Are Landscape Restoration Interventions Sustainable? A Case for the Upper Tana Basin of Kenya

Landscape restoration initiatives often have the potential to result in environmental gains, but the question of whether these gains are sustainable and how they are linked to other community needs (social, productivity and economic gains) remains unclear. We use the Sustainable Intensification Assessment Framework (SIAF) to demonstrate how environmental benefits are linked to productivity, environment, social, human, and economic components. Using the SIAF, the standardization of relevant indicators across multiple objectives provided a contextual representation of sustainability. The study assessed the overall gains resulting from the measured indicators of sustainable land management (SLM) practices and their relationship to the multiple domains of the SIAF. We present a unique case for SLM options using a combined-methods approach where biophysical, socio-economic, and citizen science help assess the sustainability of the interventions. Using a participatory approach with farmers, land restoration options were conducted in four target micro-watersheds for 3 years (2015–2017). Co-developed restoration measures at the landscape level within the four micro-watersheds (MW1-MW4) resulted in a substantial increment (50%) for all treatments (grass strips, terraces, and a combination of grass strips and terraces) in soil moisture storage and increased maize and forage production. We demonstrate that SLM practices, when used in combination, greatly reduce soil erosion and are profitable and sustainable while conferring livelihood benefits to smallholder farmers.

Download Full-text

Smallholder perceptions of land restoration activities: rewetting tropical peatland oil palm areas in Sumatra, Indonesia

Regional Environmental Change ◽

10.1007/s10113-020-01737-z ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 21 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Caroline Ward ◽

Lindsay C. Stringer ◽

Eleanor Warren-Thomas ◽

Fahmuddin Agus ◽

Merry Crowson ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Smallholder Farmers ◽

Fire Risk ◽

Land Restoration ◽

Peatland Restoration ◽

Drainage Canals ◽

Perceived Impacts ◽

The Government ◽

Restoration Target ◽

Peat Fires ◽

The Impact

AbstractThe Indonesian government committed to restoring over 2 million ha of degraded peatland by the end of 2020, mainly to reduce peat fires and greenhouse gas emissions. Although it is unlikely the government will meet this target, restoration projects are still underway. One restoration strategy involves blocking peatland drainage canals, but the consequences of this for smallholder farmers whose livelihoods are dependent on agriculture are unclear. This paper investigates perceived impacts of canal blocks on smallholder farmers and identifies factors that affect their willingness to accept canal blocks on their land. We use data from 181 household questionnaires collected in 2018 across three villages in Jambi province, Sumatra. We found that the majority of respondents would accept canal blocks on their farms, perceiving that the blocks would have no impact on yields or farm access, and would decrease fire risk. Respondents who would not accept blocks on their farms were more likely to use canals to access their farms and perceive that canal blocks would decrease yields. The majority of farmers unwilling to accept canal blocks did not change their mind when provided with an option of a block that would allow boat travel. Our results improve understanding of why some smallholders may be unwilling to engage with peatland restoration. Further research is needed to understand the impact of canal blocks on smallholders’ yields. Engaging with stakeholders from the outset to understand farmers’ concerns, and perceptions is key if the government is to succeed in meeting its peatland restoration target and to ensure that the costs and benefits of restoration are evenly shared between local stakeholders and other actors.

Download Full-text

Forage-Fed Insects as Food and Feed Source: Opportunities and Constraints of Edible Insects in the Tropics

Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems ◽

10.3389/fsufs.2021.724628 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 5 ◽

Author(s):

Paula Andrea Espitia Buitrago ◽

Luis Miguel Hernández ◽

Stefan Burkart ◽

Neil Palmer ◽

Juan Andrés Cardoso Arango

Keyword(s):

