Opportunities For Sustainable Intensification Research Articles

The impact of COVID-19 on the sustainable intensification of forage-based beef and dairy value chains in Colombia: a blessing and a curse

The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated the difficulties associated with the need to transition the cattle sector in Latin America towards achieving sustainability and created a “double crisis” of pandemic and climate change. The increasing demand for animal sourced foods and the need to address the negative environmental impacts of cattle production, including greenhouse gas emissions, biodiversity loss and deforestation, and the implications of climate change on cattle production (prolonged droughts, prolonged rainy seasons, heat stress), have placed strong emphasis on sustainable intensification of forage-based beef and dairy systems for climate change mitigation and adaptation. This is needed to meet the commitments made by many Latin American countries to reduce greenhouse gas emissions under the Paris Agreement. Through a qualitative approach, this perspective paper reviews the present and potential impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on progress towards sustainable intensification of the Colombian cattle sector. It also outlines new opportunities for sustainable intensification in Colombia that may provide useful examples for other Latin American countries. Short-term impacts such as: (i) increased input prices, (ii) limited access to inputs, credit, and technical assistance, and (iii) reduced incomes, have limited investment in sustainable intensification along the value chains. Reduced resources for research and development funding, unavailability of skilled and experienced staff, restrictions to travel and person-to-person interactions, in tandem, have caused setbacks in the development and application of sustainable technologies and programs. This has been addressed by increased use of technology for communication but there are difficulties with the broad availability of such technologies, especially farmers. A long-term shift of consumer demand towards more sustainable animal products is occurring and expected to continue, and this should lead to new opportunities for sustainable intensification.

Socio-cognitive constraints and opportunities for sustainable intensification in South Asia: insights from fuzzy cognitive mapping in coastal Bangladesh

Appreciating and dealing with the plurality of farmers’ perceptions and their contextual knowledge and perspectives of the functioning and performance of their agroecosystems—in other words, their ‘mental models’—is central for appropriate and sustainable agricultural development. In this respect, the sustainable development goals (SDGs) aim to eradicate poverty and food insecurity by 2030 by envisioning social inclusivity that incorporates the preferences and knowledge of key stakeholders, including farmers. Agricultural development interventions and policies directed at sustainable intensification (SI), however, do not sufficiently account for farmers’ perceptions, beliefs, priorities, or interests. Considering two contrasting agroecological systems in coastal Bangladesh, we used a fuzzy cognitive mapping (FCM)-based simulation and sensitivity analysis of mental models of respondents of different farm types from 240 farm households. The employed FCM mental models were able to (1) capture farmers’ perception of farming system concepts and relationships for each farm type and (2) assess the impact of external interventions (drivers) on cropping intensification and food security. We decomposed the FCM models’ variance into the first-order sensitivity index (SVI) and total sensitivity index (TSI) using a winding stairs algorithm. Both within and outside polder areas, the highest TSIs (35–68%) were observed for effects of agricultural extension on changes in other concepts in the map, particularly food security and income (SI indicators), indicating the importance of extension programs for SI. Outside polders, drainage and micro-credit were also influential; within polders, the availability of micro-credit appears to affect farmer perceptions of SI indicators more than drainage. This study demonstrated the importance of reflection on the differing perspectives of farmers both within and outside polders to identify entry points for development interventions. In addition, the study underscores the need for micro-farming systems-level research to assess the context-based feasibility of introduced interventions as perceived by farmers of different farm types.

Farm typology analysis and technology assessment: An application in an arid region of South Asia

The design and diffusion of context-specific technologies is centrally important in the multi-dimensional, complex farming systems in arid and semi-arid regions. This paper uses a mixed-method framework to characterize the complexity and heterogeneity of smallholder farming systems and identifies constraints to and opportunities for sustainable intensification. Specifically, the study: (i) characterized farm household typologies based on the diversity of livelihood assets; (ii) co-designed context- specific interventions through an iterative participatory process; and (iii) ex-ante evaluated such interventions to inform multiple stakeholders. We explored farming system diversity using data from 224 farm households in western Rajasthan, India. Employing multivariate statistical techniques and participatory validation, we identified 7 distinct farm household types. Participatory appraisal with multiple stakeholders revealed heterogeneity across farm household types. For instance, the interest of farmers in integrating perennial fruit trees even among the rainfed farm household types markedly varied: household type 1 preferred the multipurpose forestry tree, khejri which requires low labor inputs; household type 2 preferred market-oriented horticulture production; household type 3 did not opt for perennials but for small ruminants; and household type 4 (dominated by women) opted for small horticulture kitchen gardens. The study demonstrated the utility of a mixed-methods approach that addresses multi-dimensional heterogeneity to generate insights and assist in co-designing locally appropriate technologies across different farm types and agro-ecological regions to achieve sustainable intensification.