FROM PASTURE TO PRESERVATION : CATTLE AND CATALYZING AGRICULTURE AND REFORESTATION

Item

Title
FROM PASTURE TO PRESERVATION : CATTLE AND CATALYZING AGRICULTURE AND REFORESTATION
Description
Terceira Island, part of the Azores archipelago, is known for being home to more cows than people, its dairy industry, and its booming tourism. However, overgrazing and the influx of visitors threaten the island's agricultural economy and cultural heritage. To address these challenges, dairy farming is integrated with reforestation using Richard Foreman's 'Patch-Corridor-Matrix' theory. Corridors of degraded soil from cow movement are reforested with endemic Juniperus brevifolia, connecting patched woody ecosystems. The matrix of the stone lava walls across the island frame these new wildlife corridors and supports rotational grazing. The increased biodiversity and forested areas offer new streams of income for dairy farmers who can also provide spaces for tourists to interact with cows and stay in the pastures. This integrated approach promotes sustainable agriculture and tourism, while preserving the island's cultural heritage and opportunities for tourists to interact with and sample products from the island’s “happy cows.”
Creator
Quintero, Elizabeth
Subject
Agroforestry
Azores
Cows
Silvopasture
Terceira
Tourism
Landscape architecture
Agriculture
Wildlife conservation
Contributor
Bonvehi Rosich, Montserrat
Date
2023-05-18T04:10:58Z
2023
2023-05-17
2023-05
2023-05-18T04:10:58Z
Type
Thesis or Dissertation
text
Format
application/pdf
application/pdf
Identifier
Quintero, Elizabeth. 2023. FROM PASTURE TO PRESERVATION : CATTLE AND CATALYZING AGRICULTURE AND REFORESTATION. Master's thesis, Harvard Graduate School of Design.
30521588
https://nrs.harvard.edu/URN-3:HUL.INSTREPOS:37375218
Language
en