Scientific publications

Iheaturu C., Hepner S., Batchelor J. L., Agonvonon G. A., Akinyemi F. O., Winegate V. R., Ifejika Speranza C. (2024). Integrating UAV LiDAR and multispectral data to assess forest status and map disturbance severity in a West African forest patch. Ecological Informatics. Manuscript Number: ECOINF-D-24-01225. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoinf.2024.102876

Mintah, F., Pamela, T. E. P., Oberlack, C., & Ifejika Speranza, C. (2024). Why do forests persist and re-emerge amidst tropical deforestation pressures? Archetypes of governance and impact pathways. Forest Policy and Economics, 169, 103352. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.forpol.2024.103352

Wingate, V. R., Akinyemi, F. O., & Ifejika Speranza, C. (2023). Archetypes of remnant West African forest patches allow identifying common underlying social-ecological characteristics and change pressures. Applied Geography 158, 103024. doi: 10.1016/j.apgeog.2023.103024

Ifejika Speranza C., Akinyemi F. O., Baratoux D., Benveniste J., Ceperley N., Driouech F., Helmschrot J. (2022) Enhancing the Uptake of Earth Observation Products and Services in Africa Through a Multi-level Transdisciplinary Approach. Surv Geophys. 23:1-35. doi: 10.1007/s10712-022-09724-1

Wingate V. R., Akinyemi F. O, Iheaturu C. J., Ifejika Speranza C. (2022) Remote Sensing-Based Inventory of West Africa Tropical Forest Patches: A Basis for Enhancing Their Conservation and Sustainable Use. Remote Sens. 14, 6251. https://doi.org/10.3390/rs14246251

Submitted publications

Hepner S., Agonvonon G., Ehbrecht M., Iheaturu C., Azihou F. A., Ifejika Speranza C. (under review) Degradation and Fragmentation Effects on Structural Complexity in West-African Forest Patches. Biotropica. Manuscript ID: BITR-24-022

Iheaturu C. J., Wingate V. R., Akinyemi F. O., Ifejika Speranza C. (under review) An integrated object-based sampling approach for validating the accuracy of non-contiguous tropical forest cover data. Remote Sensing of Environment. Manuscript Number: RSE-D-23-03178.

Wingate V. R., Curatola Fernández G., Ifejika Speranza C. (under review) Small forest patches in West Africa: mapping how they are changing to better inform their conservation. Environmental Conservation. Manuscript ID EC-24-01-03.

Related publications from our team

Fitz J., Ademola A. A., Ifejika Speranza C. (2022). Increasing signs of forest fragmentation in the Cross River National Park in Nigeria: Underlying drivers and need for sustainable responses. Ecological indicators, 139, p. 108943. 10.1016/j.ecolind.2022.108943

Contributions to conferences and workshops

Organized Conference Sessions ₂₀₂₃

Ifejika Speranza, C., Akinyemi, F. O., Mintah, F., Sonwa, D., Sinsin, B. (Hybrid) Sustaining forests in mosaic landscapes. The International Association for Landscape Ecology (IALE) 2023 World Congress, 12/07/2023, Nairobi Kenya.

Ifejika Speranza, C., Bisong, F., (Hybrid) Reconstituting institutions and norms for forest commons in contexts of multiple transitions. Conference Session, The XIX Biennial International Association for the Study of the Commons (IASC), 21/06/2023, Nairobi, Kenya.

Presentations in Conferences and Workshops ²⁰²³

Iheaturu, C.J., Wingate, V., Akinyemi, F.O., Ifejika Speranza, C., Monitoring Tropical Forests in West Africa with Deep
Learning and Satellite Data Fusion. Poster presentation, American Geophysical Union Meeting (11 – 15 Dec.), San
Francisco, USA.

Hepner, S., Tabi Eckebil, P.P., Agonvonon, G.A., Mintah, F., Iheaturu, C., Ifejika Speranza, C., Video documentation and insights from field research in forest-agricultural landscapes of West Africa. Oral presentation, Swiss Geoscience Meeting. (17-19 Nov.), Mendrisio, Switzerland.

Wingate, V.R., Curatola Fernandez, G., Ifejika Speranza, C., Small forest patches in West Africa: mapping how they are changing to better inform their conservation. Swiss Geoscience meeting (17 Nov.), Mendriso, Switzerland.