Business Models ◽

Smallholder Farmers ◽

Low Cost ◽

Environmental Benefits ◽

Insect Species ◽

Edible Insects ◽

Adaptation To Climate Change ◽

Tropical Forages ◽

Insects As Food ◽

The Tropics

Farmed insects can provide an alternative protein source for humans, livestock, and fish, while supporting adaptation to climate change, generating income for smallholder farmers, and reducing the negative impacts of conventional food production, especially in the tropics. However, the quantity, nutritional quality and safety of insects greatly relies on their feed intake. Tropical forages (grasses and legumes) can provide a valuable and yet untapped source of feed for several farmed insect species. In this perspective paper, we provide a viewpoint of how tropical forages can support edible insect production. We also highlight the potential of tropical forage-based diets over those using organic agricultural or urban by-product substrates, due to their versatility, low cost, and lower risk of microbial and chemical hazards. The main bottlenecks relate to dependence on the small number of farmed insect species, and in public policy and market frameworks regarding the use of edible insects as food, feed and in industrial processes. This perspective will serve interested stakeholders in identifying urgent issues at the research, ethical, marketing and policy levels that can prevent the emergence of new, insect-based value chains and business models, and the nutritional, economic and environmental benefits they promise.

Download Full-text

Adoption and Utilization of Cactus Pear in South Asia—Smallholder Farmers’ Perceptions

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su10103625 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 10 (10) ◽

pp. 3625 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Mounir Louhaichi ◽

Suresh Kumar ◽

Sunil Tiwari ◽

Muhammad Islam ◽

Sawsan Hassan ◽

...

Keyword(s):

South Asia ◽

Smallholder Farmers ◽

Technical Information ◽

Livestock Production ◽

Considerable Proportion ◽

Forage Production ◽

Livestock Farming ◽

Livestock Feed ◽

Farmer Education ◽

Potential Use

Livestock production in arid and semi-arid regions is facing the challenges of low and erratic rainfall, poor nutrient soils, and high temperatures, which all contribute to inadequate forage production to support livestock. Under these challenging conditions, promoting forage species, such as cacti, that are tolerant and well adapted is important to sustain and improve livestock production. This study analyzes the potential of adopting a spineless cactus through analysis of smallholder farmers’ perceptions with respect to its potential use as a livestock feed in South Asia. A total of 456 households were stratified into three groups in 2017: Farmers not familiar with cactus (non-adopters), farmers familiar with cactus but not growing it (potential adopters), and those already growing it (actual adopters). Main findings confirm that farmers already growing cactus are satisfied with its potential. A considerable proportion of non-adopter farmers cited the unavailability of plant material and technical information as the main reason for their lack of interest in cultivating spineless cactus. Therefore, the potential gains of livestock farming from spineless cactus production in the world’s dry areas could be immense, although more efforts, through farmer education and information sharing, are needed to ensure that the plant’s potential is effectively realized.

Download Full-text

Gliricidia Agroforestry Technology Adoption Potential in Selected Dryland Areas of Dodoma Region, Tanzania

Agriculture ◽

10.3390/agriculture10070306 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 10 (7) ◽

pp. 306

Author(s):

Martha Swamila ◽

Damas Philip ◽

Adam Meshack Akyoo ◽

Stefan Sieber ◽

Mateete Bekunda ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Soil Fertility ◽

