AKU’s emerald jewel is ready to shine
A research asset unlike any other in AKU’s portfolio is rapidly taking shape in Tanzania. Featuring 3,700 acres of undeveloped land, the Arusha Climate and Environmental Research Station will be a living laboratory for studies related to climate change and environmental sustainability.
The station consists of two sites. The Manyara site consists of 3,200 acres of historically degraded and deforested land, dotted with seven hills and featuring views of 4,500-metre-tall Mount Meru, which sits at the centre of Arusha National Park. Portions of the site are used by contract farmers for the production of flower seeds, coffee, fruit and vegetables, and its grasses are used by area residents as fodder for livestock. The University has planted more than 200,000 trees on the property and operates an agricultural demonstration site that displays climate-resilient approaches to small-scale farming. Manyara is also home to an AKU-run Community Outreach Centre, which offers educational opportunities, sports and other activities for local residents. The second site, known as Two Rivers, consists of 500 acres located between the Malala and Tengeru rivers, and is currently used for horticultural crops. Current activities at the sites will largely continue as the University adds laboratory facilities and housing for researchers and students.
Efforts to take full advantage of the sites’ research potential are well underway. An advisory committee has been established that includes experts from the University of Alberta and Simon Fraser University. Insights into field- station operations have been garnered via visits to the Mpala Research Centre, operated by Princeton University and others, and the International Livestock Research Institute’s Kapiti Research Station. Partnership agreements are in place with a dozen universities and research institutions in Tanzania, Canada and the United States, including the Tanzania Wildlife Research Institute and Simon Fraser University. Discussions indicate scientists from many organizations will be interested in pursuing research at the station.
Several research projects are already underway and more than a dozen others are in various stages of development. A community needs assessment was undertaken as a first step toward identifying local challenges that researchers could address. A study of pollinators will help to address the lack of data on pollinator populations in Tanzania. Pollination by bees, butterflies and other creatures increases production of most agricultural crops, but pollinator populations are shrinking around the world. One recent study by Harvard University estimates that insufficient pollination could reduce agricultural income in some lower- income countries by 10-30 percent.