Wild plants as an ecosystem service: Contextualizing sustainability and socioeconomic Impact In rural Armenia Master thesis Miriam Rueger 620176 M.Sc. EnviroFood First examiner: Professor Dr. Claudia Bieling Institute for Societal Transition and Agriculture University of Hohenheim Second examiner: Alen Amirkhanian Acopian Center for the Environment American University of Armenia 10th June 2020 Abstract The relevance of ecosystem services has increased significantly over the past few years in scientific research. Armenia, as a biodiversity hotspot, provides great potential in this regard. This is especially true because ecosystem services are often not quantified and neglected in policy and decision-making processes there. Wild harvest is an activity that is widely acknowledged as an important benefit people obtain from natural ecosystems. However, it remains poorly researched and data availability is fairly limited. The aim of this study was to document wild harvest in rural Armenia and put it in the context of the ecosystem service framework. For that, a total of 23 structured interviews were conducted in four rural Armenian communities. Questions aimed to identify the most important wild plant species and their uses. Further, they tried to capture the sustainability of wild harvest and document a possible decline of biodiversity. Finally, the study intended to record the socioeconomic and cultural dimensions of wild harvest. The respondents listed a total of 68 species that they use for multiple purposes like medicine, cooking, spice, tea, preservation, and as ornamentals and it was consequently possible to capture the importance of wild harvest as a provisioning ecosystem service. However, the study was limited in documenting the overall sustainability of wild harvest and conclusions could only be drawn for specific species in certain communities. The sustainability of wild harvest is very context-specific and more detailed data is needed to fully capture whether wild harvest is sustainable or not in different locations. Lastly, the study was able to show a clear socioeconomic and cultural relevance of wild harvest. In the investigated communities, wild harvest is an important tool for people to uphold their traditions and strengthen their community bonds. Moreover, while the study only touched upon the economic dimension of wild harvest, it was still able to show that for some households wild plants are an important additional source of income. Overall, the research proofed the importance of wild harvest as an ecosystem service in rural Armenia. While the study captured wild harvest broadly based on many factors, some of these characteristics could be investigated more thoroughly with more specific objectives. More research is needed in Armenia to allow comprehensive decision-making for wild harvest regulations. For the research on ecosystem services, this study is a good example on how one activity can incorporate not just one ecosystem service but be embedded holistically in the overall concept. Acknowledgements First of all, I want to thank my two supervisors, Professor Dr. Claudia Bieling, director of the institute of Societal Transition and Agriculture at the University of Hohenheim and Alen Amirkhanian, director of the Acopian Center for the Environment (ACE) at the American University of Armenia (AUA). Thanks a lot to both of you for supervision and always taking the time to help me with any questions before, during and after my stay in Armenia. Next, I want to thank Anahit Amirkhanian for facilitating the field interviews and helping me to get a better understanding of Armenian culture than I would have on my own. Further, I thank Aghavni Harutyunyan for helping out with anything related to ArcGIS, creating maps for the field work and of the results, for translation of the questionnaire and helping out with field logistics. For project coordination and organization of field logistics I also want to thank Siranush Harutyunyan and Lilia Khzmalyan of the ACE and Julia Rietze from the University of Hohenheim. From the GIZ office in Yerevan, I want to thank Caroline Wegner and Artur Hayrapetyan for project coordination. Also, I want to thank Alla Aleksanyan from the Agrarian State University in Yerevan for helping with the correct botanical identification of the local plants. Lastly, I want to thank the DAAD for funding and enabling this project in the first place. Table of Contents List of figures ................................................................................................................................. i List of tables .................................................................................................................................. i Introduction ................................................................................................................................... 1 1.1. Thematic background .................................................................................................. 1 1.2. Knowledge gaps and research aims ......................................................................... 2 1.3. Research objectives .................................................................................................... 3 State of knowledge ...................................................................................................................... 4 2.1. Ecosystem services ..................................................................................................... 4 2.2. Wild harvest .................................................................................................................. 5 2.2.1. Socioeconomic and cultural aspects of wild harvest ..................................... 7 2.2.2. Sustainable wild harvest .................................................................................... 8 2.3. Problems and degradation of ecosystem services ............................................... 10 Study area and communities ................................................................................................... 12 3.1. Republic of Armenia .................................................................................................. 12 3.1.1. Geography and natural diversity ..................................................................... 12 3.1.2. Agriculture and ecosystem degradation ........................................................ 14 3.1.3. Demographics, history and culture ................................................................. 14 3.2. Communities ............................................................................................................... 16 3.2.1. Aragatsotn marz – Kuchak and Geghadzor .................................................. 16 3.2.2. Gegharkunik marz – Kalavan and Dprabak .................................................. 17 Methodology ............................................................................................................................... 19 4.1. Literature review ........................................................................................................ 19 4.2. Questionnaire ............................................................................................................. 20 4.3. Timing of research and data collection ................................................................... 21 4.4. Respondents .............................................................................................................. 22 4.5. Botanical inventory .................................................................................................... 22 4.6. Data analysis .............................................................................................................. 23 4.6.1. Data organization and adjustment .................................................................. 23 4.6.2. Statistical methods ............................................................................................ 25 Results ........................................................................................................................................ 26 5.1. General information ................................................................................................... 26 5.2. Harvested plants and their usage ........................................................................... 27 5.2.1. Plants listed ........................................................................................................ 27 5.2.2. Similarity indices ............................................................................................... 28 5.2.3. Generalized linear models for plant collection .............................................. 28 5.2.4. Purpose of plants .............................................................................................. 30 5.2.5. Parts used ............................................................................................................... 32 5.3. Harvesting techniques and changes ...................................................................... 33 5.3.1. Harvesting techniques ...................................................................................... 33 5.3.2. Changes in plant availability ............................................................................ 35 5.3.3. Spatial component ............................................................................................ 38 5.4. Socioeconomic relevance of wild harvest .............................................................