Brazilian Landscape Research Articles

Brazilian landscape styles and tree biodiversity in public garden squares

The main features of the Brazilian contemporary landscape style are the recovery of degraded areas and the use of indigenous species. This study aimed at analyzing the vegetation of the Curitiba-PR public garden squares to verify if the areas created during the contemporary period (from 1990 on) have a greater diversity of tree species than other squares and, therefore, are more significant for biodiversity conservation. For this, 32 of the city's 454 squares were sampled as determined by statistical calculation, then classified by creation year and landscape style. Trees species, families, and individuals were identified and classified as to their origin; and the variables richness; average species; number of individuals; density of individuals; and the Shannon, Pielou, and Odum indexes were analyzed. The 15 contemporary style squares presented 399 individuals of 54 species and 27 families, with 43.61% of the individuals and 50.00% of the species of exotic origin; individuals average of 26.60 ±9.72 per square and 43.09 ±35.13 per hectare; species average of 6.93 ±4.98 per square and 13.95 ±10.63 per hectare; and diversity indexes of Shannon 3.39, Pielou 0.85, and Odum 9.02. The squares in the contemporary style presented higher diversity indexes, but they have, on average, fewer species, families, and individuals, in addition to a greater proportion of exotic species and individuals. These results indicate that these squares did not follow the typical characteristics of the contemporary style and are of no greater significance for biodiversity conservation when compared to other squares.

Brazilian GIs Landscape: From the TRIPS Commitments to the Real World, What Was Achieved, What Is Yet to be Faced?

Abstract After 25 years of the TRIPS Agreement, it is time to look at the Brazilian GI system and how it has developed since its establishment. GIs under TRIPS might not be the universal consensus, but they formed the starting point for the Brazilian GI system, and since 1996 GIs are expressly mentioned as such in domestic legislation. The article analyses the Brazilian GI journey from TRIPS to today’s framework, and points out the challenges that are yet to be faced at domestic, regional and international level.

Urban Climate Politics in Emerging Economies: A Multi-Level Governance Perspective

Several scholars have pointed to the increasing salience of cities in the global endeavour to reduce dangerous climate change to 1.5°C. However, we still lack systematic comparative analyses on how urban climate initiatives evolve in different political-administrative systems of countries in the global South and what role transnational city networks play in that context. This question is specifically important with regard to the role of cities in contributing to reaching the targets of the Paris Agreement. Against this backdrop, this article explores the vertical and horizontal integration of cities’ climate actions in the multi-level climate governance landscapes in Brazil, India, Indonesia and South Africa. We contend that while transnational city networks provide significant support to cities in some cases, their tools and practices can only reach their full potential where they encounter committed local administrations and when they are not constrained by domestic political-administrative and economic factors.

Commodity-Centric Landscape Governance as a Double-Edged Sword: The Case of Soy and the Cerrado Working Group in Brazil

Persistent ecological and socio-economic impacts from the expansion of industrial monocultures in the tropics have raised land use sustainability to the top of the environmental policy agenda. As major crops such as soy continue to experience growing market demand and threaten both natural ecosystems and traditional populations, a number of multi-stakeholder governance initiatives have been established around agricultural commodity chains or key landscapes. Effectiveness in curbing unsustainable land use, however, remains limited. In this context, innovative initiatives have blurred the lines to combine both supply chain and landscape governance. We analyze such arrangements-here conceptualized as commodity-centric landscape governance (CCLG)-with an in-depth case study of the Cerrado Working Group, a multi-stakeholder initiative led by civil society and the soy agribusiness to address land use change in that savanna landscape in Brazil. The paper examines how that initiative has come about, its agenda, as well as usually underexposed political dimensions using agenda-setting theory. The research is based on extensive fieldwork in Brazil, with data collected through document analysis and 56 key-informant interviews. The findings suggest that a sustainable development agenda for the Cerrado has been substantially narrowed to become mostly one of conversion-free soy supply, serving more the interests of that agroindustry and its consumers than those of the landscape's most vulnerable stakeholders, such as local communities. While the Cerrado Working Group has importantly broadened the policy scope beyond commodity certification, its limited inclusiveness and a skewed agenda have led to instruments that target only soy farmers as beneficiaries. We conclude that, although effective for targeting conversion drivers, CCLG can crystallize and reinforce existing land use patterns by granting disproportionate power to dominant stakeholders, thus limiting the agenda to incremental changes. As a consequence, distant demand-side actors may exert greater governance authority than the landscape's own population. If embodying norms of inclusiveness and equitable participation, CCLG may serve as an entry point, but it does not per se replace inclusive land-use planning and integrated landscape governance.

