Understanding natural resources Understanding Understanding natural resources A SMART SKILLS MANUAL Small-scale farmers in developing countries depend heavily on their natural resources: water, soil and the broader ecosystem. They need to use these resources wisely so they can continue to produce crops and raise animals. This manual shows how field agents, extension workers and program managers can help farmers understand natural resources and how natural resources affect farm production. The nine lessons cover the following topics: • Why are natural resources important? • The water cycle • Managing water • Watersheds and watershed management • Soil composition • Soil fertility and nutrients • Plant health • Life systems in nature (ecosystems) Understanding natural • Sustainable use of natural resources – bringing it all together. resources Each lesson includes guidelines, field exercises to do with a group of farmers and quizzes to test your understanding. A SMART SKILLS MANUAL This is one manual in a series on SMART Skills – the skills that field agents need to help farmers in developing countries SKILLS MANUAL A SMART improve their livelihoods. This manual focuses on helping farmers understand their natural resources. A companion manual describes how to help them manage these resources in a sustainable way. http://www.crsprogramquality.org/smart-skills-for-farmers/ Catholic Relief Services 228 W. Lexington Street, Baltimore, MD 21201, USA For more information, contact [email protected]. Understanding natural resources A SMART SKILLS MANUAL UNDERSTANDING NATURAL RESOURCES I This publication was made possible by the generous support of the American people through the United States Agency of International Development (USAID) Office of Acquisition and Assistance under the terms of Leader with Associates Cooperative Agreement No. AID-OAA-L-10-00003 with the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign for the Modernizing Extension and Advisory Services (MEAS) Project. MEAS aims at promoting and assisting in the modernization of rural extension and advisory services worldwide through various outputs and services. The services benefit a wide audience of users, including developing country policymakers and technical specialists, development practitioners from NGOs, other donors, and consultants, and USAID staff and projects. Catholic Relief Services (CRS) serves the poor and disadvantaged overseas. Without regard to race, creed or nationality, CRS provides emergency relief in the wake of natural and man-made disasters and promotes the subsequent recovery of communities through integrated development interventions. CRS’ programs and resources respond to the U.S. Bishops’ call to live in solidarity—as one human family—across borders, over oceans, and through differences in language, culture and economic condition. CRS provided co-financing for this publication. Catholic Relief Services 228 West Lexington Street Baltimore, MD 21201-3413 USA Editorial team Original text Shaun Ferris Geoff Heinrichs Rupert Best Gaye Burpee Paul Mundy Dina Brick Nikola Stalevski Illustrations Layout and design Jorge Enrique Gutiérrez Paul Mundy ISBN-10: 1614921423 ISBN-13: 978-1-61492-142-4 Download this publication and related material at www.crsprogramquality.org/smart- skills-for-farmers/ or at www.meas-extension.org/meas-offers/training Suggested citation: CRS and MEAS. 2015. Understanding natural resources: A SMART Skills manual. Catholic Relief Services, Baltimore, MD, and Modernizing Extension and Advisory Services project, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. © 2015 Catholic Relief Services and MEAS project. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License. Users are free: • to Share — to copy, distribute and transmit the work • to Remix — to adapt the work under the condition that they attribute the author(s)/institution (but not in any way that suggests that the authors/institution endorse the user or the user’s use of the work). ii UNDERSTANDING NATURAL RESOURCES Table of contents Foreword ................................................................................................................................................v Acknowledgments .............................................................................................................................ix Introduction ...........................................................................................................................................x LESSONS ......................................................................................................................................................1 Lesson 1. Why are natural resources important? .................................................................. 3 Quiz 1 .............................................................................................................................................. 4 Exercise 1. Natural resources are managed together ................................................. 5 Lesson 2. The water cycle ................................................................................................................7 Quiz 2 .............................................................................................................................................12 Exercise 2. Viewing soil erosion in runoff water ...........................................................13 Lesson 3. Managing water .............................................................................................................15 Quiz 3 .............................................................................................................................................17 Exercise 3. The importance of soil cover .........................................................................18 Lesson 4. Watersheds and watershed management ........................................................19 Quiz 4 ............................................................................................................................................24 Exercise 4. Seek out a problem area in your local watershed ...............................25 Lesson 5. Soil composition .........................................................................................................27 Quiz 5 ............................................................................................................................................32 Exercise 5a. Counting soil animals ....................................................................................33 Exercise 5b. Measuring topsoil depth ..............................................................................34 Exercise 5c. Determining soil texture ..............................................................................35 Lesson 6. Soil fertility and nutrients .........................................................................................37 Quiz 6 .............................................................................................................................................41 Exercise 6. Using fertilizers ..................................................................................................42 Lesson 7. Plant health .....................................................................................................................43 Quiz 7 ........................................................................................................................................... 46 Exercise 7. Local plant health .............................................................................................47 Lesson 8. Life systems in nature (ecosystems) ....................................................................49 Quiz 8 ............................................................................................................................................52 Exercise 8. Introduction to food webs.............................................................................53 Lesson 9. Sustainable use of natural resources – bringing it all together ................55 Quiz 9 ........................................................................................................................................... 60 Exercise 9a. Ecosystem services .........................................................................................61 Exercise 9b. Protecting natural resources – today and for the centuries ahead ................................................................................................................................62 ANSWERS TO QUIZZES ........................................................................................................................65 REFERENCES AND FURTHER READING ......................................................................................... 69 UNDERSTANDING NATURAL RESOURCES iii Foreword In the community of San Francisco in Matagalpa, Nicaragua, the savings and lending group “Road to Success” used traditional and new approaches to natural resource management to build stable livelihoods. In two short years, with the help of their savings this group of 15 women developed a business for producing and selling vegetable seedlings – tomato, green bell peppers and cucumbers. Their success did not come easily. They had to rely on help from local NGOs and producer groups to get started, and had to learn multiple skills. Today, they plant on slopes with live barriers to help trap topsoil, prevent runoff and replace trees