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Ethiopia’s Green Legacy Initiative Enhances Carbon Stock and Carbon Dioxide Sequestration Across Diverse Landscapes

Published 01 Jul 2026

Tracey Hearn

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This article assesses how Ethiopia’s Green Legacy Initiative, one of the world’s largest landscape restoration programmes, contributes to carbon storage across 21 districts.

Measurements of 8,209 plants showed agroforestry systems stored the most carbon (133.74 Mg ha⁻¹), and native species generally outperformed exotics, with species composition explaining 56% of the variation in carbon storage. The findings show the initiative is delivering measurable climate benefits and point to native, high-biomass species in diversified agroforestry as the best route to long-term sequestration.

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Coupling Diversity Indices with Boosted Regression Trees Predicts Species Abundance and Spatial Community Patterns in Dry Afromontane Forests

Published 01 Jun 2026

Tracey Hearn

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This article combines diversity indices with Boosted Regression Tree modelling to predict how species and communities are distributed across the Desa’a Forest, a dry Afromontane forest in northern Ethiopia. Data from 301 plots recorded 94 woody species and seven distinct ecological communities, with temperature, elevation, precipitation and slope the strongest predictors of Juniperus procera abundance.

The findings show how environmental gradients shape species distributions and offer a modelling framework for conservation planning and landscape management in mountain ecosystems.

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Hyperdominance and rarity in Amazonian secondary forests

Published 01 Jun 2026

Tracey Hearn

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This article explores hyperdominance in secondary forests regrowing after deforestation in the eastern Amazon. Using data from 102 plots across four regions, it found that just 15–25 species (3%–6%) account for over 50% of tree and palm abundance and carbon storage.

Four species—Annona exsucca, Cecropia palmata, Tapirira guianensis and Inga alba—form a consistent core, and hyperdominant species have lower wood density than the rest of the community. The findings suggest a limited set of species may largely predict how secondary forests function, offering a framework for research and restoration planning.

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Woody species diversity and structure across natural forest coffee, semi-forest coffee, and homegarden coffee in the Yayu Coffee Forest Biosphere Reserve, Southwest Ethiopia

Published 01 Feb 2026

Tracey Hearn

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An assessment of woody species variation in coffee agroforestry systems in Ethiopia. From 90 plots, 27 woody species were recorded in natural forest, semi-forest, and homegarden coffee systems of the Yayu Coffee Forest Biosphere Reserve.

Natural forest coffee showed the highest biodiversity, structural complexity, and shade-tree regeneration. Semi-forest coffee was similar structurally, while homegarden coffee had significantly lower diversity. Similarity indices showed strong species overlap between natural and semi-forest systems, confirming their key role in biodiversity conservation.

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Listening to mangroves: Using Autonomous Recording Units and Machine Learning tools to assess avian biodiversity in the mangroves of coastal Suriname

Published 08 Jan 2026

Suman.R

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Listening to Mangroves: Using Autonomous Recording Units and Machine Learning Tools to Assess Avian Biodiversity in the Mangroves of coastal Suriname, presents findings from research conducted across six coastal sites between December 2024 and July 2025.

Using passive acoustic monitoring and the BirdNET algorithm, the study identified 508 bird species and demonstrated statistically significant differences in acoustic complexity between mangrove types. The research highlights the ecological importance of mangroves for biodiversity and coastal protection, and demonstrates how non-invasive, data-driven tools can strengthen ecosystem monitoring and inform climate-resilient coastal management.

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Advancing Multifunctional Agroforestry in Ethiopia: Evidence, Innovation and Policy Pathways

Published 01 Nov 2025

Tracey Hearn

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This brief outlines how the MAF4E project advances multifunctional agroforestry in Ethiopia through Living Labs that link science, community innovation and policy. It generates high‑resolution evidence on tree growth, soils and carbon, while piloting Rural Resource Centres and homestead agroforestry to create green jobs, improve nutrition and resilience.

Despite strong impacts, scaling requires a national agroforestry strategy, long‑term finance, stronger extension systems, market development and gender‑ and youth‑inclusive policies to meet climate and biodiversity commitments nationally

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Ethiopian National Agroforestry Development Strategy (2026–2035)

Published 29 Jun 2025

Tracey Hearn

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A strategy and action plan for agroforestry development co-created with the Ministry of Agriculture and outlining institutional change requirements, the need for capacity building and the necessity of developing incentives and mechanisms to compensate for the role of agroforestry in the provision of environmental services.

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Innovating for resilience: Cultivating climate-ready, multifunctional landscapes through Living Labs in Ethiopia

Published 01 Jun 2025

Tracey Hearn

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Research note on the role of ‘Living Labs’ as shared spaces for co-development of agroforestry between farmers, scientists, policymakers and local institutions.

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