Download or read book Sustainable Intensification written by Jules N. Pretty and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2012-06-25 with total page 292 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Continued population growth, rapidly changing consumption patterns and the impacts of climate change and environmental degradation are driving limited resources of food, energy, water and materials towards critical thresholds worldwide. These pressures are likely to be substantial across Africa, where countries will have to find innovative ways to boost crop and livestock production to avoid becoming more reliant on imports and food aid. Sustainable agricultural intensification - producing more output from the same area of land while reducing the negative environmental impacts - represents a solution for millions of African farmers. This volume presents the lessons learned from 40 sustainable agricultural intensification programmes in 20 countries across Africa, commissioned as part of the UK Government's Foresight project. Through detailed case studies, the authors of each chapter examine how to develop productive and sustainable agricultural systems and how to scale up these systems to reach many more millions of people in the future. Themes covered include crop improvements, agroforestry and soil conservation, conservation agriculture, integrated pest management, horticulture, livestock and fodder crops, aquaculture, and novel policies and partnerships.

Download or read book Integrating Biodiversity in Agricultural Intensification written by Jitendra Srivastava and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 1999 with total page 54 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Southeastern Nigeria has some of the highest population densities in Sub-Saharan Africa and one of the most threatened ecosystems on the continent: the rainforests of West Africa. As population pressure has mounted, fallow periods have declined... Instead of doggedly pursuing old strategies, farmers shifted their agricultural practices in the face of mounting population pressures. Farmers have intensified their traditional bush-fallow cultivation system by adopting several strategies..." What agrobiodiversity is, what it does, and its importance to the environment and agriculture form the bases of discussion in this volume. Agrobiodiversity is defined as biological resources that directly and indirectly contribute to crop and livestock production. With the need to increase food production and to concurrently protect the environment a worldwide priority, agrobiodiversity is arguably the single most important natural resource. It is key to transforming agricultural systems that are currently wreaking havoc on wildlife and human health. This report highlights case studies in which modern and traditional agriculture has successfully transformed to enhance biodiversity without sacrificing yield. Lessons learned from this review help to identify sound practices for designing and monitoring agricultural projects so that they improve rural incomes while safeguarding environmental assets, particularly biodiversity. Suggestions for sound practices include modifications of the policy environment and ways to strengthen research institutions and extension services so that agriculture can be intensified while better protecting and managing biological resources.

Download or read book Soil Health and Intensification of Agroecosystems written by Mahdi M. Al-Kaisi and published by Academic Press. This book was released on 2017-03-15 with total page 420 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Soil Health and Intensification of Agroecosystems examines the climate, environmental, and human effects on agroecosystems and how the existing paradigms must be revised in order to establish sustainable production. The increased demand for food and fuel exerts tremendous stress on all aspects of natural resources and the environment to satisfy an ever increasing world population, which includes the use of agriculture products for energy and other uses in addition to human and animal food. The book presents options for ecological systems that mimic the natural diversity of the ecosystem and can have significant effect as the world faces a rapidly changing and volatile climate. The book explores the introduction of sustainable agroecosystems that promote biodiversity, sustain soil health, and enhance food production as ways to help mitigate some of these adverse effects. New agroecosystems will help define a resilient system that can potentially absorb some of the extreme shifts in climate. Changing the existing cropping system paradigm to utilize natural system attributes by promoting biodiversity within production agricultural systems, such as the integration of polycultures, will also enhance ecological resiliency and will likely increase carbon sequestration. - Focuses on the intensification and integration of agroecosystem and soil resiliency by presenting suggested modifications of the current cropping system paradigm - Examines climate, environment, and human effects on agroecosystems - Explores in depth the wide range of intercalated soil and plant interactions as they influence soil sustainability and, in particular, soil quality - Presents options for ecological systems that mimic the natural diversity of the ecosystem and can have significant effect as the world faces a rapidly changing and volatile climate

Download or read book Sustainable Intensification of Crop Production written by P. Parvatha Reddy and published by Springer. This book was released on 2016-11-17 with total page 405 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book outlines a new paradigm, Sustainable Intensification of Crop Production (SICP), which aims to produce more from the same area of land by increasing efficiency, reducing waste, conserving resources, reducing negative impacts on the environment and enhancing the provision of ecosystem services. The use of ecologically based management strategies can increase the sustainability of agricultural production while reducing off-site consequences. The book also highlights the underlying principles and outlines some of the key management practices and technologies – such as minimum soil disturbance; permanent organic soil covers; species diversification; selection of suitable cultivars, planting time, age and spacing; balanced plant nutrition; agro-ecological pest management; efficient water management; careful management of farm machinery; and integrated crop-livestock production – required to implement SICP. The green revolution (by using high-yielding crop varieties, mono-cropping, fertilization, irrigation, and pesticides) has led to enormous gains in food production and improved world food security. In many countries, however, intensive crop production has had negative impacts on production, ecosystems and the larger environment, putting future productivity at risk. In order to meet the projected demands of a growing population expected to exceed 9 billion by 2050, farmers in the developing world must double food production, a challenge complicated by the effects of climate change and growing competition for land, water and energy. This book will be of immense value to all members of the scientific community involved in teaching, research and extension activities concerning sustainable intensification. The material can be used for teaching post-graduate courses, or as a useful reference guide for policy makers.

