Decision-Making to Diversify Farm Systems for Climate Change Adaptation

Abstract

On-farm diversification is a promising strategy for farmers to adapt to climate change. However, few recommendations exist on how to diversify farm systems in ways that best fit the agroecological and socioeconomic challenges farmers face. Farmers' ability to adopt diversification strategies is often stymied by their aversion to risk, loss of local knowledge, and limited access to agronomic and market information, this is especially the case for smallholders. We outline seven steps on how practitioners and researchers in agricultural development can work with farmers in decision-making about on-farm diversification of cropping, pasture, and agroforestry systems while taking into account these constraints. These seven steps are relevant for all types of farmers but particularly for smallholders in tropical and subtropical regions. It is these farmers who are usually most vulnerable to climate change and who are, subsequently, often the target of climate-smart agriculture (CSA) interventions. Networks of agricultural innovation provide an enabling environment for on-farm diversification. These networks connect farmers and farmer organizations with local, national, or international private companies, public organizations, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and research institutes. These actors can work with farmers to develop diversified production systems incorporating both high-value crops and traditional food production systems. These diversified farm systems with both food and cash crops act as a safety net in the event of price fluctuations or other disruptions to crop value chains. In this way, farmers can adapt their farm systems to climate change in ways that provide greater food security and improved income.

Multi-Actors' Co-Implementation of Climate-Smart Village Approach in West Africa: Achievements and Lessons Learnt

“…Diversification aims to produce food for consumption and for income generation, with a focus on income generating activities for women, including market gardening, non-timber forest product processing, and raising small ruminants and poultry (Bayala et al, 2016(Bayala et al, , 2017. These diversified farm systems act as a safety net for farmers against both market pressures and climate risks (Ouédraogo et al, 2017a;van Zonneveld et al, 2020).…”

Which Socio-economic Conditions Drive the Selection of Agroforestry at the Forest Frontier?

“… Mean annual energy production over a 20-year period: we convert crop and meat yields to dietary energy (Mcal per hectare) using the USDA ( 2019 ) food composition database and technical conversion factors for agricultural commodities (FAO 2019 )—see Table S10 . Labour demand Days/ ha/yr Less is better Labour availability can be a key constraint for land-use decisions of smallholder farmers (Pichón 1997 ; Tschakert et al 2007 ; van Zonneveld et al 2020 ). The mean number of labour days required to implement and manage a given land use per year (averaged over a 20-year period).…”

“…Labour availability can be a key constraint for land-use decisions of smallholder farmers (Pichón 1997;Tschakert et al 2007;van Zonneveld et al 2020).…”

“…Within this context, goal programming has two advantages for evaluating agroforestry. First, as a multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) method, goal programming can consider multiple objectives and hence account for the diverse, and potentially conflicting, goals that drive farmers’ decision-making (Janssen and van Ittersum 2007 ; Kaim et al 2018 ; van Zonneveld et al 2020 ). Second, as a continuous (rather than discrete) MCDA technique, goal programming can solve land allocation problems to simulate decision-making at the farm (rather than plot) level.…”

Diversity and conservation of traditional African vegetables: Priorities for action

“…Many are highly nutritious (Odhav et al, 2007;Yang & Keding, 2009) and are easy to incorporate into farm systems because they require limited space and fit within short rotations (Schreinemachers et al, 2018). Traditional African vegetables therefore potentially help to diversify farm systems and diets with nutritious foods and generate more climate-resilient food production (van Zonneveld, Turmel, et al, 2020). So far, however, the majority of these species have not been considered in climate smart agriculture strategies (e.g.…”