Building multifunctionality into agricultural conservation programs: lessons learned from designing agroforestry systems with central Illinois landowners

Abstract

Since 1985, land retirement has been the primary approach used by the federal government for environmental protection of agricultural landscapes, but increasingly it is being supplemented by conservation initiatives on working lands. This shift logically supports agroforestry and other multifunctional approaches as a means to combine production and conservation. However, such approaches can be complex and difficult to design, contributing to the limited adoption in the USA. To understand and improve the integration of multifunctional landscapes into conservation programs, we worked with 15 landowners in a collaborative design process to build unique conservation plans utilizing agroforestry. We interviewed participants before and after the design process to examine the utility of a personalized design process, applicability of agroforestry to conservation programs and pathways to improve conservation policy. We found that landowners strongly preferred working in person for the design process, and being presented a comparison of alternative designs, rather than a single option, especially for novel systems. Agroforestry was seen as a viable method of generating conservation benefits while providing value to the landowners, each of whom stated they were more inclined to adopt such practices irrespective of financial assistance to do so. For conservation programs, landowners suggested reducing their complexity, inflexibility and impersonal nature to improve the integration of multifunctional practices that appeal directly to the practitioner's needs and preferences. These findings are valuable for conservation policy because they complement previous research theory suggesting the value of working collaboratively with landowners in the design of multifunctional landscapes. Personalized solutions that are developed based on the unique characteristics of the local landscape and the preferences of the individual landowner may be retained beyond a specified payment period, rather than being converted back into annual crop production.

Key Roles for Landscape Ecology in Transformative Agriculture Using Aotearoa—New Zealand as a Case Example

“…LE is increasingly being recognised as an important framework capable of assisting in the planning and design of future landscapes [72,[84][85][86][87]. In this context, LE has an important role to play in providing appropriate tools, approaches and frameworks that can facilitate the planning, design, and advice required to help work towards the creation of future farming systems that meet societal needs, respond to the environmental challenges and that can sit within sustainable landscapes.…”

Agroforestry and climate smart agriculture to improve food security and resilience indigenous people in Teluk Patipi District Fakfak Regency West Papua Province

“…dan pulai (Alstonia scholaris)) and leaving of commercial trees (merbau (Intsia bijuga), and matoa (Pometia pinnata)) and fruits (breadfruit, nutmeg, durian, avocado, banana, and langsat (Lansium domesticum)) that were useful [3,4]. Then the former trees that are cut down along with the dried branches are burned and the ashes are used as fertilizer for planting seasonal crops such as sweet potatoes, cassava, taro, peanut, vegetables (mustard greens, gedi (Abelmoschus manihot), corn, chili, water spinach) that known as the local agroforestry practices (LAPs) [5,6,7,8,9].…”

A mixed method approach to exploring landowner interest in woody plantings to integrate conservation and production on Missouri farms

“…In response to agricultural resource concerns (e.g., soil erosion, nutrient depletion, water pollution), the United States government has established multiple programs along the land sparing and land sharing management spectrum. The 1985 Farm Bill initiated several programs that targeted conservation practices on agricultural land, the most notable being the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) (Stanek et al 2018). Agricultural land enrolled in CRP is planted to trees, grass, wildlife cover, or other environmentally beneficial vegetation for 10 to 15-year contracts with the goal to retire sensitive areas from production (Hellerstein 2017).…”

“…This program uses a land sharing approach to conservation and agricultural production by encouraging landowners to adopt more environmentally friendly production methods and land management practices. A further addition to federal conservation programing was made in the 2002 Farm Bill with the establishment of the Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP) in which landowners receive payments for working towards whole-farm resource goals instead of implementing individual practices (Stanek and Lovell 2018). These initiatives demonstrate a government recognition of the importance of integrating ecologically focused land management into agricultural landscapes.…”

“…While many of the above conservation programs are admirable on paper, they have been frequently criticized for being too inflexible, complex, and outdated in comparison to new approaches that encourage multifunctionality of agriculture (Stanek and Lovell 2018).…”