A theoretical model of agrobiodiversity as a supporting service for sustainable agricultural intensification

Omer, Amani; Pascual, Unai; Russell, Noel

doi:10.1016/j.ecolecon.2010.04.025

Cited by 31 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 14 publications

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“…Agroecologists conceptualize agricultural systems as humandominated ecosystems that are simpler than natural ecosystems, but have similar complex systems of interactions as natural systems. Agro-ecology proposes using these feedback loops to create more self-regulating, resilient, and resource-conserving production systems (Gleissman, 2013a;Lengnick, 2015;Miller & Menalled, 2015;Nelson & Coe, 2014;Omer, Pascual & Russell, 2010;Perfecto, Vandermeer & Philpott, 2014). These ideas reflect the deep roots of agro-ecology in a naturalist vision of agriculture (Berry, 2000;Cornes, 2011;Leopold, 1949Leopold, , 1966 and to some degree in transpersonal ecology (Cox, 2014;Fix, 1995).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Principles Guiding Practice: A Case Study Analysis of the Principles of Sustainable Agriculture for Diverse Farms

Moore

Swisher

Rodríguez³

et al. 2016

J. Agric. Food Syst. Community Dev.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Principles Guiding Practice: A Case Study Analysis of the Principles of Sustainable Agriculture for Diverse Farms

Moore

Swisher

Rodríguez³

et al. 2016

J. Agric. Food Syst. Community Dev.

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“…Economicand social-focused studies concentrate on market functions (costbenefit, market pricing) and institutional governance (9,11,14,15). Analysis of the global-change dynamics of agricultural intensification has focused less on the biodiversity and in situ conservation of landraces, which are subspecific taxonomic units of crops (akin to "unimproved" livestock breeds) consisting of genetically heterogeneous local or regional populations often referred to as "traditional" or "farmer" varieties and cultivars.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A central question of this new framing involves the identification of tradeoffs or potential synergies of land saving (farmland sustainability; refs. [11][12][13][14][15][16][17] and land sparing (wildland maximization; refs. [18][19][20][21][22][23].…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

The compatibility of agricultural intensification in a global hotspot of smallholder agrobiodiversity (Bolivia)

Zimmerer

2013

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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Integrating the conservation of biodiversity by smallholder farmers with agricultural intensification is increasingly recognized as a leading priority of sustainability and food security amid global environmental and socioeconomic change. An international research project investigated the smallholder agrobiodiversity of maize (corn) in a global hotspot (Bolivia) undergoing significant intensification. Peach-based intensification was pronounced (300-400%) and prolonged (2000-2010) in study areas. Intensification and maize agrobiodiversity were found to co-occur within smallholder landscapes. Interactions of these field systems did not trigger land-change tipping points leading to landrace extirpation. By 2010 maize landraces in the study areas still demonstrated high levels of taxonomic and ecological biodiversity and contributed significantly to this crop's agrobiodiversity at national (31%) and hemispheric (3%) scales. Social and ecological resilience and in situ conservation of the maize agrobiodiversity by Bolivian smallholders was enabled through robust linkages to off-farm migration; resource access and asset capabilities among both traditional and nontraditional growers; landrace agroecology and food uses; and innovative knowledge and skills. The smallholders' resilience resulting from these linkages was integral to the conditional success of the in situ conservation of maize agrobiodiversity. Environment-development interactions both enabled smallholders' agrobiodiversity resilience and influenced the limits and vulnerability of agrobiodiversity. Scientific policy recommendations regarding land-use planning and sustainability analysis are targeted to specific Río+20 priorities for agrobiodiversity.smallholder agricultural development | social-ecological resilience | food access | sustainability science | livelihood-landscape analysis

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“…The selective integration of these four fields is needed to address the multi-faceted issues that arise in the livelihood-environmental interactions of smallholders. Such issues range from poverty alleviation, resilience, and food security [60,61] to sustainability and the intensification of land use [4,52,[62][63][64][65][66].…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Toward the Integrated Framework Analysis of Linkages among Agrobiodiversity, Livelihood Diversification, Ecological Systems, and Sustainability amid Global Change

Zimmerer

Vanek

2016

Land

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Scientific and policy interest in the biological diversity of agriculture (agrobiodiversity) is expanding amid global socioeconomic and environmental changes and sustainability interests. The majority of global agrobiodiversity is produced in smallholder food-growing. We use meta-analyses in an integrated framework to examine the interactions of smallholder agrobiodiversity with: (1) livelihood processes, especially migration, including impacts on agrobiodiversity as well as the interconnected resource systems of soil, water, and uncultivated habitats; and (2) plant-soil ecological systems. We hypothesize these interactions depend on: (1) scope of livelihood diversification and type resource system; and (2) plant residues and above-/belowground component ecological specificity. Findings show: (1) livelihood diversification is linked to varied environmental factors that range from rampant degradation to enhancing sustainability; and (2) significant ecological coupling of aboveground and soil agrobiodiversity (AGSOBIO assemblages). The environmental impacts of livelihood interactions correspond to variation of diversification (migration, on-farm diversification) and resource system (i.e., agrobiodiversity per se, soil, water). Our findings also reveal mutually dependent interactions of aboveground and soil agrobiodiversity. Results identify livelihood diversification-induced reduction of environmental resource quality with lagged agrobiodiversity declines as a potentially major avenue of global change. Our contribution re-frames livelihood interactions to include both agrobiodiversity and ecological systems. We discuss this integrated social-environmental re-framing through the proposed spatial geographic schema of regional agri-food spaces with distinctive matrices of livelihood strategies and relations to biodiversity and resources. This re-framing can be used to integrate livelihood, agrobiodiversity, and ecological analysis and to guide policy and scientific approaches for sustainability in agriculture and food-growing.

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A theoretical model of agrobiodiversity as a supporting service for sustainable agricultural intensification

Cited by 31 publications

References 14 publications

Principles Guiding Practice: A Case Study Analysis of the Principles of Sustainable Agriculture for Diverse Farms

Principles Guiding Practice: A Case Study Analysis of the Principles of Sustainable Agriculture for Diverse Farms

The compatibility of agricultural intensification in a global hotspot of smallholder agrobiodiversity (Bolivia)

Toward the Integrated Framework Analysis of Linkages among Agrobiodiversity, Livelihood Diversification, Ecological Systems, and Sustainability amid Global Change

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