Components Of Social-ecological Systems Research Articles

Multi scale analysis of social-ecological system of lobster (Panulirus spp.) fisheries in the Gunungkidul waters, Yogyakarta

Abstract Lobster is a high-value fisheries commodity in Gunungkidul Regency. Lobster resource management in the waters of Gunungkidul Regency has not been well identified in the social-ecological system (SES) framework. This study aims to describe and analyze the dynamics of interrelationships between the social-ecological system components of lobster fisheries in Gunungkidul Regency, which consists of the subsystem of resource systems (RS), resource units (RU), resource actors (RA), and resource governance (RG) and their interrelationships within and between subsystems to formulate a sustainable lobster management strategies in the waters of Gunungkidul Regency. This research was conducted from November 2022 until January 2023. The results of this study have indicated a dynamic interaction between the SES components of lobster fisheries. RS and RA are the SES components with the highest influence, so the slightest changes in RS and RA can cause co-evolutive changes to all the SES components of lobster fisheries in the waters of Gunungkidul Regency.

Qualitative modeling for representing the social-ecological system of the Groix–Belle-île offshore wind farm project

Abstract The increasing numbers of offshore wind farm (OWF) projects question the impacts of such infrastructures on the social-ecological system (SES) in which they are to be constructed. Some answers can be given using qualitative modeling and loop analysis. We used participatory modeling to co-construct a qualitative model of the socio-ecosystem together with stakeholders of the APPEAL project. The goal of the project was to evaluate the potential impacts of the pilot OWF in the Groix–Belle-île region. Then, loop analysis was used to study the characteristics of the SES created by the setting-up of an OWF. We focused on the impacts of SES variables on each other by evaluating their effects through direct and indirect pathways. Pleasure boating appeared as one of the SES components prone to suffer from the OWF construction, whereas industrial tourism was likely to benefit from it. This article presents the methodology used to obtain such results, for it to be used in spatial planning or in citizen-science processes.

Evolution of an arid social-ecosystem with different water utilization spanning 12,000 years

Understanding the regime shifts of social-ecological systems (SES) and their local and spillover effects over time is crucial for ensuring future sustainability. However, limited research has focused on regime changes in SES under different modes of water resource utilization. In this study, we employ a concise theoretical framework to analyze regime shifts in the arid Tarim River Basin, considering changes in SES components. Additionally, we explore the drivers and local and regional effects of these shifts. The regime shifts in SES are categorized into four evolutionary phases: “Low productivity,” “Slow population expansion,” “Rapid environmental destruction,” and “Ecological restoration and improvement” over the past 12,000 years. The reciprocal coupling of SES components plays a vital role in determining the regime of SES, which is heavily influenced by the utilization of water resources and the degradation of the environment. While increasing water consumption is a core factor leading to environmental destruction, it also drives socioeconomic growth. During the process of SES shift, the rational allocation and use of water resources can shape an ideal regime that promotes regional ecosystem restoration. The empirical connections between the different phases of SES in the regime shift, their drivers, and their adverse or beneficial impacts provide valuable insights for sustainable SES management. Lessons from basin management that solely pursues single goals and focuses on local aspects, without considering these connections, have significant implications for long-term planning and policy formulation in arid basins worldwide.

Social-ecological connectivity and management factors of puerulus (Panulirus spp.) fisheries in the Western Coastal Waters of Lampung Province

Access limitation to capture lobster puerulus needs to be done to sustain the utilization of the resources, increase fishermen’s income and preserve the abundance of puerulus in the Western Coastal Waters of Lampung Province. The management of puerulus resources in these waters does not seem to have been well integrated within the framework of the social-ecological system (SES) of fishery resources. This study aims to analyze SES components and connectivity of lobster puerulus and identify strategic factors to be used in the context of fisheries management of lobster (Panulirus spp.). The research was conducted between October until November 2021 in West Coast Regency, Lampung Province, using SES approach. From the results, we have been revealed that there is a strong interaction and influence between the resources actor component (RA) and the resources unit (RU) in the context of the dynamics of the resources system (RS), but tends to be weak in the framework of the governance of the resource (RG). The management strategy is carried out through good collaboration between the government and resources actor to maintain puerulus abundance.