Download or read book The Future of Agricultural Landscapes Part I written by and published by Academic Press. This book was released on 2020-10-27 with total page 336 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Advances in Ecological Research, Volume 63, the latest release in this ongoing series includes specific chapters on Tropical Ecosystems in the 21st Century. Chapters in this volume cover topics such as Landscape-scale expansion of agroecology to enhance natural pest control: a systematic review and Ecosystem services and the resilience of agricultural landscapes - Provides information that relates to a thorough understanding of the field of ecology - Deals with topical and important reviews on the physiologies, populations and communities of plants and animals

Download or read book Handbook on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services in Impact Assessment written by Davide Geneletti and published by Edward Elgar Publishing. This book was released on 2016-06-24 with total page 523 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This Handbook presents state-of-the-art methodological guidance and discussion of international practice related to the integration of biodiversity and ecosystem services in impact assessment, featuring contributions from leading researchers and practitioners the world over. Its multidisciplinary approach covers contributions across five continents to broaden the scope of the field both thematically and geographically.

Download or read book Large Scale Ecology Model Systems to Global Perspectives written by and published by Academic Press. This book was released on 2016-10-05 with total page 690 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Advances in Ecological Research is one of the most successful series in the highly competitive field of ecology. This thematic volume focuses on large scale ecology, publishing important reviews that contribute to our understanding of the field. - Presents the most updated information on the field of large scale ecology, publishing topical and important reviews - Provides all information that relates to a thorough understanding of the field - Includes data on physiology, populations, and communities of plants and animals

Download or read book Integrating Landscapes Agroforestry for Biodiversity Conservation and Food Sovereignty written by Florencia Montagnini and published by Springer. This book was released on 2018-01-24 with total page 509 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Agroforestry systems (AFS) are becoming increasingly relevant worldwide as society has come to recognize their multiple roles and services: biodiversity conservation, carbon sequestration, adaptation and mitigation of climate change, restoration of degraded ecosystems, and tools for rural development. This book summarizes advances in agroforestry research and practice and raises questions as to the effectiveness of AFS to solve the development and environmental challenges the world presents us today. Currently AFS are considered to be a land use that can achieve a compromise among productive and environmental functions. Apparently, AFS can play a significant role in rural development even in the most challenging socioeconomic and ecological conditions, but still there is a lot of work to do to reach these goals. Considerable funding is spent in projects directed to enhancing productivity and sustainability of smallholders forestry and agroforestry practices. These projects and programs face many questions and challenges related to the integration of traditional knowledge to promote the most suitable systems for each situation; access to markets for AFS products, and scaling up of successful AFS. These complex questions need innovative approaches from varying perspectives and knowledge bases. This book gathers fresh and novel contributions from a set of Yale University researchers and associates who intend to provide alternative and sometimes departing insights into these pressing questions. The book focuses on the functions that AFS can provide when well designed and implemented: their role in rural development as they can improve food security and sovereignty and contribute to provision of energy needs to the smallholders; and their environmental functions: contribution to biodiversity conservation, to increased connectivity of fragmented landscapes, and adaptation and mitigation of climate change. The chapters present conceptual aspects and case studies ranging from traditional to more modern approaches, from tropical as well as from temperate regions of the world, with examples of the AFS functions mentioned above.

Download or read book Land Use Intensification written by Saul Cunningham and published by CSIRO PUBLISHING. This book was released on 2012-07-18 with total page 169 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: There can be little doubt that there are truly colossal challenges associated with providing food, fibre and energy for an expanding world population without further accelerating already rapid rates of biodiversity loss and undermining the ecosystem processes on which we all depend. These challenges are further complicated by rapid changes in climate and its additional direct impacts on agriculture, biodiversity and ecological processes. There are many different viewpoints about the best way to deal with the myriad issues associated with land use intensification and this book canvasses a number of these from different parts of the tropical and temperate world. Chapters focus on whether science can suggest new and improved approaches to reducing the conflict between productive land use and biodiversity conservation. Who should read this book? Policy makers in regional, state and federal governments, as well as scientists and the interested lay public.

