ARBONETH
The Ethiopian Arboretum Network
What is ARBONETH?
The Ethiopian Arboretum Network project (ARBONETH), initiated by the University of Hamburg, aims to create an alliance of sustainability, nature conservation, education and research - in particular on the basis of the (re-)establishment of arboreta, nurseries and herbaria in Wondo Genet and Haramaya and through the exchange in the network.
The Conference "Building Capacity for Botanic Garden Management in Ethiopia“, organized by The Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI) and the Ethiopian Biodiversity Institute (EBI), aimed to lay the foundation for a network of botanic gardens in Ethiopia.
Furthermore, the ARBONETH network allows to create the necessary capacity to meet the challenges of biodiversity loss and the loss of habitats in a changing world at the three selected university locations: Wondo Genet College, Addis Ababa University and the University Haramaya.
Further cooperation with experts from East Africa (other botanic gardens in Ethiopia, East African Herbarium, etc.), Bonn University (Germany), Oxford University (England) and the BGCI network will help to firmly establish ARBONETH as a sustainable network.
Objectives of ARBONETH
- establishment of a biodiversity and forestry network in Ethiopia
- alliance of biodiversity management and sustainable use of resources
- cooperation between several international scientists and university institutions in Ethiopia: Wondo Genet College (see Gallery), Addis Ababa University and the University Haramaya
- promoting international exchanges and further education of students and staff of partner institutions to actively use a network of arboreta, herbaria, nurseries and institutions for national biodiversity management
- training and workshops (e.g. paraecologist programme)
- reconstruction of arboreta, nurseries and herbaria
- establishing a network with new partners (e.g. Debre Berhan University, Konso Development Agency)
Ethiopian forest - a threatened natural resource
Forest is an essential element for the maintenance of the complex biodiversity as well as the ecosystem functions in Ethiopia and operates as an important producer as for instance of harvestable fruits.
Moreover, forest as a natural resource possesses important functions in the prevention of erosion and simultaneously is affecting positively climate conditions.
Despite all that, the proportion of land area covered by forest in Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia decreased alarmingly from 13.8 percentage in 1990 to 11.2 percentage in 2010. The
natural Ethiopian forest is threaten by habitat destruction, deforestation, decline in regeneration, alien invasive species, forest fire, climate change and vegetation clearance for agriculture
and infrastructure.
ARBONETH – Project activities (some examples)
Paraecologist Programme
At the Wondo Genet College for Forestry and Natural Resources of the Hawassa University, a paraecologist programme has been implemented by ARBONETH.
The paraecologists support scientists as well as ensure that their local environmental knowledge will be integrated into the academic research.
(Source: PARAECOLOGIST.ORG)
Biodiversity Research in
Theory & Practice
The 10- day training “Biodiversity acquisition management and ex situ-conservation“, taking place at the Hawassa University and the Wondo Genet College in 2015 and 2017, shall provide theoretical knowledge of current biodiversity-related topics, diversity acquisition, forms of biodiversity as well as measuring and evaluating of biodiversity. In addition, practical knowledge in acquisition methods, data processing and data analysis will be taught.
A NEW way for nature conservation in Ethiopia
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