Exploring the Mediational Effects of Institutional-Social-Ecological Factors on Collective Action Performance: Applying SES Theory in Gated Communities

ABSTRACT Empirical social-ecological system (SES) research on neighbourhoods’ common property is scarce, especially in unpacking the mediational effects of SES components on residents’ collective action performance. By conceptualizing Ostrom’s SES framework, this paper aims to explore key institutional-social-ecological factors and mediational effects of the interaction variables that influence residents’ collective action performance. To this end, 414 questionnaire data were collected from ten gated communities in Taigu, China. Through the ridge regression model, it is found that nine institutional-social-ecological factors are associated with residents’ collective action performance. Next, based on the identified institutional-social-ecological factors, the bootstrapping approach was utilized to study the mediational effects of the interaction variables. The results show that (i) frequency of communication among residents, (ii) conflict among residents, and (iii) residents’ investment in community management mediate the relationships between the institutional-social-ecological factors and residents’ collective action performance. Lastly, several collective action policies and strategies have been offered.

System identity and transformation in petroleum jurisdictions: A multi-method approach for the North Slope Borough, Alaska

Capturing the multidimensionality of a bounded social-environmental system (SES) presents a range of challenges to interdisciplinary researchers due to the need to integrate divergent scientific paradigms, scalar data, and social theories. Contemporary Arctic circumpolar SESs studied under conditions of rapid and unprecedented climatic, ecological, economic, and sociopolitical change, defy any singular established methodological approach that aims to schematize and interpret the system for decision-making purposes. As a small interdisciplinary team working within a large Arctic SES modeling effort, we have found that developing systems models to support resilience in the Arctic requires an understanding of system dynamics that is attentive to holistic indicators of change, measured both quantitatively and qualitatively. Using the Alaska North Slope Borough as a case study, we apply three convergent frameworks to capture significant dimensions of the system for improved problem definition in confronting the challenges of Arctic climate change. We describe contemporary “oil and gas” social-ecological system components and dynamics, the historical processes and transformations that fundamentally altered the system, and the scientific projections for the most likely catalysts of future change. This analysis results in a typology for defining subnational Arctic hydrocarbon SESs. We conclude that the future of oil and gas development as a policy pathway in different locations experiencing rapid climate change can be evaluated when difficult-to-quantify variables are included.

Connecting the dots: An interdisciplinary perspective on climate change effects on whales and whale watching in Skjálfandi Bay, Iceland

The paper presents a synthesis of some of the interdisciplinary work from the ARCPATH project that focuses on the effects of climate change on Arctic social-ecological systems. It does so through the prism of whales and their recreational ecosystem services (ES). Whales present a group of species that are vulnerable to climate change and, at the same time, are central to the economies, cultures, and identities of many Arctic coastal communities. One such community is the town of Húsavík in Skjálfandi Bay, Iceland. The paper conducts an initial literature review to examine the effects of climate change on whales, globally, before using these findings and site-specific data from climate change modelling, whale observations from whale watching boats and whale watching trip records to investigate possible future impacts on whale watching in Skjálfandi Bay. The literature review identifies three categories of impacts on whales due to climate change, which concern changing distributions and migration, prey availability, and sea-ice and ocean temperature. Linear regression models identify statistically significant relationships between sea-surface temperatures (SST) and cetacean sightings for minke whales, blue whales and white-beaked-dolphins over the period 1995 to 2017. These species appear to have changed their usual feeding areas, and the results imply that further increases in SST are likely to further affect whale distributions. Future climate scenarios indicate that at least 2 °C of SST warming in Skjálfandi Bay up to 2050 might be inevitable regardless of the future emissions scenario, which implies nearly certain change that would require adaptation. The reliance of the local tourism sector on whale watching makes Húsavík vulnerable to the effects of climate change on whales. The results of this interdisciplinary inquiry emphasize the interconnectedness of different components of social-ecological systems and calls for adaptation planning that would enhance the resilience of local community to climate change and conservation measures that could enhance the protection of whales beyond the scope of the current whale sanctuary in Skjálfandi Bay.

