United Nations appoints DRI scientist to "Group of Experts" investigating desertification
Dr. David Mouat, an arid lands geoecologist and remote sensing specialist at the
Desert Research Institute, has been appointed to
a three-year assignment on the United Nations “Group of Experts” to
advise the UN Convention to Combat Desertification.
Mouat is one of 25 scientists and natural resource managers selected worldwide
to develop a work plan to address land use and
land management issues for the Convention.
Mouat, who is an acknowledged expert in desertification processes and impacts,
said desertification in arid and semi-arid regions
is a process of land degradation resulting from a combination of natural causes
and human influences. The problem of increasing
aridity extends beyond the well publicized conditions in sub-Saharan Africa,
he said, and includes regions on essentially every
continent, including North America. “Appropriate land use practices can reduce or reverse the processes of
desertification in many situations,” he said. “There are
complex interactions involving climate, past management practices, and economic
and political factors that must be clearly
understood before effective strategies can be adopted.” The UN Group of Experts will hold its first meeting in Hamburg, Germany in
early November to begin identifying issues to be
incorporated into a work plan. Mouat said the group will endeavor to link an
understanding of degradation processes with
strategies implemented at the community level to achieve sustainable livelihoods.
A DRI scientist for 15 years, Mouat has worked extensively on the response
of arid landscapes to human and natural influences.
His recent work has included advising the U.S. Department of Defense on developing
alternative strategies for maintaining
ecological sustainability while meeting training objectives in arid and semi-arid
regions. He is also actively involved in the development of desertification assessment
techniques, especially those which integrate
environmental variables and remote sensing. These assessments are focused on
arid and semi-arid regions worldwide, and
include working with communities affected by desertification to investigate
alternative future land use strategies. A nonprofit, statewide division of the University and Community College System
of Nevada, DRI pursues a full-time program of
basic and applied environmental research on a local, national, and international
scale. Nearly 500 full- and part-time scientists,
technicians, and support staff conduct some 150 research projects at DRI annually.
More than 85 percent of DRI's annual $33
million operating budget consists of research grants and contracts obtained
by its scientists. The balance is received from the state
of Nevada for administrative costs.