Crop Yields ◽

Smallholder Farmers ◽

Mineral Fertilizer ◽

Economic Benefits ◽

Environmental Benefits ◽

Production Costs ◽

Sub Saharan Africa ◽

Agroforestry Technology

Declining soil fertility is one of the major problems facing producers of field crops in most dryland areas of Sub-Saharan Africa. In response to the declining soil fertility, extensive participatory research has been undertaken by the World Agroforestry (ICRAF) and smallholder farmers in Dodoma region, Tanzania. The research has, amongst others, led to the development of Gliricidia agroforestry technology. The positive impact of Gliricidia intercropping on crop yields has been established. However, information on farmers’ willingness and ability to adopt the Gliricidia agroforestry technology on their farms is limited. This study predicts the adoption of Gliricidia agroforestry and conventional mineral fertilizer use technology. Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) were conducted with groups of farmers, purposively selected based on five sets of criteria: (i) at least 2 years of experience in either trying or using Gliricidia agroforestry technology, (ii) at least 1 year of experience in either trying or using the mineral fertilizer technology (iii) at least 10 years of living in the study villages, (iv) the age of 18 years and above, and (v) sex. The Adoption and Diffusion Outcome Prediction Tool (ADOPT) was used to predict the peak adoption levels and the respective time in years. A sensitivity analysis was conducted to assess the effect of change in adoption variables on predicted peak adoption levels and time to peak adoption. The results revealed variations in peak adoption levels with Gliricidia agroforestry technology exhibiting the highest peak of 67.6% in 12 years, and that the most influential variable to the peak adoption is the upfront cost of investing in Gliricidia agroforestry and fertilizer technologies. However, in Gliricidia agroforestry technology most production costs are incurred in the first year of project establishment but impact the long term biophysical and economic benefits. Moreover, farmers practicing agroforestry technology accrue environmental benefits, such as soil erosion control. Based on the results, it is plausible to argue that Gliricidia agroforestry technology has a high adoption potential and its adoption is influenced by investment costs. We recommend two actions to attract smallholder farmers investing in agroforestry technologies. First, enhancing farmers’ access to inputs at affordable prices. Second, raising farmers’ awareness of the long-term environmental benefits of Gliricidia agroforestry technology.

Download Full-text

Challenges and Opportunities in Applying Genomic Selection to Ruminants Owned by Smallholder Farmers

Agriculture ◽

10.3390/agriculture11111172 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (11) ◽

pp. 1172

Author(s):

Heather M. Burrow ◽

Raphael Mrode ◽

A. Okeyo Mwai ◽

Mike P. Coffey ◽

Ben J. Hayes

Keyword(s):

Genomic Selection ◽

Smallholder Farmers ◽

Environmental Benefits ◽

Value Chains ◽

Middle Income ◽

Middle Income Countries ◽

Advanced Economies ◽

Challenges And Opportunities ◽

Barriers To Implementation ◽

On Farm

Genomic selection has transformed animal and plant breeding in advanced economies globally, resulting in economic, social and environmental benefits worth billions of dollars annually. Although genomic selection offers great potential in low- to middle-income countries because detailed pedigrees are not required to estimate breeding values with useful accuracy, the difficulty of effective phenotype recording, complex funding arrangements for a limited number of essential reference populations in only a handful of countries, questions around the sustainability of those livestock-resource populations, lack of on-farm, laboratory and computing infrastructure and lack of human capacity remain barriers to implementation. This paper examines those challenges and explores opportunities to mitigate or reduce the problems, with the aim of enabling smallholder livestock-keepers and their associated value chains in low- to middle-income countries to also benefit directly from genomic selection.

Download Full-text

Who Adopts Agroforestry in a Subsistence Economy?—Lessons from the Terai of Nepal

Forests ◽

10.3390/f11050565 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 11 (5) ◽

pp. 565

Author(s):

Arun Dhakal ◽

Rajesh Kumar Rai

Keyword(s):

Land Use ◽

Smallholder Farmers ◽

Multinomial Logistic Regression ◽

Herd Size ◽

Environmental Benefits ◽

Sustainable Land Use ◽

Farm Income ◽

Conventional Agriculture ◽

Farming Practice ◽

Agroforestry Adoption

Agroforestry is recognized as a sustainable land use practice. However, the uptake of such a promising land use practice is slow. Through this research, carried out in a Terai district of Nepal, we thoroughly examine what influences farmers’ choice of agroforestry adoption and what discourages the adoption. For this, a total of 288 households were surveyed using a structured questionnaire. Two agroforestry practices were compared with conventional agriculture with the help of the Multinomial Logistic Regression (MNL) model. The likelihood of adoption was found to be influenced by gender: the male-headed households were more likely to adopt the tree-based farming practice. Having a source of off-farm income was positively associated with the adoption decision of farmers. Area of farmland was found as the major constraint to agroforestry adoption for smallholder farmers. Some other variables that affected positively included livestock herd size, provision of extension service, home-to- forest distance, farmers’ group membership and awareness of farmers about environmental benefits of agroforestry. Irrigation was another adoption constraint that the study area farmers were faced with. The households with a means of transport and with a larger family (household) size were found to be reluctant regarding agroforestry adoption. A collective farming practice could be a strategy to engage the smallholder farmers in agroforestry.