Review: Depositions: Roberto Burle Marx and Public Landscapes under Dictatorship, by Catherine Seavitt Nordenson

Catherine Seavitt Nordenson Depositions: Roberto Burle Marx and Public Landscapes under Dictatorship Austin: University of Texas Press, 2018, 336 pp., 20 maps, 161 b/w illus. $45 (cloth), ISBN 9781477315736 Roberto Burle Marx is well known for his innovative, abstract, tropical modernist landscape designs, and for his advocacy in protecting Brazil's natural landscapes and exotic flora. His first commission, completed in 1932 with the architects Gregori Warchavchik and Lucio Costa, marked the beginning of his many collaborations with Costa and, later, Oscar Niemeyer. Burle Marx's designs are widely admired and have influenced many subsequent landscape designers around the world. His work has been celebrated in numerous exhibitions, including recent shows at the Museum of Brazilian Sculpture in Sao Paulo and the Jewish Museum in New York. Catherine Seavitt Nordenson's Depositions: Roberto Burle Marx and Public Landscapes under Dictatorship interrogates Burle Marx's legacy, exploring the nuances of his role as a designer, conservationist, and public figure working under Brazil's dictatorial military government, which lasted from 1964 until 1985. Nordenson analyzes eighteen position papers, or depositions, that Burle Marx presented and published from 1967 to 1974 while serving on the advisory board of the Ministry of Education and Culture and as a member of the Federal Council of Culture. Addressing issues of land conservation and the ecological devastation of Brazilian landscapes, Burle Marx generally opposed the government's strategy …

Landscape structure shapes the diversity of beneficial insects in coffee producing landscapes

The expansion of monocultures and the overuse of agrochemicals have resulted in the loss of beneficial insects and disruption of ecosystem services such as pollination and biological control in agricultural landscapes. Bees, wasps and flower flies were our model groups to investigate how landscape structure attributes affect alpha and beta diversity of different beneficial insect groups in Brazilian landscapes containing coffee crops. Species richness and abundance of wasps, and bee richness were positively correlated with forest cover at multiple spatial extents. Bee abundance, and species richness and abundance of flower flies did not respond to any landscape predictor. The community composition of wasps and bees in landscapes with low forest cover was composed of subsets of the communities located in forested landscapes, leading to species loss in structurally impoverished landscapes. High variations in landscape diversity and edge density between landscapes resulted in flower fly species replacement suggesting that pairs of landscapes with high and low diversity of habitat types and edge density harbor different species. Such results indicate that initiatives for the conservation of beneficial insects in the Atlantic Forest biodiversity hotspot must focus on forest conservation and restoration, because high levels of forest loss can result in the loss of wasp and bee species with potential negative consequences for the provision of pollination and pest control services in agroecosystems. Our findings can aid conservationists and policy makers to define priority actions for biodiversity conservation as well as the selection of appropriate spatial scales in landscape planning and management.

Habitat amount drives the functional diversity and nestedness of anuran communities in an Atlantic Forest fragmented landscape

AbstractNatural environments disturbed by human activities can suffer from species extinctions, but some can still harbor high taxonomic diversity. However, disturbances may have impacts beyond the species level, if the species lost represent unique functions in the ecosystem. In this study, we evaluated to what extent the amount of habitat can determine the functional diversity and nestedness of amphibian communities in an Atlantic Forest fragmented landscape in Brazil, and if there is a threshold of habitat amount beyond which there is severe loss of functional diversity. As species responses may depend on their habitat type, we performed the analyses for three different sets of species: all species, forest‐dependent species, and generalist species. We also evaluated the relative importance of turnover and nestedness components to total functional dissimilarity among sites. Habitat amount affected functional diversity of frogs, especially for forest‐dependent species where a linear reduction was detected. The functional dissimilarity among sites was mostly explained by the nestedness component. The reduction of functional diversity was mediated by an ordered loss of traits, leading to a functionally nested metacommunity. These sensitive traits were closely related to habits and reproductive modes that depend on rivers and streams. The maintenance of functional diversity of frogs in fragmented landscapes must rely on the conservation of both terrestrial and aquatic environments, as some species and their traits can disappear from remnants of native vegetation lacking some specific habitats (e.g. streams).Abstract in Portuguese is available with online material.

