Ruth Metzel may have figured out a way to save a critically endangered ecosystem: build relationships with the people who live there. For a decade the ecologist has studied tropical dry forests in Panama's rural Los Santos Province. There, intensive cattle farming reflects the threat to the forests countrywide. Many farmers, proud of their traditions yet aware that land-use techniques need to change, are eager to do something about it.
露絲·梅澤爾可能已經(jīng)找到了一個拯救極度瀕危生態(tài)系統(tǒng)的方法:與住在那里的人建立關(guān)系。10年來,這位生態(tài)學家一直在研究巴拿馬洛斯桑托斯省的熱帶干燥林。在那里,集約化的養(yǎng)牛業(yè)反映了巴拿馬全國范圍內(nèi)森林所面臨的威脅。許多農(nóng)民為自己的傳統(tǒng)感到自豪,但也意識到土地利用技術(shù)需要改變,因此他們迫切希望能采取些行動。
Metzel co-founded Azuero Earth Project as a way to guide those who lean most heavily on the forest ecosystem toward living more harmoniously with it. "The key," she says, "is to reach people where they're at." Azuero works with cattle ranchers to identify exactly which trees -- native and fruit -- to plant on their land and where. The new growth helps form a corridor that replenishes the forest and restores habitat for wildlife, especially the critically endangered Azuero spider monkey. With over 5,000 trees planted since 2017, Metzel has high hopes for this approach.
梅澤爾與他人共同創(chuàng)立的阿祖羅地球項目,旨在引導那些嚴重依賴森林生態(tài)系統(tǒng)的人們能夠與其更和諧地生活。她說道:“關(guān)鍵是要和當?shù)氐娜藗兘⒙?lián)系?!卑⒆媪_與牧場主合作,以此來準確識別哪些樹木--原生樹木以及果樹--可以在他們的土地上種植。這一新型種植方式有助于形成一個走廊,補充森林和恢復野生動物的棲息地,尤其是極度瀕危的阿祖羅蜘蛛猴。自2017年以來,梅澤爾已經(jīng)種植了5000多棵樹,他對這種方法抱有很高的期望。
To support Azuero's mission, Metzel was awarded a National Geographic Society grant to teach Panamanian artisans how to responsibly source the grasses, seeds, and other native materials they use to make crafts. The end goal, says Metzel, is preventing this endangered ecosystem from being degraded any further -- and growing it.
為了支持阿祖羅的任務,梅澤爾獲得了國家地理學會的資助,來教導巴拿馬工匠們?nèi)绾呜撠熑蔚孬@取草料、種子以及他們用來制作工藝品的其它天然材料。梅澤爾表示,最終的目標是防止這個瀕危的生態(tài)系統(tǒng)進一步退化--并且使其茁壯成長。