Download Full-text

Co-Creating Conceptual and Working Frameworks for Implementing Forest and Landscape Restoration Based on Core Principles

Forests ◽

10.3390/f11060706 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 11 (6) ◽

pp. 706 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

Robin L. Chazdon ◽

Victoria Gutierrez ◽

Pedro H. S. Brancalion ◽

Lars Laestadius ◽

Manuel R. Guariguata

Keyword(s):

Environmental Benefits ◽

Multiple Stakeholders ◽

Landscape Restoration ◽

Criteria And Indicators ◽

Feedback Communication ◽

Communication Assessment ◽

Core Set ◽

Wide Range ◽

The Many

Existing guidelines and best-practices documents do not satisfy, at present, the need for guiding implementation of Forest and Landscape Restoration (FLR) based on core principles. Given the wide range of FLR practices and the varied spectrum of actors involved, a single working framework is unlikely to be effective, but tailored working frameworks can be co-created based on a common conceptual framework (i.e., a common core set of principles and a generalized set of criteria and indicators). We present background regarding FLR concepts, definitions, and principles, and discuss the challenges that confront effective and long-term implementation of FLR. We enumerate the many benefits that a transformative criteria and indicators framework can bring to actors and different sectors involved in restoration when such framework is anchored in the FLR principles. We justify the need to co-develop and apply specifically tailored working frameworks to help ensure that FLR interventions bring social, economic, and environmental benefits to multiple stakeholders within landscapes and adjust to changing conditions over time. Several examples of working FLR frameworks are presented to illustrate the goals and needs of communities, donors and investors, and government agencies. Transparency, feedback, communication, assessment, and adaptive management are important components of all working frameworks. Finally, we describe existing FLR guidelines and what we can learn from them. Working frameworks can be developed and used by different actors who seek to initiate an FLR process and to align restoration actions at different scales and levels.

Download Full-text

Purchase Intention for Organic Food Products in Mexico: The Mediation of Consumer Desire

Foods ◽

10.3390/foods10020245 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 10 (2) ◽

pp. 245

Author(s):

Sandra N. Leyva-Hernández ◽

Arcelia Toledo-López ◽

Ana B. Hernández-Lara

Keyword(s):

Purchase Intention ◽

Smallholder Farmers ◽

Organic Food ◽

Food Products ◽

Mediating Effect ◽

Environmental Benefits ◽

Responsible Consumption ◽

Socially Responsible Consumption ◽

Consumption Benefits ◽

Consumer Desire

Socially responsible consumption benefits the environment, the consumer, and the producer. In Mexico, smallholder farmers are vulnerable, and the consumption of organic food products is low. Analysing the purchase intention of organic food products contributes towards generating the most appropriate marketing strategies. Previous models provide evidence that the attitude of the consumer is the biggest predictor of purchase intention. However, little is known about the results of the mediating effect of desire on said relationship. The objective of the study is to analyse the mediating effect of desire on the relationship between attitude and purchase intention. 204 consumers of organic food products were surveyed using a structured, self-administrated questionnaire or through face-to-face interviews, in established retail stores, alternative street markets, and via the web. It was found that when the benefits of organic food products to the consumer, environment, and smallholder farmers are evaluated favourably, then consumer desire is higher, and thus also purchase intention. Consumers have the highest purchase intention for organic food products when their desire to buy them to achieve a goal related with social, personal, and environmental benefits intervenes.