Evolution and Effects of the Social–Ecological System over 600 Years in Guizhou Province, China

Understanding the regime shifts of Social–Ecological Systems (SES) and their local effects and driving factors over a long period of time is significant for future sustainability. We provide a perspective on the processes unfolding over time in order to identify the regime shifts of an SES based on changes in the relationships between the SES components. In addition, we investigate their driving factors and local effects. The applicability of this approach is demonstrated by analyzing the evolution of the SES in Guizhou Province, China, over the past 600 years. Six evolutionary phases are identified: the slow expansion of cultivation, the rapid expansion of cultivation, the continuous expansion of cultivation, the slower expansion of cultivation, the transformation of ecological protection driven by returning farmland to forest, and green development driven by urbanization. Our study establishes the empirical relationship between the state (phase) of the SES and its driving factors and effects. This study on the evolution, driving factors, and effects of the SES in Guizhou Province, China, provides an important reference for long-term regional planning and policy making.

Building a bridge between adaptive capacity and adaptive potential to understand responses to environmental change

Adaptive capacity is a topic at the forefront of environmental change research with roots in both social, ecological, and evolutionary science. It closely related to the evolutionary biology concept of adaptive potential. In this systematic literature review we: 1) Summarize the history of these topics and related fields; 2) Assess relationship(s) between the concepts among disciplines and the use of the terms in climate change research, and evaluate methodologies, metrics, taxa biases, and the geographic scale of studies; and 3) Provide a synthetic conceptual framework to clarify concepts. Bibliometric analyses revealed the terms have been used most frequently in conservation and evolutionary biology journals, respectively. There has been a greater growth in studies of adaptive potential than adaptive capacity since 2001, but a greater geographical extent of adaptive capacity studies. Few studies include both, and use is often superficial. Our synthesis considers adaptive potential as one process contributing to adaptive capacity of complex systems, notes 'sociological' adaptive capacity definitions include actions aimed at desired outcome (i.e., policies) as a system driver whereas 'biological' definitions exclude such drivers, and suggests models of adaptive capacity require integration of evolutionary and social-ecological system components.

Agent-based modelling of the social-ecological nature of poverty traps in southwestern Madagascar

CONTEXTIn Madagascar land use pressure on natural resources has increased drastically over the last decades. For subsistence farmers this situation often leads to an accelerated unsustainable exploitation of resources with negative consequences for their livelihood, which can be described as a social-ecological trap (SET). OBJECTIVEOur paper seeks to understand the dynamics of SETs and demonstrates a model-driven scenario on how farmers may escape the trap. For this, we developed a spatially explicit empirical agent-based model (SEALM) to simulate possible future trends of farmers' crop management and the effects of these trends on the environment, household (HH) economy, food self-sufficiency (FSS) and HH coping strategies to food insecurity. METHODSUsing links between social-ecological system (SES) components that depict real-world conditions, SEALM focuses on three village communities for which extensive data were available from transdisciplinary research comprising surveys, remote sensing analysis, and field-based validation. To identify the most significant parameters and to quantify how parameter uncertainty influences model outcomes, local and global sensitivity analyses were performed. Simulations were conducted in annual time steps from 2015 to 2045 to depict two contrasting scenarios: A baseline scenario (A) and an improved crop management scenario to increase FSS (B). For scenario assessments we used direct simulation outputs (FSS, HH income, land cover) and further indices calculated based on model outcomes (coping strategy index, landscape fragmentation, and the Gini coefficient). RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONSScenario A predicted expansion of cropland and fragmentation of remaining forest areas. Simulations at each time step displayed how SET situations occurred due to self-reinforcing ecological and social constraints and affected HHs future coping capacity to food shortages. Here, FSS was insufficient (< 1.0) for most HHs and was <0.5 for years with rainfall deficits. Scenario B demonstrated a way to navigate out of the SET by increasing crop yields reflecting improved management and resulting in significantly higher FSS values and a lower coping strategy index. SEALM considers the heterogeneity in farmers' abilities, constraints, behaviour and decision-making and depicts the dynamic interplay of SES components contributing to SET. SIGNIFICANCESEALM serves as a discussion support with local stakeholders and experts and it allows to better tailor site specific land use recommendations due to its empirical driven and spatially explicit character. However, strategies and interventions that lower the poverty rate in the long term and encourage exit out of trap situations require major policy changes.