Download or read book Agricultural Development and Sustainable Intensification written by Udaya Sekhar Nagothu and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2020-08-14 with total page 326 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Sustainable Intensification (SI) has recently emerged as a key concept for agricultural development, recognising that yields must increase to feed a growing world population, but it must be achieved without damage to the environment, on finite land resources and while preserving social and natural capital. It also recognises that all initiatives must cope with the challenges of climate change to agricultural production, food security and livelihoods. This multidisciplinary book presents state-of-the-art reviews of current SI approaches to promote major food crops, challenges and advances made in technology, and the institutional and policy measures necessary to overcome the constraints faced by smallholder farmers. Adressing the UN's Sustainable Development Goal 2, the various chapters based on evidence and experiences of reputed researchers show how these innovations, if properly nurtured and implemented, can make a difference to food and nutrition security outcomes. Case studies from around the world are included, with a particular emphasis on Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa. The focus is not only on scientific aspects such as climate-smart agriculture, agroecology and improving input use efficiency and management, but also on institutional and policy challenges that must be met to increase the net societal benefits of sustainable agricultural intensification. The book is aimed at advanced students and researchers in sustainable agriculture and policy, development practitioners, policy makers and non-governmental and farmer organisations.

Download or read book Save and Grow written by Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and published by Food & Agriculture Org.. This book was released on 2018-06-22 with total page 116 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The book offers a rich toolkit of relevant, adoptable ecosystem-based practices that can help the world's 500 million smallholder farm families achieve higher productivity, profitability and resource-use efficiency while enhancing natural capital.

Download or read book The State of the World s Biodiversity for Food and Agriculture written by Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and published by Food & Agriculture Org.. This book was released on 2019-03-12 with total page 576 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The State of the World's Biodiversity for Food and Agriculture presents the first global assessment of biodiversity for food and agriculture worldwide. Biodiversity for food and agriculture is the diversity of plants, animals and micro-organisms at genetic, species and ecosystem levels, present in and around crop, livestock, forest and aquatic production systems. It is essential to the structure, functions and processes of these systems, to livelihoods and food security, and to the supply of a wide range of ecosystem services. It has been managed or influenced by farmers, livestock keepers, forest dwellers, fish farmers and fisherfolk for hundreds of generations. Prepared through a participatory, country-driven process, the report draws on information from 91 country reports to provide a description of the roles and importance of biodiversity for food and agriculture, the drivers of change affecting it and its current status and trends. It describes the state of efforts to promote the sustainable use and conservation of biodiversity for food and agriculture, including through the development of supporting policies, legal frameworks, institutions and capacities. It concludes with a discussion of needs and challenges in the future management of biodiversity for food and agriculture. The report complements other global assessments prepared under the auspices of the Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, which have focused on the state of genetic resources within particular sectors of food and agriculture.

Download or read book Sustainable Intensification for Agroecosystem Services and Management written by Manoj Kumar Jhariya and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2021-10-21 with total page 873 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This edited book provides a comprehensive account of the sustainable intensification process through various forms of case studies and scientific approaches studied across the globe. It also focuses on the agroecosystem services and their subsequent management for ecological integrity. The book helps to understand the interconnection of food, nutrition, economic growth, and environmental security on the planet. It provides comprehensive information with photographic illustration and various other forms of scientific databases on sustainable intensification of agroecosystems. The book also supports decision-making, strategies, and policy formulation for effective implementation of sustainable intensification towards higher productivity along with maintenance and management of agroecosystem services. Proper sustainable intensification of agroecosystem services and their management by maintaining ecological harmony is the future prospect for sustainable development. High input agriculture gives rise to a high-energy footprint, agricultural pollution, resource depletion, loss of agro-biodiversity, and decline of human health. Through this connection, the sustainable intensification approach addresses the advanced food security, sustainability, and overall prosperity of humankind. The book is helpful for both undergraduate and postgraduate students, policymakers, the farming community, as well as the scientific community across the globe to understand the concept of sustainable intensification and its application in relevant fields for proper management of agroecosystems services.

Download or read book Ecoagriculture written by Jeffrey A. McNeely and published by . This book was released on 2003 with total page 360 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: McNeely (chief scientist, IUCN-The World Conservation Union) and Scherr (advisor, Future Harvest-Washington, D.C.) argue that the maintenance of biological diversity can be compatible with increased agricultural yield. They detail 36 case studies that suggest farmers can gain economic benefits in farming systems that promote biodiversity. Technological innovation is a primary key to the promotion of "ecoagriculture." They provide separate recommendations for areas where the top priorities are maintaining biodiversity, improving agricultural productivity, or promoting poverty reduction.