Download Full-text

Farmers perception and utilization status of improved forages grown in the natural resource areas of northwestern Ethiopia

Biodiversitas Journal of Biological Diversity ◽

10.13057/biodiv/d190450 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 19 (4) ◽

pp. 1568-1578

Author(s):

MULUKEN SHIFERAW ◽

BIMREW ASMARE ◽

FIREW TEGEGNE ◽

DESSALEGN MOLLA

Keyword(s):

Natural Resource ◽

Smallholder Farmers ◽

Group Discussion ◽

Resource Conservation ◽

Primary Data ◽

Forage Production ◽

Conservation Areas ◽

Natural Resource Conservation ◽

Fodder Production ◽

Future Direction

Shiferaw M, Asmare B, Tegegne F, Molla D. 2018. Farmers perception and utilization status of improved forages grown inthe natural resource areas of northwestern Ethiopia. Biodiversitas 19: 1568-1578. A study on the perception and utilization ofimproved forages grown in natural resource conservation areas was conducted in selected districts of northwestern Ethiopia. This studyaims to investigate the perception of improved forage production and utilization system on natural resource conservation areas inselected areas of northwestern Ethiopia. Primary data was collected from selected households by interviewing using semi-structuredquestionnaire. Field observation and focus group discussion were also employed to enhance the survey data. A total of 180 households(90 from each district) were selected and interviewed. The collected data were analyzed with descriptive statistics using SPSS softwareversion 20. The result indicated that the average land and livestock holding of respondents were 2.24 ha and 5.56 TLU per household,respectively. The most common forage production methods used by the smallholder farmers were broadcasting (41%), cutting (28%)and row seedling (18%) for both districts. For the majority of respondents (44%), the purpose of forage production of respondents wasfor animal fodder. Farmers in the study areas had a good perception about improved forage production as forages due havemultifunction to the household in the form of soil conservation, fodder production, and income generation. Though improved forageshave many roles in the livelihood and environmental management of the study districts, respondents had problems of skill in productionand utilization of forages. This study elucidates that, relevant development and research interventions such as management andutilization of improved forage production should be the future direction of research and development. Sustainable forage developmentand use for nature conservation and is becoming very important to be a livestock feed source if cut and carry system is regularly applied.

Download Full-text

Evaluation of increased feed supply and different fattening strategies for an Ethiopian sheep population by system dynamics modelling

Animal Production Science ◽

10.1071/an19546 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 60 (17) ◽

pp. 2050

Author(s):

K. T. Gebre ◽

M. Wurzinger ◽

S. Gizaw ◽

A. Haile ◽

B. Rischkowsky ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Simulation Model ◽

Smallholder Farmers ◽

Genetic Selection ◽

Dynamic Modelling ◽

Forage Production ◽

Forage Crops ◽

Sheep Population ◽

Alternative Feed ◽

Dynamic Stochastic ◽

Supply Systems

Context The productivity of Ethiopian smallholder farms is considered to be low owing to different factors such as feed shortage, lack of breeding strategies, disease prevalence and missing marketing strategies. Aim The main objective of the study was to develop a dynamic, stochastic herd model by adopting system dynamic modelling methodology for evaluation of the effect of increased feed availability (forage production) in combination with different fattening strategies on herd dynamics and profitability of an Ethiopian sheep population. Methods Forage production utilising part of smallholder farmers’ cropland was built into a dynamic simulation model. Two alternative feed-supply systems were evaluated: turning 25% and 50% of the current cropland into area used for forage production. The simulation period was 20 years, the first 10 years representing the baseline fattening scenario (culled rams fattened). For the last 10 years, genetic selection was introduced and two scenarios were evaluated: fattening of culled rams (Scenario I) and fattening of young rams (Scenario II). Key results Increasing the feed supply resulted in an increase to the herd size when the model balanced dry matter supply and demand of the herd. Fattening of young rams (Scenario II) with genetic selection was significantly more profitable than the baseline and Scenario I in both of the simulated alternative feed-supply systems. This can be used for regular cash generation, which might reduce disposal of animals at lower price in cases of need for emergency cash. Conclusions Overall, the simulation model demonstrates that production of improved forage crops should be combined with selective breeding and an appropriate finishing strategy. The competition for resources (land and labour) with crop production, forage seed shortage and extended family size are other challenges raised by smallholder farmers for the feasibility of the two alternative feed-supply systems.

Download Full-text