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Alterra, the Netherlands
Alterra is the main Dutch centre of expertise on rural areas,
employing over 500 staff members. Alterra is part of
Wageningen University and Research Centre (Wageningen UR) and
combines all expertise on rural areas and their sustainable
use, including aspects such as water, wildlife, forests, the
environment, soils, landscape, climate and recreation, as well
as various other aspects relevant to the development and
management of the environment we live in. Alterra engages in
strategic and applied research to support policymaking and
management at the local, national and international level.
This includes innovative and interdisciplinary research on
complex problems relating to rural areas, but also the
production of readily applicable knowledge and expertise
enabling rapid and adequate solutions to practical problems.
The many national and international themes of Alterra's
research effort include studies on land use change, relations
between cities and their surrounding countryside, multiple
uses of rural areas, economy and ecology, integrated water
management, sustainable agricultural systems, planning for the
future, expert systems and modelling, biodiversity, landscape
planning and landscape perception, integrated forest
management, geo-information and remote sensing, spatial
planning of leisure activities, habitat creation in marine and
estuarine waters, green belt development and ecological webs,
pollution risk assessment, et cetera. One of our most
important collaboration is our partnership within Wageningen
University and Research Centre on interaction between climate
changes and biosphere CCB (Climate Change on Biosphere).
Alterra is leading partner in the Wageningen UR Climate Change
and Biosphere Research Programme
Alterra has a a long history of fielding staff to locations
all over the world to advise on, and assist in, the planning
and execution of numerous international projects and study
programmes. In addition, Alterra
offers
a strong track-record,
expertise on knowledge networks, and experience.
Alterra
staff
members have established a solid record of co-operating
successfully with the staff of local counterpart institutions
in local working conditions. The combination of human
resources and practical experience
ensures
that Alterra
can meet high technical standards that are required to achieve
the goals of international projects and study programmes.
As many environmental issues require an international
approach, international co-operation and input is essential.
Alterra realises the importance of co-operation on both a
national and international scale of research institutes and
educational centres. Alterra is partner in the Partnership for
European Environmental Research (PEER) and provides a wide
range of network services to Landscape Europe, one of the
research pillars of PEER.
Recent projects related to Alterra’s
international research:
SENSOR: Sustainability Impact Assessment: Tools for
Environmental, Social and
economic Effects of Multifunctional Land use in European
Regions
www.sensor-ip.org
ELCAI (European Landscape Character Initiative, FP5
Accompanying Measure Project)
www.elcai.org
ELPEN: European Livestock Policy Evaluation Network
(QLK5-1999-01296)
www.macaulay.ac.uk/elpen/index.htm
PELCOM: Pan-European Land Cover Monitoring Project
(ENV-CT96-0315)
www.geo-informatie.nl/projects/pelcom
PEEN: Indicative map of the Pan-European Ecological
Network for Central and Eastern Europe
ENRISK: Environmental Risk Assessment for European
Agriculture
www.ecnc.nl/doc/projects/enrisk.html
Pastoral (QLRT-2000-00559)
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