Agroecology in Mediterranean Europe: Genesis, State and Perspectives

Abstract

The Mediterranean agro-food systems need to be properly managed. A promising pathway is the transition towards more sustainable food systems through agroecology, which represents the ecology of food systems. In this paper, the state-of-the-art of agroecology is described for three representative euro-Mediterranean countries: Italy, Greece, and Spain. The analysis has been partly based on results of a dedicated literature search and partly on grey literature and expert knowledge. After an overview of the history of agroecology, targeted research and education, collective action (political and social), and some agroecological practices in the three countries are presented. These countries share a rather similar use of the term “agroecology”, but they differ regarding (i) the existence/extent of strong civil and social movements; (ii) the type of study/educational programmes, and the relative importance of different scientific disciplines and their evolution; (iii) the development of political support and legal frameworks; and (iv) the elaboration of concepts to rediscover traditional practices and apply new ones, often taken from the organic agriculture sector. Agroecology is an emerging concept for the Mediterranean agricultural sector, with huge potential due to the peculiar socio-cultural, bio-physical, and political-economic features of the region. To boost agroecology in Mediterranean Europe, better networking and engagement of different actors within a coherent institutional framework supporting the transition is strongly needed.

Sustainable Agricultural Systems: A Bibliometrics Analysis of Ecological Modernization Approach

“…In fact, agroecology is the key for the conservation of agrobiodiversity and, as a consequence, for the maintenance and strengthening of ecosystem services. The reference to an agroecology well placed in the context of sustainability, therefore not linked only to agronomic aspects, is evident [66]. The economic and above all social implications of agroecology, and the needs for political and regulatory guidelines are clearly discussed.…”

Becoming agroecologists: A pedagogical model to support graduate student learning and practice

“…While agroecology learning takes place in many contexts, from farmer networks to high school programs, we focus on universitylevel education. Undergraduate and graduate programs studying whole food systems are located around the world, including North America (Jacobsen et al, 2012;Galt et al, 2013;Hartle et al, 2017;Valley et al, 2018), Central and South America (Intriago et al, 2017;Sarandon and Marasas, 2017), Europe (Code, 2017;Francis et al, 2018;Migliorini et al, 2018;Wezel et al, 2018;Ingram et al, 2020;Rivera-Ferre et al, 2021), and Australia (Bawden, 2016). These programs are known by a variety of names (e.g., sustainable agriculture), but we collectively refer to them as agroecology education programs because they are connected by an explicit goal to support food system transformation.…”

Local-adapted and high-yield varieties for sustainable Robusta coffee farming: Evidence from South Sumatera, Indonesia

“…However, locally adapted practices may have an important role in climate change adaptation strategies, including local-adapted varieties, as it already has suitability to agro-environmental conditions, including local climate [25][26][27]. Since coffee productivity and quality are highly affected by local climate conditions (i.e.…”