mphasis on flux is a major marker of the idea of nature at the millennium. Contributed especially by ecological science, the emphasis on flux is supported by convincing findings on biogeophysical processes, dynamic and stochastic ecological models, and theoretical and methodological examinations of ecology, biogeography, evolution, and diverse human uses of the land and other resources (Levin
Biological diversity of agriculture consists of several analytic levels and spatial management scales that are subject to complex interactions with global change. The complexity of interactions is related to the bidirectional impacts and influences of global land use and climate change in combination with social-environmental shifts (globalization of agricultural development; market integration; technological change; and regulation through global treaties, policies, and institutions). This article develops a conceptual framework of the complexity of interactions using four thematic nodes-biological diversity in agriculture; global change; management and scale; and social-environmental adaptation, vulnerability, and resilience. It argues for the increased relevance of this framework. Linking expanded scientific research and policy to this group of conceptual nodes yields insight into the impacts of global change on biological diversity in agriculture and into the design of conservation strategies, monitoring approaches, and sustainability policies. Future policy must anticipate interactions of biological diversity, agroecosystem complexity, and global change stemming from the acceleration and integration of region-scale land-use intensification and disintensification.
Biogeography is, in essence, the geography of nature or more specifically, the study of the distribution of Earth's life forms at all spatial and temporal scales. This paper traces the historical development of biogeography from ancient times to the twenty-first century, highlights contemporary trends and expansions, and previews future prospects. The cumulative discovery of biogeographic patterns culminated in the development of the theory of evolution -biogeography's greatest contribution to science. The paradigm shift to causal approaches in the early twentieth century led to ecological biogeography emerging as the second pillar of biogeography in addition to historical biogeography. Fostered by the acceptance of plate tectonics, the equilibrium theory of island biogeography, the rapid advancement of new perspectives and methods in historical biogeography, and revolutionary advances in compiling, visualizing, and analyzing spatially explicit information, biogeography evolved into a rigorous science during the second half of the twentieth century. Currently, major active sub-fields are phylogeography, macroecology, and conservation biogeography. Biogeography is on the way to becoming a 'big science', entering an era of increasingly integrative and multi-faceted approaches, increasingly accessible and available data, tools, and techniques, and interdisciplinary collaboration.
SUMMARYRapid climatic and socio-economic changes challenge current agricultural R&D capacity. The necessary quantum leap in knowledge generation should build on the innovation capacity of farmers themselves. A novel citizen science methodology, triadic comparisons of technologies or tricot, was implemented in pilot studies in India, East Africa, and Central America. The methodology involves distributing a pool of agricultural technologies in different combinations of three to individual farmers who observe these technologies under farm conditions and compare their performance. Since the combinations of three technologies overlap, statistical methods can piece together the overall performance ranking of the complete pool of technologies. The tricot approach affords wide scaling, as the distribution of trial packages and instruction sessions is relatively easy to execute, farmers do not need to be organized in collaborative groups, and feedback is easy to collect, even by phone. The tricot approach provides interpretable, meaningful results and was widely accepted by farmers. The methodology underwent improvement in data input formats. A number of methodological issues remain: integrating environmental analysis, capturing gender-specific differences, stimulating farmers' motivation, and supporting implementation with an integrated digital platform. Future studies should apply the tricot approach to a wider range of technologies, quantify its potential contribution to climate adaptation, and embed the approach in appropriate institutions and business models, empowering participants and democratizing science.
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