Abstract

Abstract. Carbon (C) and greenhouse gas (GHG) research has traditionally required data collection and analysis using advanced and often expensive instruments, complex and proprietary software, and highly specialized research technicians. Partly as a result, relatively little C and GHG research has been conducted in resource-constrained developing countries. At the same time, these are often the same countries and regions in which climate change impacts will likely be strongest and in which major science uncertainties are centered, given the importance of dryland and tropical systems to the global C cycle. Increasingly, scientific communities have adopted appropriate technology and approach (AT&A) for C and GHG research, which focuses on low-cost and low-technology instruments, open-source software and data, and participatory and networking-based research approaches. Adopting AT&A can mean acquiring data with fewer technical constraints and lower economic burden and is thus a strategy for enhancing C and GHG research in developing countries. However, AT&A can have higher uncertainties; these can often be mitigated by carefully designing experiments, providing clear protocols for data collection, and monitoring and validating the quality of obtained data. For implementing this approach in developing countries, it is first necessary to recognize the scientific and moral importance of AT&A. At the same time, new AT&A techniques should be identified and further developed. All these processes should be promoted in collaboration with local researchers and through training local staff and encouraged for wide use and further innovation in developing countries.

Highlights

  • Increasing atmospheric greenhouse gas (GHG) concentrations caused by human activities result in global warming and climate change (IPCC, 2014)

  • Many uncertainties remain around this core of settled science, and many of the most critical questions with respect to GHG dynamics can only be resolved by expanded measurements and experiments in developed and developing countries (Xu and Shang, 2016), given the mismatch between our carbon cycle uncertainties and existing measurement capability (Schimel et al, 2015)

  • The limited scientific role of local researchers is exemplified by the low number of papers led by local researchers; for instance, Minasny et al (2020) found that out of 80 published GHG emissions studies in Southeast Asian peatlands, only 35 % of the studies were first-authored by local researchers

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Summary

Introduction

Increasing atmospheric greenhouse gas (GHG) concentrations caused by human activities result in global warming and climate change (IPCC, 2014). This research should be carried out globally, in both developed and developing countries, since both have different sources and sinks of GHGs, different climate change vulnerabilities, and different capacities for mitigation and adaptation (Stell et al, 2021; López-Ballesteros et al, 2018; Ogle et al, 2014) This has required high-quality long-term or vastspatial-scale (e.g., regional or continental) data collected using advanced instruments, significant computing power with complex and/or proprietary software, and skilled technicians – all expensive to develop, implement, and maintain. Even in the collaboration projects, the roles of researchers of developing countries are often limited due to the technical constraints, and the projects often fail to guarantee sustainability of research in the aspect of continuing and developing further research by developing countries (Minasny et al, 2020; Bates et al, 2020; Bockarie, 2019; Vogel et al, 2019) These make it hard to fill the critical gaps in C and GHG research of developing countries (López-Ballesteros et al, 2018; Kim et al, 2016; Xu and Shang, 2016). Our major objectives are to (1) identify existing gaps in C and GHG research and major barriers to conducting the research in developing countries, (2) explore currently available AT&A for C and GHG research, (3) identify major advantages and potential problems and solutions for adopting AT&A in the research, and (4) provide suggestions for further development and its implementation on the ground

Existing gaps in C and GHG research in developing countries
Technical expertise and infrastructure
Knowledge and information access
Socio-economic conditions
Identifying and developing AT&A for C and GHG research
Promoting AT&A for C and GHG research
Findings
Conclusions
Full Text
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