MONALISA: “Monitoring and Assessing prevention and restoration solutions to combat desertification”.
Horizon
The MONALISA project aims to prevent and reverse land degradation and desertification (LDD) by promoting innovative solutions and providing a framework to assess and monitor LDD risk in European and Mediterranean drylands. It integrates scientific and local knowledge to enhance soil productivity and health across various land uses. The project involves six Mediterranean case studies in Italy, Spain, Greece, Tunisia, and Palestine, focusing on sustainable soil, water, crop, and livestock management systems. MONALISA addresses the “last mile” issue by fostering social learning to bridge the gap between research, policy-makers, farmers, and land managers. It aims to make technologies and solutions more visible and sustainable, triggering faster innovation cycles. Key strategies include advanced monitoring systems, predictive models, and integrated digital systems for soil, water, crop, and livestock management. The project also develops a Decision Support System (DSS) using innovative data and AI technologies.
Occupation or position held: Scientific coordinator– Ecologist. Report on the landscape, environmental, ecological, and socio-economic indicators in the case-study areas. Report on the applied restoration practices for each case study with implemented restoration. Report on ecosystem services assessment in the six case-study areas.
LIFE NewLife4Drylands: “Remote sensing oriented nature-based solutions towards a NEW LIFE FOR DRYLANDS”.
European Union, LIFE20PRE/IT/000007
January 2021 – July 2024
The main goal of the project is to monitor the application, scalability, and replication of the Nature-Based Solutions (NBS) for the restoration of degraded and desertified drylands by using remote sensing data and models. The NewLife4Drylands main expected result is the definition of a protocol for the identification of drylands characteristics and monitoring restoration interventions of degraded lands.
Occupation or position held: Scientific coordinator. – Ecologist. Report on the landscape, environmental, ecological, and socio-economic indicators in the case-study areas. Report on the applied restoration practices for each case study with implemented restoration. Report on ecosystem services assessment in the six case-study areas.
LIFE PRIMED: “Restoration, management and valorisation of PRIority habitats of MEDiterranean coastal areas”.
European Union, LIFE17NAT/GR/000511
July 2018 – ongoing
The primary aim of LIFE PRIMED is to improve the conservation status of habitats and species in the Nestos Delta and Palo Laziale woods, Natura 2000 sites in Greece and Italy, respectively. Direct conservation interventions are planned in both Natura 2000 sites (SCI GR1150010 and SCI and IT6030022) such as increasing the area of ‘Mediterranean temporary ponds. The project also aims to quantify the causes leading to the ‘unfavourable’ conservation status of these habitats and develop mechanisms to sustain management actions after the project. Moreover, it aims at engaging local residents in conservation actions, especially related to tourism to support the local economy.
Occupation or position held: Leader Climatic and weather analysis – Ecologist, primary productivity and hydrological cycle, structure and allometric properties of forest.
Impact assessment of some air pollutants on biodiversity of the shrub and herbaceous communities of Italian forests.
Sapienza Grants RM11916B51B51AFF
January 2019 – December 2019
Based on current knowledge of the impacts of nitrogen deposition on ecosystems, this project aims to quantitatively assess the effect on the biodiversity of the herbaceous and shrubby communities of the Italian forests of the main nitrogen gaseous compounds and tropospheric ozone. The expected time window is from 2000 to 2018. Aware that 19 years is not sufficiently representative for an assessment of the biodiversity variations of the examined plant communities, we investigate the spatial variations of this biodiversity, thus highlighting the most critical areas due to the negative effects of the considered gaseous pollutants.
Occupation or position held: Scientific coordinator– Ecologist. Interpretation of biodiversity values concerning herbaceous and shrub communities; Analysis of the results of the Random Forest regarding the most important independent variables affecting the biodiversity indices; Implementation and non-linear regressive analysis of the most critical environmental, climatic and pollution variables on biodiversity response variables; Cross-validation of statistical models found; Ecological interpretation of areas at greatest risk of biodiversity loss integrated with vegetation and chemical and physical analysis of air and soils.
SECOSUD: “Conservation and equitable use of biological diversity in the SADC region: from geographic information system (GIS) to Spatial Systemic Decision Support System (SSDSS).
Italian Development Cooperation – Ministry of Foreign Affairs
January 2015 – December 2017 (1st phase)
Technical and scientific assistance include the support to the development of Decision Support Tools to deal with environmental issues such as fire and water management, invasive alien species control, adaptation to desertification and climate change in the Southern African Development Community Countries: South Africa, Mozambique, Tanzania. Technical tools include GIS software, remote sensing imagery, and field surveys.
Occupation or position held: Scientific participant – Ecologist, Land use and Land use change assessment, Primary productivity of vegetation growing in savanna areas.
Cs-Mon (Citizen Science MONitoring) Life+ Project
European Union, LIFE13 ENV/IT/842
June 2014 – November 2017
The project is aimed at involving citizens in monitoring alien and endangered species and assessing their conservation status and the effect of climate change on their distribution.
Technical assistance includes a) Development of an identification key for identifying alien and endangered plant species (including those listed in the Habitat Directive 92/43/EEC) through mobile systems (smartphone and tablet); b) Realization of field campaigns with students, schools, environmental associations to monitor the distribution of plant species; c) Assessing the conservation status of endangered species and the elaboration of management strategies for the control of alien species; d) Assessment of the effect of climate change on the future distribution of plant species.
Occupation or position held: Scientific participant – Ecologist.
Special Initiative for Africa.
United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UN/CCD)
January 2014 – April 2014
The project is aimed at developing institutional capacity for dealing with desertification and climate change effects in the Limpopo basin (Botswana, South Africa, Mozambique, Zimbabwe).