Mental models for assessing coastal social-ecological systems following disasters

Understanding abrupt change in social-ecological systems (SES), such as following major disasters, is key for restoration, adaptation, and sustainability. We describe an approach and case study using fuzzy cognitive mapping (FCM) and mental models to collectively represent local perceptions of Hurricane Irma in Key West, Florida. Using in-person FCM interviews, we sought to answer three overarching questions: 1) how did residents perceive SES relationships post-disaster, 2) how did these perceptions vary across three stakeholder groups consisting of those working in ocean recreation, resorts and inns, and non-tourism sectors, and 3) how did the aggregation of diverse opinions and perceptions affect the understanding of SES trade-offs regarding the coastal region’s resilience? Across all respondents, housing was the most commonly mentioned concept occurring in 39% of all models. Coral reefs were included in 71% of ocean recreation models, whereas tourism was included in 50% of resorts and inns models. While mangroves, seawalls, and beaches were rarely to never mentioned until prompted by the interviewer, scenario analyses revealed that shorelines play an important role in residents’ perceptions of how Hurricane Irma collectively impacted people and the environment. Sensitivity analyses revealed that the community, composed of a diverse representation of stakeholders, viewed core SES components similarly and trade-offs were acknowledged. Yet, different stakeholder groups perceived the SES in which they live in different ways, with each group perceiving greater damage to specific system components based on direct experience and knowledge. Our study demonstrates an approach for representing the collective perceptions of communities in post-disaster research, rebuilding, and restoration efforts.

A better understanding of social-ecological systems is needed for adapting fisheries to climate change

Adaptation to climate change has traditionally been studied at the individual scale, with most studies focusing on specific adaptation actions and the potential of individuals to undergo such actions and reduce vulnerability to climate hazards. However, adaptation to climate change takes place at the broader scale of coupled social-ecological systems (SES), where decision making and adaptation policies are relevant. Despite the general need to understand adaptation in coupled systems, there is no evidence to date to the extent to which current adaptation and vulnerability studies are covering the full range of SES components. The present study contributes to this need by examining such coverage in applied studies of vulnerability, adaptation and SES sustainability in the field of small-scale fisheries. By means of a systematic review and comparison of case studies, we detected a gap between theory and implementation and a lack of consideration of several SES components in the adaptation and vulnerability literature. This gap is larger for the Interactions between social and ecological domains, and in the coverage of Related Ecosystems. By contrast, greater attention has been given to the Actors, Governance system and Resource unit components. On the basis of our findings, we propose a set of guidelines to better address adaptation in social-ecological systems by broadening the outlook of adaptation studies and policies, specifically by considering interactions, evaluating outcomes and integrating cultural and ecological variables.

Evolution and effects of the social-ecological system over a millennium in China's Loess Plateau.

Understanding the regime shifts of social-ecological systems (SES) and their local and spillover effects over a long time frame is important for future sustainability. We provide a perspective of processes unfolding over time to identify the regime shifts of a SES based on changes in the relationships between SES components while also addressing their drivers and local and spillover effects. The applicability of this approach has been demonstrated by analyzing the evolution over the past 1000 years of the SES in China's Loess Plateau (LP). Five evolutionary phases were identified: "fast expansion of cultivation," "slow expansion of cultivation," "landscape engineering for higher production," "transition from cultivation to ecological conservation," and "revegetation for environment." Our study establishes empirical links between the state (phase) of a SES to its drivers and effects. Lessons of single-goal driven and locally focused SES management in the LP, which did not consider these links, have important implications to long-term planning and policy formulation of SES.

Advancing the Understanding of Adaptive Capacity of Social‐Ecological Systems to Absorb Climate Extremes

AbstractEnhancing the capacity of social‐ecological systems (SES) to adapt to climate change is of crucial importance. While gradual climate change impacts have been the main focus of much recent research, much less is known about how SES are impacted by climate extremes and how they adapt. Here, based on an advanced conceptualization of social‐ecological resilience, performed by an interdisciplinary group of scientists, we outline three major challenges for operationalizing the resilience concept with particular focus on climate extremes. First, we discuss the necessary steps required to identify and measure relevant variables for capturing the full response spectrum of the coupled social and ecological components of SES. Second, we examine how climate extreme impacts on coupling flows in SES can be quantified by learning from past societal transitions or adaptations to climate extremes and resulting changes in ecosystem service supply. Last, we explore how to identify management options for maintaining and enhancing social‐ecological resilience under a changing regime of climate extremes. We conclude that multiple pathways within adaptation and mitigation strategies which enhance the adaptive capacity of SES to absorb climate extremes will open the way toward a sustainable future.