Sustainable Adoption of Connected Vehicles in the Brazilian Landscape: Policies, Technical Specifications and Challenges

This review addresses the intervehicular communication in Connected Vehicles (CV) by emphasizing V2V (vehicle-to-vehicle) and V2I (vehicle-to-infrastructure) communications in terms of evolution, current standards, state-of-the-art studies, embedded devices, simulation, trends, challenges, and relevant legislation. This review is based on studies conducted from 2009 to 2019, government reports about the sustainable deployment of these technologies and their adoption in the Brazilian automotive market. Moreover, WAVE (Wireless Access in Vehicular Environment) and DSRC (Dedicated Short-range Communication) standards, the performance analysis of communication parameters and intervehicular available at the market are also described. The current status of ITS (Intelligent Transportation System) development in Brazil was reviewed, as well as the research institutes and governmental actions focused on introducing the concept of connected vehicles into the society. The Brazilian outlook for technological adoption concerning CVs was also discussed. Moreover, challenges related to technical aspects, safety and environmental issues, and the standardization for vehicle communication are also described. Finally, this review highlights the challenges and proposals from available technologies devoted to the roads and vehicular infrastructure communication, their evolution and upcoming trends.

High rates of pollen and seed flow in Hymenaea stigonocarpa on a highly fragmented savanna landscape in Brazil

Genetic diversity of tree populations is mainly determined by pollen and seed flow. In turn, dispersal agents are affected by landscape composition and configuration. Understanding the effects of anthropization on pollen and seed dispersal in natural environments is crucial to developing long-term strategies for in situ and ex situ conservation of Neotropical savanna tree species. Here, we evaluated the genotypic and genetic diversity, spatial genetic structure (SGS), and pollen and seed dispersal of the endangered tree species Hymenaea stigonocarpa in a 2200-ha plot established in a strongly fragmented savanna landscape in Brazil. A total of 157 individuals were identified, 66 juveniles and 91 adults. Height, root-collar diameter for juveniles and diameter at breast height for adults were determined for each individual, and leaves were sampled to be used in genotyping by microsatellites. Genotypic diversity ( $$R$$ ) was similarly high in adults (0.87) and juveniles (0.80), indicating more sexual reproduction than clonal. Heterozygosities were also similar between both generations, and no inbreeding was detected. Adults and juveniles present SGS, but the extent measured by the $$Sp$$ -statistic was not significant. Both pollen and seed flow were elevated (24.2%) and reached long distances (3778 m and 3914 m, respectively) within the sampled area, but the pattern was not fat-tailed, indicating that most dispersal was over shorter distances. We conclude that fragmentation does not reproductively isolate the sampled population because individuals located outside the area may serve as sources of gene flow between remnant forest patches; however, the probability of dispersal over long distances is reduced.

Effects of environmental parameters on beetle assemblage in a fragmented tropical rainforest of South America

As a result of habitat fragmentation, the environmental structures of forest remnants change and alter their microclimatic conditions. Edaphic beetles comprise several families that are considered effective bioindicators. In this study, we analyzed how environmental parameters and fragment size affect edaphic beetle assemblage in a fragmented rainforest landscape in Brazil. Beetles were sampled in 12 forest fragments using pitfall traps. Fragment size, tree density and diameter, litter depth and dry weight, and canopy cover were measured in each forest fragment. Staphylinidae and Carabidae were the beetle families with the highest species richness, whereas Scarabaeidae and Nitidulidae were the most abundant families. Beetle abundance was positively affected by litter dry weight and fragment size. In addition, species composition was significantly affected by fragment area. In conclusion, forest patch size is an important parameter for maintaining edaphic beetle assemblages in tropical rainforests, causing major shifts in its abundance and species distribution.

Geographic reconstruction of a Central-West Brazilian landscape devastated during the first half of the 20th century: Mato Grosso de Goiás

In the history of humanity, there are various accounts of ecosystems that were devastated to the detriment of scientific knowledge. In Brazil, the Atlantic Forest and Cerrado biomes are emblematic of this phenomenon. Specifically, within the latter, an environment consisting predominantly of savanna, a large tropical forest enclave existed, known as Mato Grosso de Goiás. This ecosystem was almost devastated by the Brazilian land expansion policies during the first half of the 20th century. The objective of this study is to estimate the extent of the original area of the Mato Grosso de Goiás ecosystem through integration of historical and cartographic data using geoprocessing techniques. The original area was estimated around 26,391 km². These data can aid in the planning of conservation policies for the Cerrado biome. In addition, the used methodology can be adapted to similar studies, especially in the field of environmental science.