Technical and scientific assistance included the development of a systematic conservation planning tool for the Limpopo Commission in order to dynamically integrate remote sensing imageries (MODIS) and GIS data to support a systemic analysis of desertification and climate change effects on the natural resources of the basin.
Occupation or position held: Scientific participant – Ecologist, desertification indicators assessment, land use and land use change assessment.
Limpopo Transboundary programme.
International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN)
January 2009 – March 2014
The project is aimed at developing institutional capacity for dealing with transboundary environmental issues including invasive alien species, fire management, livestock-wildlife conflicts, and water management in the Limpopo transboundary areas (South Africa, Mozambique, Zimbabwe).
Technical and scientific assistance included: a) development of a fire management system for the Kruger and Limpopo National Parks; b) development of a systematic conservation planning tool for the prioritization of interventions of the South African National Resource Management Programs.
Occupation or position held: Scientific participant – Ecologist.
Integrated program for capacity building, socio-economic development and biodiversity conservation of the Socotra Archipelago (Yemen).
General Directorate for the Development Cooperation, Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs
November 2010 – December 2011
Development and implementation of a capacity-building program for the technical staff of the Environmental Protection Authority of Socotra. The training includes the following main components: a) assessment of the main environmental components of Socotra Island; b) development of systematic conservation planning tools for assessing biodiversity and elaboration of monitoring protocols and identification of relevant indicators; c) update of the existing systematic conservation planning tool by uploading data collected according to the monitoring protocols.
Occupation or position held: Scientific participant – Ecologist, statistical analyses and biodiversity indicators.
Development of a Decisions Support System for the systemic planning of Socotra Archipelago (Yemen).
United Nations Development Programme
March 2010 – November 2011
The project aimed at developing of a systematic conservation planning tool for biodiversity conservation and the sustainable development of the Socotra Archipelago Yemen. Scientific activities included: a) Development of a system diagram including environmental and socio-economic components; b) Mapping of endemic and invasive plant species; c) Vegetation mapping using remote sensing classification and ground surveys.
Occupation or position held: Scientific participant – Ecologist, statistical assessment of plant population dynamics.
HEalth Risk from Environmental Pollution Levels in Urban Systems (HEREPLUS).
EU Seventh Framework Programme (FP7) – Environment
September 2008 – May 2011
HEREPLUS will: 1) involve coordination among epidemiologists, biostatisticians, environmental scientists, GIS specialists in order to realize the full potential of GIS technology in environmental health research; 2) develop risk maps relating to human health, and O3 and PM concentrations using the ArcGis approach, taking into account existing and validated epidemiological models, for selection of important and problematic large European urban areas such as Rome, Madrid, Dresden, Athens; 3) improve the knowledge of the potential role of different urban vegetation types for mitigating the O3 and PM pollution levels, and provide best practices regarding the selection of no-VOCs emitting species and management of large green areas located in different neighbouring urban areas; 4) furnish guidelines for municipal managers and administrators deputed to establish urban-environmental measures which combine risk maps, urban vegetation as a sink for ozone and PM, and minimization of sanitary costs, all based on results and knowledge achieved by the project activities as a whole. These guidelines will take the form of best practices recommendations and designs for municipal laws that may be used as a baseline for municipal administrations; 5) disseminate guidelines and best practice indications at a European level, through international workshops and a conclusive report. Specific cardio-respiratory diseases, such as asthma, bronchitis, COPD exacerbation, and ischemic heart disease, and the morbidity and mortality for these diseases, associated with O3 and PM, will be considered in HEREPLUS. HEREPLUS will produce the above-mentioned risk maps starting from pre-existent environmental and health data, by developing of new epidemiological and statistical approach.
Occupation or position held: Scientific participant – Ecologist, Modelling of gas exchange of urban vegetation, evaluation of ozone and PM on plant physiology.
OZONIT. Studio dei principali effetti dell’ozono troposferico sulle piante e contributo per la valutazione potenziale dei danni sulla vegetazione a livello territoriale (Study of the major tropospheric ozone effects on plants and contribution to the assessment of potential damage on a territorial level vegetation).
Italian Ministry for the Environment, Land and Sea
2001 – 2004
The main objectives were: 1) characterization of the macroscopic effects of the damage and of the main mechanisms of action of O3 in Mediterranean plant species, in order to contribute to the knowledge of the potential effects on Italian forests and agricultural crops; 2) definition of the relationship between the concentration of O3 in the air and effective uptake at leaf level organ of the plant, in order to better understand the relationship of ozone environmental concentration / actual / leaf damage absorption; 3) evaluation of innovative systems and integrated bioindication and biomonitoring in order to contribute to the environmental quality monitoring actions; 4) mapping dell’AOT40 in national territories, and development of models for the spatial data of ground-level ozone, in order to start the groundwork for the creation of maps of the damage for the Italian forests.
Occupation or position held: Scientific participant – Ecologist, ozone stomatal uptake modelling and statistical analyses.
Biogenic Emissions in the Mediterranean Area (BEMA) Project
European Commission. Directorate-General XII, Science, Research, and Development
June 1993 – December 1997
The BEMA project on Biogenic Emissions in the Mediterranean Area has been initiated by the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission in collaboration with 12 European laboratories and is partially funded by the Environment and Climate programme. The overall BEMA goal is to characterise the type and amount of VOC emissions from vegetation in the Mediterranean area and to assess their potential role in atmospheric chemistry and ozone formation.
Occupation or position held: Scientific participant – Plant Ecologist, Gas exchange and leaf fluorescence measurements, inter-calibration exercises, upscaling leaf –to- canopy modelling.