General rules for environmental management to prioritise social ecological systems research based on a value of information approach

Abstract Globally, billions of dollars are invested each year to help understand the dynamics of social ecological systems (SES) in bettering both social and environmental outcomes. However, there is no scientific consensus on which aspect of an SES is most important and urgent to understand; particularly given the realities of limited time and money. Here we use a simulation‐based “value of information” approach to examine where research will deliver the most important information for environmental management in four SESs representing a range of real‐life environmental issues. We find that neither social nor ecological information is consistently the most important: instead, researchers should focus on understanding the primary effects of their management actions. Thus, when managers are undertaking social actions the highest research priority should be understanding the dynamics of social groups. Alternatively, when manipulating ecological systems it will be most important to quantify ecological population dynamics. Synthesis and applications. Our results provide a standard assessment to determine the uncertain social ecological systems (SES) component with the highest expected impact for management outcomes. First, managers should determine the structure of their SES by identifying social and ecological nodes. Second, managers should identify the qualitative nature of the network, by determining which nodes are linked, but not the strength of those interactions. Finally, managers should identify the actions available to them to intervene in the SES. From these steps, managers will be able to identify the SES components that are closest to the management action(s), and it is these nodes and interactions that should receive priority research attention to achieve effective environmental decision making.

Exploring social-ecological dynamics of a coral reef resource system using participatory modeling and empirical data

Coral reef resource systems are complex adaptive social-ecological systems providing vital and valuable ecosystem services for human societies such as food provision, coastal protection and recreational activities. Their sustainability is questioned in many places around the world as they experience combined effects of multiple chronic anthropogenic and natural drivers at local to global scales. From a management perspective, there is a crucial need to understand how the impact of these drivers cascade through the social-ecological system components. This study develops a transdisciplinary and participatory approach to investigating the social-ecological dynamics of a Polynesian coral reef coastal system. A preliminary conceptual model using the Driver-Pressure-State-Impact (DPSI) framework is first being built through participatory modeling workshops. Then, pressure-state relationships are assessed with the help of empirical datasets as a first step towards the validation of the DPSI model. Results shows striking social-ecological interactions with different patterns in the lagoon and in the fore reef. Local management should be: (1) less resource-focused to account more specifically to the existing typology of actors; (2) more spatially-explicit to better distinguish management objectives and actions for the lagoon and the fore reef sub-systems; and (3) more coordinated with terrestrial agencies for a coherent land-sea connection and integration that would both (i) account for existing land-sea interactions and (ii) better reflect the Polynesian cultural heritage that considers nature from ridge to reef as a whole. Such conceptual models of social-ecological systems are a useful tool to build exploratory scenarios to ultimately support planning decision-making processes.

Disentangling trade-offs and synergies around ecosystem services with the influence network framework: illustration from a consultative process over the French Alps

An important aspect of sustainability is to maintain biodiversity and ecosystem functioning while improving human well-being. For this, the ecosystem service (ES) approach has the potential to bridge the still existing gap between ecological management and social development, especially by focusing on trade-offs and synergies between ES and between their beneficiaries. Several frameworks have been proposed to account for trade-offs and synergies between ES, and between ES and other components of socialecological systems. However, to date, insufficient explicit attention has been paid to the three facets encompassed in the ES concept, namely potential supply, demand, and use, leading to incomplete descriptions of ES interactions. We expand on previous frameworks by proposing a new influence network framework (INF) based on an explicit consideration of influence relationships between these three ES facets, biodiversity, and external driving variables. We tested its ability to provide a comprehensive view of complex socialecological interactions around ES through a consultative process focused on environmental management in the French Alps. We synthetized the interactions mentioned during this consultative process and grouped variables according to their overall propensity to influence or be influenced by the system. The resulting directed sequence of influences distinguished between: (1) mostly influential variables (dynamic social variables and ecological state variables), (2) target variables (provisioning and cultural services), and (3) mostly impacted variables (regulating services and biodiversity parameters). We discussed possible reasons for the discrepancies between actual and perceived influences and proposed options to overcome them. We demonstrated that the INF holds the potential to deliver collective assessments of ES relations by: (1) including ecological as well as social aspects, (2) providing opportunities for colearning processes between stakeholder groups, and (3) supporting communication about complex social-ecological systems and consequences for environmental management.

