Living Lab - Manitoba

What is a Living Lab?

Launched in 2022, Agricultural Climate Solutions - Living Labs is a $185-million program that will allow Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) to build and strengthen a nationwide network of Living Labs over 10 years. There are 14 living labs across Canada, including Living Lab - Manitoba (LL-MB). Information gathered through ACS-LL will allow Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) to provide Canadian agricultural producers with general and regionally-specific beneficial management practices.

The three main priorities of ACS-LL are:

Sequester carbon
Reduce greenhouse gas emissions
Provide other co-development co-benefits

Please visit the ACS-LL website for more information.

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What is Living Lab - Manitoba?

Living Lab – Manitoba is a research-based program that collaborates with agricultural producers to develop grassroots solutions for reducing agricultural impacts on climate and environment.

LL-MB is built in partnership with Manitoba’s 14 watershed districts and was developed in collaboration with a highly engaged network of local agricultural producers, industry groups, Indigenous groups, and nonprofit groups.

Funded through Agriculture & Agri-Food Canada (AAFC), LL-MB is a five-year project that aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, enhance carbon sequestration, and protect water through enhanced land management and integrated watershed management.

Research projects done on local Manitoba farms will inform the development of new and innovative agricultural practices and will provide a solid foundation for further policy planning surrounding agricultural production.

Click here to read the Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada Press Release

Click here to read the Manitoba Association of Watersheds press Release

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What will be studied through Living Lab - Manitoba?

Multiple research sites will be identified across the province and research will occur directly on farms in Manitoba watershed district. Research will be conducted by various local industry organizations and academic institutions, and data collection/data processing will be performed by an AAFC research team.

Research activities will focus on the following themes:

Carbon Sequestration with Natural Infrastructure

Prairie Wetlands, Riparian Zones, and Managed Buffers as Hotspots for Carbon Sequestration
Maximizing Net GHG Sequestration in Pastures, Conserved, and Restored Grasslands
Agroforestry: Evaluating the Potential for Carbon Sequestration, Crop Yield, and Field Health

Increased Soil Organic Matter to Increase Water Retention, Carbon Sequestration, Crop Yield, and Field Health

Carbon Sequestration Through Varied Cropping Systems
Annual Crop and Livestock Integration

Reduced Greenhouse Gas (GHG)

Emissions Reducing Nitrous Oxide Emissions with Improved Nitrogen Management
Nitrogen Fixing Crop Rotations, Intercrops, and Cover Crops to Reduce Input
Evaluating Scenarios for Annual Crop, Livestock, and Human Waste Stream Integration – Practices that Facilitate a Circular Nutrient Economy
Tile Drain and Retention Pond Nutrient Recuperation, Eutrophication, and GHG Emissions Examination
Nutrient Leaching Mitigation and Rhizosphere Microbiome Health

Understanding and Targeting Spatial Distribution and Building of Soil Carbon

Developing Realistic Scenarios for Targeting of Conservation Efforts and Restoration of Natural Features with Modelling of Implications for Regional Net Carbon Balance

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What are the Benefits of LL-MB?

Beneficial management practices (BMPs) developed with research data from the LL-MB project will help to increase the sustainability of the Canadian agriculture industry. The adoption of BMPs in agricultural ecosystems provides tangible environmental and economic benefits such as:

Reduced greenhouse gas emissions
Increased carbon sequestration
Improved watershed health
Decreased operating cost to producers

This also means producers may be more competitive in an evolving market, as consumers care more about where their food comes from, how their food is produced, and what impact their food has on the environment.