The long-term objectives of the ICBG Associate Program for Biodiversity Inventory and Monitoring, Conservation and Training (AP1) include: 1) detailed assessments of the biodiversity of West-Central African forests; 2) assessment of the dynamics of these forests and of factors maintaining their biodiversity; 3) providing intensive training in plant taxonomy, collection techniques, biodiversity inventory and monitoring, data analysis, environmental management and leadership for local students and natural resource technicians; and 4) enhancing the infrastructure of local organizations by providing herbarium and computer facilities and other support. In the larger picture, we aim to develop strategies for the sustainable harvest of cultivation of economically important species and to provide advice to policy makers and forest managers on conservation issues.
Our specific aims are to continue inventory and forest dynamics research at the large-scale (50-ha) permanent forest plot in the Korup National park of Cameroon as well as out network of 1-ha Biodiversity Plots, which have been established in Nigeria and Cameroon. These plots will provide information not only on the biodiversity of the region, but also on the potential effects of climate change, fragmentation, and disturbance and exploitation by human population. In our training courses, our goals will be to create a sustainable knowledge base and local conservation projects which will last beyond the life of this ICBG, as well as promoting cooperative linkages between the Smithsonian Institution and local organizations.