Applying a synthetic approach to the resilience of Finnish reindeer herding as a changing livelihood

Reindeer herding is an emblematic livelihood for Northern Finland, culturally important for local people and valuable in tourism marketing. We examine the livelihood resilience of Finnish reindeer herding by narrowing the focus of general resilience on social-ecological systems (SESs) to a specific livelihood while also acknowledging wider contexts in which reindeer herding is embedded. The questions for specified resilience can be combined with the applied DPSIR approach (Drivers; Pressures: resilience to what; State: resilience of what; Impacts: resilience for whom; Responses: resilience by whom and how). This paper is based on a synthesis of the authors' extensive anthropological fieldwork on reindeer herding and other land uses in Northern Finland. Our objective is to synthesize various opportunities and challenges that underpin the resilience of reindeer herding as a viable livelihood. The DPSIR approach, applied here as a three step procedure, helps focus the analysis on different components of SES and their dynamic interactions. First, various land use-related DPSIR factors and their relations (synergies and trade-offs) to reindeer herding are mapped. Second, detailed DPSIR factors underpinning the resilience of reindeer herding are identified. Third, examples of interrelations between DPSIR factors are explored, revealing the key dynamics between Pressures, State, Impacts, and Responses related to the livelihood resilience of reindeer herding. In the Discussion section, we recommend that future applications of the DPSIR approach in examining livelihood resilience should (1) address cumulative pressures, (2) consider the state dimension as more tuned toward the social side of SES, (3) assess both the negative and positive impacts of environmental change on the examined livelihood by a combination of science led top-down and participatory bottom-up approaches, and (4) examine and propose governance solutions as well as local adaptations by reindeer herders as equally relevant responses to enhance livelihood resilience.

Coevolving Ostrom’s social–ecological systems (SES) framework and sustainability science: four key co-benefits

Research on social–ecological systems (SES) is scattered across many disciplines and perspectives. As a result, much of the knowledge generated between different communities is not comparable, mutually aggregate or easily communicated to nonspecialists despite common goals to use academic knowledge for advancing sustainability. This article proposes a conceptual pathway to address this challenge through outlining how the SES research contributions of sustainability science and researchers using Elinor Ostrom’s diagnostic SES framework (SESF) can integrate and co-benefit from explicitly interlinking their development. From a review of the literature, I outline four key co-benefits from their potential to interlink in the following themes: (1) coevolving SES knowledge types, (2) guiding primary research and assessing sustainability, (3) building a boundary object for transdisciplinary sustainability science, and (4) facilitating comparative analysis. The origins of the SESF include seminal empirical work on common property theory, self-organization, and coupled SES interactions. The SESF now serves as a template for diagnosing sustainability challenges and theorizing explanatory relationships on SES components, interactions, and outcomes within and across case studies. Simultaneously, sustainability science has proposed transdisciplinary research agendas, sustainability knowledge types, knowledge coproduction, and sustainability assessment tools to advance transformative change processes. Key challenges for achieving co-beneficial developments in both communities are discussed in relation to each of the four themes. Evident pathways for advancing SES research are also presented along with a guideline for designing SES research within this co-aligned vision.

Diversified Farming Systems: An Agroecological, Systems-based Alternative to Modern Industrial Agriculture

This Special Issue on Diversified Farming Systems is motivated by a desire to understand how agriculture designed according to whole systems, agroecological principles can contribute to creating a more sustainable, socially just, and secure global food system. We first define Diversified Farming Systems (DFS) as farming practices and landscapes that intentionally include functional biodiversity at multiple spatial and/or temporal scales in order to maintain ecosystem services that provide critical inputs to agriculture, such as soil fertility, pest and disease control, water use efficiency, and pollination. We explore to what extent DFS overlap or are differentiated from existing concepts such as sustainable, multifunctional, organic or ecoagriculture. DFS are components of social-ecological systems that depend on certain combinations of traditional and contemporary knowledge, cultures, practices, and governance structures. Further, as ecosystem services are generated and regenerated within a DFS, the resulting social benefits in turn support the maintenance of the DFS, enhancing its ability to provision these services sustainably. We explore how social institutions, particularly alternative agri-food networks and agrarian movements, may serve to promote DFS approaches, but note that such networks and movements have other primary goals and are not always explicitly connected to the environmental and agroecological concerns embodied within the DFS concept. We examine global trends in agriculture to investigate to what extent industrialized forms of agriculture are replacing former DFS, assess the current and potential contributions of DFS to food security, food sovereignty and the global food supply, and determine where and under what circumstances DFS are expanding rather than contracting. © 2012 by the author(s).