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The Senegal River Valley has been the scene of major developments since colonial times, revealing the political, economic and strategic stakes of the river. Using specific examples of oral poetry in the Fulani language, we want to show that they testify, through their form as much as their content, to a strong attachment to a territory, to practices and uses of the land bordering the river, to sociabilities and power relationships -in short, to modes of relationships to river landscapes and resource management- mostly not taken into account in the policies of territorial planning concerning this region. The watershed-scale design, conveyed by this poetry, has given way to a technical approach driven by valley developments since the 20th century. The observation is that this passage constitutes a rupture of an "ecological continuity" between wâlo and diêri, understood as the weaving that the hydrological network allows of a myriad of ponds between them and which, in itself, acts as a living entity.

This article proposes a quantitative method for the identification and assessment of geological and geomorphological sites in the Tagleft syncline. This method proposes new criteria of evaluation relatively in conformity with the characteristics of the Moroccan mountain by making reference to the various methods which were already carried out in the European countries. The objective is thus to reduce the subjectivity of the evaluator, to clarify deeply the criteria composing the assessment values (scientific value, additional values and use value). This method is finally applied on the geological and geomorphological sites of the syncline of Tagleft, Atlas of Beni Mellal, Morocco.

The use of vegetation is one of the effective methods to combat the increasing Urban Heat Island (UHI). However, vegetation is steadily decreasing due to urban pressure and increased water stress. This study used air temperature measurements, humidity and an innovative advanced earth system analysis to investigate, at daytime, the relationship between green surfaces, built-up areas and the surface urban heat island (SUHI) in Marrakesh, Morocco, which is one of the busiest cities in Africa and serves as a major economic centre and tourist destination. While it is accepted that UHI variation is generally mitigated by the spatial distribution of green spaces and built-up areas, this study shows that bare areas also play a key role in this relationship. The results show a maximum mean land surface temperature difference of 3.98 °C across the different city neighbourhoods, and bare ground had the highest correlation with temperature (r = 0.86). The correlation between the vegetation index and SUHI is decreasing over time, mainly because of the significant changes in the region’s urban planning policy and urban growth. The study represents a relevant overview of the factors impacting SUHI, and it brings a new perspective to what is known so far in the literature, especially in arid climate areas, which have the specificity of large bare areas playing a major role in SUHI mitigation. This research highlights this complex relationship for future sustainable development, especially with the challenges of global warming becoming increasingly critical.

The Moroccan Central High Atlas in the Beni Mellal - Khenifra region (Azilal Province) is characterized by highly anthropized landscapes as in all the medium mountain regions of Morocco. These are tree parks built by the rural Amazigh population in a context of rainfed food agriculture (bour), associated with extensive livestock farming, mainly sheep and goats. The very open landscapes are dominated by pre-forest formations of trees outside the forest (dominant holm oaks) selected in the fields. Dendrochronological analyses on holm oaks in the municipality of Agoudi N'Lkhir show that a large number of them are 200 to 300 years old and their regular treatment by long rotation (secular) grape varieties raises the structure of the tree park to at least 500 to 600 years. Despite this ancient historical foundation, these highly anthropized formations are often approached in terms of degradation, as are morphogenic processes, which are locally marked by strong erosion. However, field observations and diachronic analyses based on satellite images and aerial photographs show that these tree-lined parks, far from being relics of past landscapes, are still perennial and maintained by rural populations, as they continue to offer multiple vital functions and retain an important social role in these harsh and isolated mountainous contexts of the Moroccan Central High Atlas.

The Moroccan Central High Atlas in the Beni Mellal - Khenifra region (Azilal Province) is characterized by highly anthropized landscapes as in all the medium mountain regions of Morocco. These are tree parks built by the rural Amazigh population in a context of rainfed food agriculture (bour), associated with extensive livestock farming, mainly sheep and goats. The very open landscapes are dominated by pre-forest formations of trees outside the forest (dominant holm oaks) selected in the fields. Dendrochronological analyses on holm oaks in the municipality of Agoudi N'Lkhir show that a large number of them are 200 to 300 years old and their regular treatment by long rotation (secular) grape varieties raises the structure of the tree park to at least 500 to 600 years. Despite this ancient historical foundation, these highly anthropized formations are often approached in terms of degradation, as are morphogenic processes, which are locally marked by strong erosion. However, field observations and diachronic analyses based on satellite images and aerial photographs show that these tree-lined parks, far from being relics of past landscapes, are still perennial and maintained by rural populations, as they continue to offer multiple vital functions and retain an important social role in these harsh and isolated mountainous contexts of the Moroccan Central High Atlas.

Urban vegetation in Algiers, Marrakech, Antananarivo and Toliara is a pre-colonial, colonial and post-colonial heritage. The functions of refreshment, aesthetics and landscaping during the colonial period aimed at creating a pleasant and reassuring living environment for europeans. The choice of species and their spatial arrangement are part of a colonial urban model found in the four cities. Nowadays this colonial green heritage is in poor condition reflecting its inadequacy to their respective social and cultural contexts. However, urban plants provide services which are recognized in Northern countries but only very recently in Southern cities where they should fit to their stakes and contexts (heat, pollution, urban growth, poverty, heritage). During the colonial period, the plants as territory markers also had domination functions. Now they act as socio-spatial segregation, creating a dual town where urban vegetation played a role in the "hygienist" dimension of the colonial urban model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]