Abstract:Recently, the integrated landscape approach has gained increasing interest of the scientific community, as well as of organizations active in the field of sustainable development. However, the enthusiastic welcome is challenged by little consensus on theory, terminology and definitions. Moreover, the operationalization of the approach into practice is a major challenge. In this paper, we present a framework to operationalize the integrated landscape approach in practice by putting a long-term collaboration between scientists and various stakeholder at center stage. Based on encompassing understanding of landscape-level processes and interactions, four pillars addressing different steps of a joint-learning circle are described and illustrated with examples. We consider the integrated landscape approach to be a prime way of targeting the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), but novel forms of collaboration between scientists and other stakeholders based on long-term commitments will be needed for operationalization in practice.

Pesticides are commonly used in food crop production systems to control crop pests and diseases and ensure maximum yield with high market value. However, the accumulation of these chemical inputs in crop fields increases risks to biodiversity and human health. In addition, people are increasingly seeking foods in which pesticide residues are low or absent and that have been produced in a sustainable fashion. More than half of the world’s human population is dependent on rice as a staple food and chemical pesticides to control pests is the dominant paradigm in rice production. In contrast, the use of natural enemies to suppress crop pests has the potential to reduce chemical pesticide inputs in rice production systems. Currently, predators and parasitoids often do not persist in rice production landscapes due to the absence of shelter or nutritional sources. In this study, we modified the existing rice landscape through an eco-engineering technique that aims to increase natural biocontrol agents for crop protection. In this system, planting nectar-rich flowering plants on rice bunds provides food and shelter to enhance biocontrol agent activity and reduce pest numbers, while maintaining grain yield. The abundance of predators and parasitoids and parasitism rates increased significantly in the eco-engineering plots compared to the insecticide-treated and control plots. Moreover, a significantly lower number of principal insect pests and damage symptoms were found in treatments where flowering plants were grown on bunds than in plots where such plants were not grown. This study indicates that manipulating habitat for natural enemies in rice landscapes enhances pest suppression and maintains equal yields while reducing the need for insecticide use in crop fields.

While the pleasant scent of aromatic rice is making it more popular, with demand for aromatic rice expected to rise in future, varieties of this have low yield potential. Genetic diversity and population structure of aromatic germplasm provide valuable information for yield improvement which has potential market value and farm profit. Here, we show diversity and population structure of 113 rice germplasm based on phenotypic and genotypic traits. Phenotypic traits showed that considerable variation existed across the germplasm. Based on Shannon–Weaver index, the most variable phenotypic trait was lemma-palea color. Detecting 140 alleles, 11 were unique and suitable as a germplasm diagnostic tool. Phylogenetic cluster analysis using genotypic traits classified germplasm into three major groups. Moreover, model-based population structure analysis divided all germplasm into three groups, confirmed by principal component and neighbors joining tree analyses. An analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) and pairwise FST test showed significant differentiation among all population pairs, ranging from 0.023 to 0.068, suggesting that all three groups differed. Significant correlation coefficient was detected between phenotypic and genotypic traits which could be valuable to select further improvement of germplasm. Findings from this study have the potential for future use in aromatic rice molecular breeding programs.

Built on deep-rooted political and cultural heritage, ‘rice security’ is the foundation of ‘food security’ in Bangladesh. The country has been in production-surplus of rice in the current decade feeding over 165 million people. This on-going ‘selfsufficiency momentum’ would require to maintain to meet increased demand from growing future population. On developmental side, Bangladesh is placed among the three of the world’s fastest growing economies in the years through to 2050. Rice sector would need to match with the pace of this growth. In addition, agriculture sector, that includes rice, is to double the productivity as the government commits to meet the SDG goal 2.3.1. This study addresses those issues through scoping increased rice production and productivity in Bangladesh, developing a plan of work (POW) on translating the scope and designing implementation plans and actions, incorporating efficiency, resilience, stability and sustainability issues, to achieve the POW. The study has used brainstorming, and rigorous analysis to achieve the objectives. The productivity has been explained in terms of yield- and labour-productivity. The developed three-winged ‘doubling rice productivity (DRP)’ framework directs yield enhancement and production accumulation in unexplored spaces (Wing-1); increased adoption of mechanization to impact on labour productivity (Wing-2), and improvements in nutritional quality and rice-based product diversity, and stabilizing the farmgate price (Wing-3). Analyses show, from the baseline figure of 35.29 MT in 2015, rice production in the country can be raised to 46.90 MT in 2030, 54.09 MT in 2040 and 60.85 MT in 2050 with combined contributions of three pillars – yield improvements by enhanced varietal potential (Pillar 1), reduction in existing yield gap (Pillar 2) and production increase by exploring unexplored spaces for rice (Pillar 3) of Wing-1 of the DRP. This production will produce a surplus of 6.50, 10.29 and 13.65 MT in 2030, 2040 and 2050, respectively, over the production target (40.40, 43.80 and 47.20 MT in 2030 and 2050, respectively). Results further reveal that through scale-appropriate mechanization backed up by estimated fair price, labour productivity in rice will be doubled by 2029, meeting the SDG 2.3.1. Good number of released varieties have been identified to have specific nutritional trait, and value adding quality. We have emphasized on much needed actions on demand-driven research for varietal development and field-adoptable management, mechanization for transplanting and harvesting operations, accommodation of rice in unexplored spaces, farmer-based speedy seed multiplication and dissemination system, establishment of commission for agricultural costs and prices, input buffer stock terminals for managing production risk, long-term storage and export of surplus production, and research-publicity-market development for rice-based products through public-private partnership. It is concluded that efficiency, resilience and sustainability around the three wings of DRP in the rice production systems to be ensured to achieve the rice production, productivity and labour use estimates. Bangladesh Rice J. 24 (2): 1-47, 2021

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