Digital knowledge ecosystem framework for aerial control of agricultural pests

This article puts forward a process model for information gathering, planning and execution for decision making in relation to the technological approach in agricultural pest control. The proposed model was tested on aerial application of pesticides for pest control. In here, we propose a methodology based on action–research for implementation of a business, system, and technology model to assist and facilitate the collaborative use of resources and expertise, as well as to adjust one solution based on technological knowledge and management. A case study on pest control on agricultural landscapes in Brazil is presented to illustrate the results of this action–research approach in three different contexts. Its relevance may be measured by its benefits captured by the sharing of information within the networks, to facilitate the flows from information collected to improve the perception from the environment in the form of collective intelligence, so as to compare with previous cases stored in the knowledgebase, for formulation of action planning. Such arrangements pave the way for non-linear methods replacing attempts at objectivity, linear thought and control, as well as risks consideration to be integrated into a social computing system. The results demonstrate that such command-and-control system could be expanded for deployment in other sectors related to agriculture.

The continuing relevance of Paulo Freire: celebrating 50 years since the publication of Pedagogy of the oppressed

This article celebrates 50 years since the publication of Paulo Freire’s Pedagogy of the oppressed. His key ideas are explored and their continuing relevance for both understanding and resisting the increasingly neoconservative political landscape in Brazil is analysed.

Religious landscape in Brazil: Comparing different representative nationwide approaches to obtain sensitive information in healthcare research

Although the basis of religious studies start with demographics, nation-wide data are often extracted from face-to-face interviews (leading to a social-desirability bias) and in studies not originally designed to assess religion. This study aims to understand the religious landscape in Brazil and to investigate the feasibility of carrying out a representative nation-wide survey without interviewers, comparing it with other representative face-to-face surveys. We conducted a nationwide online survey representing all regions in Brazil. These results were compared with five other Brazilian representative surveys. A total of 1169 individuals completed the online questionnaires. The percentage of participants according to the gender and in relation to the Brazilian region was quite similar for all surveys. However, the online survey had the higher level of education among all surveys. In relation to the religious characteristics, the percentage of each variable varied from survey to survey. Those surveys originally designed to assess religion tended to yield more religious affiliations and less ceiling effects. The online survey was able to identify more diverse religious affiliations and more balanced responses in the religious attendance and importance of religion in life. The present study found that, even in nation-wide representative surveys, there are important differences in the results obtained while investigating religion. These differences could be associated with the type of data collection (face-to-face and online), the design of the study (originally designed to investigate religion or not) and options and the type of the questions used.

Mina Klabin and modern landscape design in Brazil

Discussions on modern Brazilian landscape design nearly always bring up Roberto Burle Marx (1909–1994). In Sao Paulo of the late 1920s, however, two other artists, contemporaries of Burle Marx, dev...

Geomorphometric segmentation of complex slope elements for detailed digital soil mapping in southeast Brazil

Hillslope elements have considerable potential in predicting soil properties and types in the landscape, making them likely to be a useful basis for detailed soil mapping. The goal of this research was to apply a previously developed digital hillslope position (DHP) model, calibrate it as needed to a Brazilian landscape, and test its utility as a basis for identification of detailed soil map units. The study area covers 2500 ha and is located on the border between the municipalities of Piracicaba and Santa Bárbara d'Oeste, São Paulo state, Brazil. A digital elevation model, with spatial resolution of 5 m, was used to obtain slope gradient, profile curvature and relative elevation with different analysis scales. Hierarchical rules for these digital terrain derivatives were used to segment the landscape into hillslope positions. The user-calibrated hillslope position model was verified against local experience by identifying the hillslope position in the field and comparing it with the model classification using the Kappa statistic and a confusion matrix. Soil samples were collected across multiple hillslopes with different lithologies. The samples were analyzed for chemical composition and soil particle size separates. The measured soil properties were assessed for statistical significance by variance analysis among hillslope position, parent material, and the interaction between the two. Student's t-tests were performed iteratively across each hillslope position within a given parent material to identify specifically which soil properties were significantly different among the hillslope position map units. Variance analysis of soil samples located within the respective parent material map units identified significant differences for all soil properties measured, but only for some soil properties when categorized by DHP. Focusing on the parent material with a sufficient quantity of samples, there was always at least one hillslope position that was significantly different from the others for each soil property. Because each of these map units presented a significant difference in at least one soil property, they are useful for detailed soil mapping.

