http://hdl.handle.net/10174/169 2026-06-15T01:40:31Z 2026-06-15T01:40:31Z Filipe, Susana http://hdl.handle.net/10174/42181 2026-06-12T13:24:55Z 2025-10-08T23:00:00Z

Title: European farming Living Labs perspective for Climate Change and Biodiverdity in Food Systems: Co-Creating Solutions for Threatened Mediterranean Agroforestry Authors: Filipe, Susana Abstract: The Portuguese Montado is a vibrant, mosaic Mediterranean agro-silvo-pastoral system spanning approximately 1 million hectares. Possessing immense ecological and socio-economic value, this unique landscape is currently facing severe decay. Driven by intensification and climate change, the system is losing roughly 5,000 hectares per year due to poor soil health, lack of tree renewal, land abandonment, and economic agendas that favor short-term productivity over sustainable, multifunctional management. Because these complex degradation patterns often remain subtle and un-seen, they frequently go unaddressed by traditional conservation models. To counter this decline, the Montado Living Lab was established as a long-term, transdisciplinary open innovation ecosystem. Formally integrated as an Adherent Member of the European Network of Living Labs (ENoll), it operates via a 10-year protocol uniting 39 entities across the quadruple helix—including 6 research entities, 8 public administrations/associations, 4 companies, and 21 farmers and landowners. Anchored on trust and transparency, the lab utilizes 40 experimental plots as real-world laboratories. Through co-creation workshops, transdisciplinary field visits, and capacity-building events, stakeholders collaboratively test and implement regenerative practices aimed at boosting soil health, expanding water retention, and fostering tree cover restoration.

2025-10-08T23:00:00Z Mendes, Vasco Godinho, Carlos Salgueiro, Pedro http://hdl.handle.net/10174/41944 2026-05-05T13:55:06Z 2025-01-01T00:00:00Z

Title: Prioritising Iberian Wetlandsfor the Conservation of Migratory Waterbirds through Network Analysis Authors: Mendes, Vasco; Godinho, Carlos; Salgueiro, Pedro Abstract: Without adequate protection, wetlands used by migratory waterbirds as stopover sites risk degradation or loss, which can restrict a species' ability to adapt to environmental change and reduce the functional connectivity between breeding and non-breeding grounds. To address this problem, we developed a workflow that uses spatial network analysis, informed by citizen science data, to assess stopover site importance. Applied to the Iberian Peninsula, this approach determined the relative importance of wetlands for the post-nuptial migration of 17 waterbird species, both at the species and group level. Our results align with existing research, while also highlighting sites where current protection may be insufficient. However, the reliability of the workflow is influenced by species- dependent, temporal, and spatial parameters, which require careful consideration to ensure robust and ecologically meaningful assessments. Despite these limitations, the workflow's adaptability and replicability enable its application in other geographical regions for which data is available, making it a valuable tool for prioritizing wetland protection to support migratory waterbird species conservation worldwide.

2025-01-01T00:00:00Z Pinto, Henrique Santos, Ricardo Moral, Francisco Amaral, Alexandre Escribano, Carlos Almeida, António Serrano, João http://hdl.handle.net/10174/41874 2026-04-20T15:50:32Z 2026-03-31T23:00:00Z

Title: Technological development for monitoring pasture quality and supporting grazing management decisions – a review Authors: Pinto, Henrique; Santos, Ricardo; Moral, Francisco; Amaral, Alexandre; Escribano, Carlos; Almeida, António; Serrano, João Abstract: Effective grazing management depends on accurate and timely information on pasture biomass and nutritive value. This review examines recent advances in sensing technologies for estimating forage quality parameters, particularly crude protein (CP) and neutral detergent fiber (NDF), in pasture-based systems. Emphasis is placed on two complementary indicators: Dry Matter (DM) and Crude Protein (CP). Proximal tools such as rising plate meters (RPM) have evolved to incorporate optical components capable of estimating vegetation indices like the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), which may correlate with forage quality. Meanwhile, satellite-based remote sensing (Sentinel-2) offers broader spatial coverage and access to multiple spectral bands. These allow for the computation of several indices that can be explored using statistical and machine learning (ML) models to predict CP and NDF content. The integration of sensor-derived data with artificial intelligence (AI) represents a promising avenue for developing predictive models and decision-support systems (DSS), improving rotational grazing, supplementation planning, and reducing the occurrence of metabolic and nutritional disorders. This review highlights key findings in the literature and identifies knowledge gaps, particularly in the validation of new technologies across different pasture types and seasons. Future research should focus on combining multi-source data for real-time, on farm applications.

2026-03-31T23:00:00Z Ramalho Serrano, João Manuel Pereira http://hdl.handle.net/10174/41870 2026-04-20T15:45:35Z 2026-02-01T00:00:00Z

Title: Technologies applied to extensive precision livestock farming: Case study to support decision-making in the Montado ecosystem Authors: Ramalho Serrano, João Manuel Pereira Abstract: O montado é um sistema agro-silvo-pastoral caracterizado por uma elevada complexidade, resultante das interações entre o clima, o solo, a pastagem, as árvores e os animais. É neste contexto que devem ser tomadas as decisões de gestão, por exemplo, no que diz respeito à fertilização do solo, ao pastoreio ou à suplementação alimentar dos animais. Neste trabalho, realizado entre Outubro de 2015 e Junho de 2025, foram avaliadas tecnologias de Agricultura de Precisão (AP) na monitorização da variabilidade espacial e temporal do solo, da produtividade, qualidade e composição florística da pastagem e do pastoreio. Os resultados mostraram: (i) O impacto positivo das árvores e do pastoreio de animais na fertilidade do solo; (ii) a influência da variabilidade interanual da precipitação no padrão do ciclo vegetativo da pastagem; (iii) o efeito positivo das árvores na qualidade da pastagem; (iv) o efeito negativo das árvores na produtividade da pastagem; (v) o papel da composição florística da pastagem como indicador de limitações do solo ou de alterações climáticas; (vi) o potencial das tecnologias associadas ao conceito de PA como ferramentas expressas de apoio à tomada de decisões e para a otimização do estrato herbáceo e a gestão dinâmica do pastoreio neste ecossistema de forma holística. e sustentável

2026-02-01T00:00:00Z