amboseli Basin (Kenya). The data reveal changes in savanna vegetation composition driven by an interaction of climate change, anthropogenic and herbivore activities. The abundance of Celtis, Podocarpus and Syzygium reflects a relatively moist climate from around 3000 to 2400 cal. yr BP. Increased…
A palaeoecological investigation into the role of fire and human activity in the development of montane grasslands in East Africa
Nigeria’s Response to the Impacts of Climate Change
Holocene mangrove dynamics and environmental change in the Rufiji Delta, Tanzania
Holocene mangrove dynamics from Unguja Ukuu, Zanzibar
Redd herrings or Redd menace
Past perspectives for the future
Neolithic agriculture on the European western frontier
Which “fairness”, for whom, and why? An empirical analysis of plural notions of fairness in Fairtrade Carbon Projects, using Q methodology
Fairness is a relative concept with multiple, subjective and competing notions of what it is, how to achieve it, and for which beneficiaries. Fairtrade International's collaborative efforts to develop a standard to certify Fairtrade Carbon Credits (FCCs) brought together multiple stakeholders in a deliberative context. This paper uses Q methodology to empirically assess the notions of fairness this wider consultation group held. Three distinct ‘f…
Radiocarbon dating of mangrove sediments to constrain Holocene relative sea-level change on Zanzibar in the southwest Indian Ocean
Mangrove sedimentary deposits are sensitive to changes in sea level and can be used to reconstruct mid- to late Holocene sea-level fluctuations in intermediate and far-field locations, distant to the former polar ice sheets. However, they can be difficult to date using 14 C because mangrove sediment can contain mixtures of carbon of different ages. The two main potential causes of error are younger mangrove roots penetrating down through the sedi…
Unraveling the Notion of “Fair Carbon”
Standards organizations and NGOs have begun to refer to “fair carbon” projects, and “fairly traded” carbon credits. “Fairness” is a fuzzy notion, subject to multiple and competing interpretations. This paper draws on a framing used by standards organizations, which encompasses issues of access and benefits, to critically examine challenges and opportunities for achieving desired “fair” outcomes as discussed in the literature. Arising knowledge ga…
Social-ecological systems in the Anthropocene
Understanding social-ecological system dynamics is a major research priority for sustainable management of landscapes, ecosystems and resources. But the lack of multi-decadal records represents an important gap in information that hinders the development of the research agenda. Without improved information on the long-term and complex interactions between causal factors and responses, it will be difficult to answer key questions about trends, rat…
Ecosystem change in the South Pare Mountain bloc, Eastern Arc Mountains of Tanzania
Palaeoecological evidence is used to investigate climatic and anthropogenic drivers of vegetation and fire dynamics through the past ~1200 years in the Eastern Arc Mountains, Tanzania. Pollen and charcoal analyses are supported by a chronology derived from five accelerator mass spectrometry ages, a 137 Cs activity profile and marker horizons from two exotic pollen taxa. Pollen indicator taxa are used to develop a series of environmental indices, …
A Database of Radiocarbon Dates for Palaeoenvironmental Research in Eastern Africa
Radiocarbon dating is one of the most widely available and applied techniques to develop Late Quaternary chronologies of many ecosystems and is, thus, utilized in Quaternary studies, archaeology, hydrology, geomorphology, palaeoanthropology, palaeoclimatology, palaeoecology, palaeontology, and isotope analyses. A manual literature review search of published radiocarbon dates from eastern Africa was undertaken to store these data in the open-acces…
Geography (52 obras) · Ecology (42 obras) · Geology and Paleoclimatology Research (29 obras) · Climate change (26 obras) · Biology (25 obras) · Environmental Science (24 obras) · Environmental resource management (21 obras) · Physical geography (21 obras) · Ecosystem (19 obras) · Archaeology (18 obras)