Download or read book Ecosystem Services and Poverty Alleviation OPEN ACCESS written by Kate Schreckenberg and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2018-04-27 with total page 353 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Understanding how to sustain the services that ecosystems provide in support of human wellbeing is an active and growing research area. This book provides a state-of-the-art review of current thinking on the links between ecosystem services and poverty alleviation. In part it showcases the key findings of the Ecosystem Services for Poverty Alleviation (ESPA) programme, which has funded over 120 research projects in more than 50 countries since 2010. ESPA’s goal is to ensure that ecosystems are being sustainably managed in a way that contributes to poverty alleviation as well as to inclusive and sustainable growth. As governments across the world map how they will achieve the 17 ambitious Sustainable Development Goals, most of which have poverty alleviation, wellbeing and sustainable environmental management at their heart, ESPA’s findings have never been more timely and relevant. The book synthesises the headline messages and compelling evidence to address the questions at the heart of ecosystems and wellbeing research. The authors, all leading specialists, address the evolving framings and contexts for the work, review the impacts of ongoing drivers of change, present new ways to achieve sustainable wellbeing, equity, diversity, and resilience, and evaluate the potential contributions from conservation projects, payment schemes, and novel governance approaches across scales from local to national and international. The cross-cutting, thematic chapters challenge conventional wisdom in some areas, and validate new methods and approaches for sustainable development in others. The book will provide a rich and important reference source for advanced students, researchers and policy-makers in ecology, environmental studies, ecological economics and sustainable development. The Open Access version of this book, available at https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/e/9780429016295, has been made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives 4.0 license.

Download or read book Nature based solutions in agriculture Sustainable management and conservation of land water and biodiversity written by Miralles-Wilhelm, F. and published by Food & Agriculture Org.. This book was released on 2021-02-03 with total page 68 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In recent years, considerable progress has been made in the area of Nature-based Solutions (NbS) that improve ecosystem functions of environments and landscapes affected by agricultural practices and land degradation, while enhancing livelihoods and other social and cultural functions. This has opened up a portfolio of NbS options that offer a pragmatic way forward for simultaneously addressing conservation, climate and socioeconomic objectives while maintaining healthy and productive agricultural systems. NbS can mimic natural processes and build on land restoration and operational water-land management concepts that aim to simultaneously improve vegetation and water availability and quality, and raise agricultural productivity. NbS can involve conserving or rehabilitating natural ecosystems and/or the enhancement or the creation of natural processes in modified or artificial ecosystems. In agricultural landscapes, NbS can be applied for soil health, soil moisture, carbon mitigation (through soil and forestry), downstream water quality protections, biodiversity benefits as well as agricultural production and supply chains to achieve net-zero environmental impacts while achieving food and water security, and meet climate goals.

Download or read book The Root Systems in Sustainable Agricultural Intensification written by Zed Rengel and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2021-04-19 with total page 468 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Explore an in-depth and insightful collection of resources discussing various aspects of root structure and function in intensive agricultural systems The Root Systems in Sustainable Agricultural Intensification delivers a comprehensive treatment of state-of-the-art concepts in the theoretical and practical aspects of agricultural management to enhance root system architecture and function. The book emphasizes the agricultural measures that enhance root capacity to develop and function under a range of water and nutrient regimes to maximize food, feed, and fibre production, as well as minimize undesirable water and nutrient losses to the environment. This reference includes resources that discuss a variety of soil, plant, agronomy, farming system, breeding, molecular and modelling aspects to the subject. It also discusses strategies and mechanisms that underpin increased water- and nutrient-use efficiency and combines consideration of natural and agricultural systems to show the continuity of traits and mechanisms. Finally, the book explores issues related to the global economy as well as widespread social issues that arise from, or are underpinned by, agricultural intensification. Readers will also benefit from the inclusion of: A thorough introduction to sustainable intensification, including its meaning, the need for the technology, components, and the role of root systems Exploration of the dynamics of root systems in crop and pasture genotypes over the last 100 years Discussion of the interplay between root structure and function with soil microbiome in enhancing efficiency of nitrogen and phosphorus acquisition Evaluation of water uptake in drying soil, including balancing supply and demand Perfect for agronomists, horticulturalists, plant and soil scientists, breeders, and soil microbiologists, The Root Systems in Sustainable Agricultural Intensification will also earn a place in the libraries of advanced undergraduate and postgraduate students in this field who seek a one-stop reference in the area of root structure and function.