Abstract
The study1 attempts to investigate the role of education and environmental concerns in conserving ‘agricultural biodiversity’ of diverse farming systems in Sri Lanka. It analyses how farmers’ valuation of agricultural biodiversity alters with education on agricultural biodiversity and environmental concerns. The Choice Experiment (CE) Method, combined with Randomized Control Method (RCM) was used to collect data, while models such as Conditional Logit (CL) and Random Parameter (RP) Logit were used to analyse the collected data. The results clearly illustrate that farmers’ education level, as well as environmental concerns play a major role in the conservation of agricultural biodiversity. The overall findings of this study will help the policy makers to implement relevant policies in reducing degradation of agricultural biodiversity, which is increasingly posing a major impediment to agricultural growth, to the environmental protection and sustainable development.
Highlights
The study1 attempts to investigate the role of education and environmental concerns in conserving ‘agricultural biodiversity’ of diverse farming systems in Sri Lanka
Agriculture was the dominant source of household income, monthly income from non-farm activities was approximately estimated as Rs. 1,350, Rs. 1,300 and Rs. 1,425 per household; which accounted for almost 5 percent of the total household income
The study applied the choice modelling approach with Randomized Control Method (RCM) to identify question that whether farmers preferences on different attributes of agricultural biodiversity are affected by different types of education or not? The result of this study shows that agriculture based families in the study area have strong preferences to increase agricultural biodiversity
Summary
The study attempts to investigate the role of education and environmental concerns in conserving ‘agricultural biodiversity’ of diverse farming systems in Sri Lanka. In addition to providing direct benefits to farmers, agricultural biodiversity improves ecological processes through regulating climate, maintaining soil quality, providing protection from erosion, storing nutrients and breaking down pollution (Di Falco and Chavas, 2009). Despite all these benefits, the previous experience has shown that population growth, inequity, inadequate economic policies and institutional systems have mainly contributed towards the increasing loss of agricultural biodiversity in the world. The overall findings of this research will help for implementation of policies to reduce degradation of agricultural biodiversity in developing countries
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