Iheaturu, C.J., Wingate, V.R., Akinyemi, F.O., Ifejika Speranza, C., Integrating UAV Lidar and Multispectral Data to Assess West African Tropical Forest Condition and Structure. Poster presentation, The ISPRS Geospatial Week (2-7
Sept.), Cairo, Egypt.

Mintah, F., Tabi Eckebil, P.P, Oberlack, C., Ifejika Speranza, C., Analysis of Forest Governance Arrangements and their Impacts on the Persistence and Re-emergence of forest in the Tropics. Oral presentation, IALE 2023 WORLD CONGRESS (10-15 July), Nairobi, Kenya.

Tabi Eckebil, P.P., Bürgi M., Akinyemi, O.F., Sonwa, D., Ifejika Speranza, C., Ecosystem services assessment of forest
patches in mosaic agricultural landscapes in Cameroon and Benin. Oral presentation, IALE 2023 WORLD CONGRESS
(10–15 July), Nairobi, Kenya.

Mintah, F., Tabi Eckebil, P. P., Oberlack, C., Ifejika Speranza, C., Institutions and impacts of forest governance on the persistence and re-emergence of forests in the tropics: An archetype approach. Oral presentation, XIX Biennial International Association of the Study of Commons (IASC) Conference (19-24 June), Nairobi, Kenya.

Agonvonon, G.A., Azihou, F., Ifejika Speranza, C., Tree communities’ conservation in forest patches of Benin,
West Africa. Biodiversity convention: From science to implementation (26-29 June), Ascona, Switzerland.

Presentations in Conferences and Workshops ²⁰²²

Agonvonon, G.A., & Ifejika Speranza, C., Challenges and opportunities for early career ecologists in Africa. Oral
presentation, International Association for Ecology (28 Aug. to 02 Sep.), Geneva, Switzerland.

Hepner, S., & Ifejika Speranza, C., Social-ecological factors influencing the aboveground biomass of tropical forest
patches. Oral presentation, International Association for Ecology (28 Aug. to 02 Sep.), Geneva, Switzerland.

Mintah, F., Oberlack, C., Ifejika Speranza, C., Governance of forest use and its impacts on the forest land use change
in sub-Saharan Africa. Oral presentation, The Netherlands Land Academy International Conference on Land
Governance (29 June –01 July), Utrecht, Netherlands.

Mintah F. (2022) Governing land for the future – what (r)evolutions do we need? Talk at the LANDac (Netherlands Land Academy) International Conference on Land Governance, Utrecht, Netherlands.

Tabi Eckebil P. P. (2022) Ecosystem multifunctionality of forest patches in the tropics: A systematic literature review. Talk at the European Geoscience meeting EGU, Vienna, Austria.

Wingate, F. R., Akinyemi, F.O., Iheaturu, C.J., Ifejika Speranza, C., A remote sensing-based inventory of West-Africa
tropical forest patches, European Geoscience meeting EGU (09 April), online.

Guest Lectures and Invited Presentations ²⁰²³

Ifejika Speranza C., Changing institutions and changing forests in West Africa? A historical examination. Guest lecture, University of Neuchatel (14 December), Switzerland

Wingate V.R., Small forest patches in West Africa: mapping how they are changing to better inform their conservation. Guest lecture, University of Basel (4 December), Switzerland.

Ifejika Speranza, C., Transdisciplinary approaches of “making hope possible” in social- ecological transformation – Two Illustrative Examples. Lassalle-Institut, Edlibach, Zug (28 August), Switzerland.

Ifejika Speranza, C., Sustaining forest patches in agricultural landscapes of West Africa – A research agenda. Guest
lecture, University of Göttingen (6 June), Germany.

Summer School

IGS North-South Summerschool, 2023, Nanyuki, Kenya on “Common pool resources in a globalised world” (F. Mintah, P. Tabi Eckebil)

Interdisciplinary summer school, 2023 Ljubljana, Slowenia on “forest ecology and technology to measure forest
characteristics” (S. Hepner)

IGS Summerschool 2022 in Tramelan, Bern on “politics and natural resources from a conflict perspective” (G. Agonvonon, S. Hepner)