The project aims to develop a high resolution digital vegetation map and model for seven Eastern African countries to help with natural resource management and conservation under climate change. Key activities will produce the vegetation map and database, field verification in Kenya and Uganda, and scenarios for current and future natural resource management under climate change. Key deliverables include the digital vegetation map, documentation atlases, and reports on forests, woodlands, bushlands, and how vegetation distribution may change with climate change. The project expects to produce an open resource to help farmers, researchers, and conservation planning for biodiversity and welfare.

1. An abstract of the Rockefeller Foundation supported Project under the Climate Smart for Rural
Development Initiative
Project Title: Vegetation and climate change in Eastern Africa: A high resolution digital vegetation map
for land use planning, natural resource management and conservation of biodiversity in Eastern Africa
(VECEA)
Grant number {note – you can find this on your grant agreement letter): 2008 CLI 305
Name of the Organization: Forest & Landscape Denmark, University of Copenhagen
Country: Denmark
Name of the Contact Person: Lars Graudal
Email: lgr@life.ku.dk
Telephone: +4535331616
Key Objectives
An improved tool developed for modeling and implementing evidence-based strategies for natural
resource management that moderate and cope with the consequences of climate change
Key Activities
Activities will lead to the following outputs:
Output 1: A high resolution model for the 7 countries and an accompanying database with descriptions of
the nomenclature and criteria used to define the potential vegetation types, including key (vegetation and
environmental niche) characteristics that define and distinguish the vegetation types.
 Output 2: Field verification of vegetation in Kenya and Uganda.
 Output 3: High resolution scenarios for present day natural resources management and conservation
(Kenya and Uganda).
 Output 4: High resolution scenarios for natural resources management and conservation under
climate change and land use changes (Kenya and Uganda).
 Output 5: Document and publish the potential vegetation map and database
Key Deliverables
A. Digital regional map (Google Earth Layer)
B. Documents:
1: Atlas and documentation of map
2. Forests (vegetation types and species)
3. Woodlands and wooded grasslands (vegetation types and species)
4. Bushland and thickets (vegetation types and species)
5. Other types (vegetation types and species)
6. Description of process of making the regional map
7. Modelling of how distribution of vegetation types may be influenced by climate change
Expected Outcomes
The project will produce an international public good (the digital map), which will help increase the
productivity of farmers growing trees and improve the efficiency in conservation of biodiversity, thus
increasing the welfare of the societies as a whole. The target group include researchers, planners,
decision makers and extensionists within the natural resources management and biodiversity
conservation sectors. The beneficiaries will be farmers and conservationists.