Updates on the knowledge of Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi (Glomeromycotina) in the Atlantic Forest biome â–“ an example of very high species richness in the Brazilian landscape

Mycotaxon is pleased to add to our 'web-list' page the following new species distribution list under South America (Brazil): Updates on the knowledge of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (Glomeromycotina) in the Atlantic Forest biome—an example of very high species richness in the Brazilian landscape by Khadija Jobim, Xochitl Margarito Vista, and Bruno Tomio Goto. This brings to 128 the number of free access mycobiotas now available on the re-named Mycotaxon website: http://www.mycotaxon.com/mycobiota

Organic Synthesis: New Vistas in the Brazilian Landscape.

In this overview, we present our analysis of the future of organic synthesis in Brazil, a highly innovative and strategic area of research which underpins our social and economical progress. Several different topics (automation, catalysis, green chemistry, scalability, methodological studies and total syntheses) were considered to hold promise for the future advance of chemical sciences in Brazil. In order to put it in perspective, contributions from Brazilian laboratories were selected by the citations received and importance for the field and were benchmarked against some of the most important results disclosed by authors worldwide. The picture that emerged reveals a thriving area of research, with new generations of well-trained and productive chemists engaged particularly in the areas of green chemistry and catalysis. In order to fulfill the promise of delivering more efficient and sustainable processes, an integration of the academic and industrial research agendas is to be expected. On the other hand, academic research in automation of chemical processes, a well established topic of investigation in industrial settings, has just recently began in Brazil and more academic laboratories are lining up to contribute. All these areas of research are expected to enable the future development of the almost unchartered field of scalability.

Feeding and social activity of insectivorous bats in a complex landscape: The importance of gallery forests and karst areas

Worldwide, increasing human activity, such as agriculture and mining, and decreased landscape complexity, are negatively affecting numerous mammal species. For example, bat communities are becoming threatened in many locations mostly due to the loss of their preferred roosting and foraging habitats. Brazilian landscapes and their associated bat communities are no exception, with the situation being further exacerbated by recently adopted permissive environmental laws that have resulted in reduced biodiversity protection and conservation. Therefore, there is an urgent need to understand how landscape and environmental variables relate to bat activities in Brazil in order to support efforts for their conservation. We used acoustic monitoring data to investigate differences in foraging and social activity of insectivorous bats among four habitat types in a heterogeneous landscape in the Cerrado-Atlantic forest ecotone in southeastern Brazil. We also sampled insect availability and measured temperature at the same sites. Our results showed increased social activity and a greater number of species emitting social calls in karst, and increased feeding activity with a greater number of species emitting feeding buzzes in gallery forest. We also found a positive influence of both temperature and insect abundance on foraging and social activity. Our study provides new insights regarding habitat use by bats in a heterogeneous landscape, and demonstrates the importance of preserving different habitats in heterogeneous landscapes for the conservation of bat species and the ecological functions they perform.

High genetic variability is preserved in relict populations of Cattleya lobata (Orchidaceae) in the Atlantic Rainforests inselbergs

Inselberg formations rise from the eastern Brazilian landscape like islands interspersed within a matrix of tropical vegetation. As this environment is highly threatened by recent urban expansion and the indiscriminate exploitation of natural resources, the orchid species endemic to these inselbergs have suffered drastic reductions in the sizes of their populations. To verify whether this process has been accompanied by the loss of total genetic variability and stochastic changes of the genetic structure of the remaining populations, the genetic variability and structure of all known relict Cattleya lobata populations were assessed using dominant molecular markers (ISSRs), and their genetic conservation status was defined. High genetic variability was detected (H e = 0.262; I = 0.463), with most of the variation occurring within the populations (93%), along with a weak but significant genetic structure (ΦST = 0.074; P < 0.001). Pollination by deception and long-distance seed dispersal may explain the higher variability values than those expected for impacted species with small populations. Historical factors, such as a more continuous distribution in the recent past with interconnected populations and perennial habit with long-lived individuals, can contribute to the maintenance of ancestral genotypes and a highly variable and homogeneous gene pool. These factors can reduce the possible effects of genetic drift, even in the most heavily impacted C. lobata populations in the tourist areas of Rio de Janeiro.