Ethical issues involving long-term land leases: a soil sciences perspective

As populations grow and arable land becomes increasingly scarce, large-scale long- term land leases are signed at a growing rate. Countries and investors with large amounts of financial resources and a strong agricultural industry seek long-term land leases for agricultural exploitation or investment purposes. Leaders of financially poorer countries often advertise such deals as a fast way to attract foreign capital. Much has been said about the short-term social costs these types of leases involve, however, less has been said about the normative dimension of their long-term environmental impact. We therefore will focus on the likely impact such deals have for soil conservation, by (1) briefly introducing the basics of long-term leasing arrangements by comparing land leases to the renting of buildings, (2) explaining from a soil sciences perspective the difficulties in assessing the current value of an estate and in calculating the damages of soil erosion and degradation, and (3) show how difficult it is to incentivize the conservation of soil quality when one cannot sufficiently and cost-effectively valorize existing environmental capital and eventual future damages. Attempting to oblige tenants through contracts to invest in sustainable stewardship has limited potential when liability payments do not reflect true costs and are hard to enforce

Food sovereignty and consumer sovereignty: two antagonistic goals?

The concept of food sovereignty is becoming an element of everyday parlance in development politics and food justice advocacy. Yet to successfully achieve food sovereignty, the demands within this movement have to be compatible with the way people are pursuing consumer sovereignty, and vice versa. The aim of this article is to examine the different sets of demands that the two ideals of sovereignty bring about, analyze in how far these different demands can stand in constructive relations with each other and explain why consumers have to adjust their food choices to seasonal production variability to promote food sovereignty and so secure future autonomy

Hurricane María: An Agroecological Turning Point for Puerto Rico?

When Hurricane María tore through Puerto Rico on September 20, 2017, it left 17 dead, 11,000 seeking shelter, and the island’s 3.4 million people without power, water, or fresh food supplies.i It also ripped off the democratic veneer of the US’ “commonwealth,” revealing the structural vulnerability of an island that has been colonized for over half a millennium. Disasters tend to unmask both unsustainable practices and inequitable relations of power. But they can also unleash the power of solidarity and self-governance as communities—abandoned by their governments and preyed upon by disaster capitalists—come together in unexpected ways. In the aftermath of Puerto Rico’s worst social, economic and environmental catastrophe, the Puerto Rican food sovereignty movement is using agroecology to reconstruct the island’s beleaguered food system

From slash and burn to 'slash and mulch'

In semi-arid cropping regions of West Africa, fallow periods are getting shorter. As land becomes more scarce, farmers are not able to give their soils enough time to rest. This is leading to depletion of soil organic matter, severely threatening soil fertility and damaging soil structure. In the worst cases, crops hardly yield anything anymore, even with the addition of chemical fertilizers. In Burkina Faso, some farming families have found ways to restore their soil productive capacity through the use of low external input practices, based on mulch application of branches and leaves from local flora. The techniques described in this article are relevant for organic farming systems as they rely mainly on locally-available resources and diminish the addition of external inputs to the system. Although third party certification of organic family farming in the study zone is non-existent, the innovation dubbed 'slash and mulch' may be an important practice to up-scale organic frameworks and eventually promote organic certification through partnerships between farmers. Developing locally suited practices based on farmer innovations is a key component for the widespread of organic schemes and promotion of ecologically-sound techniques

Slash-and-mulch: Exploring the role of shrub-based agroforestry systems for smallholder farmers in the Sahel

In Burkina Faso, degraded soils where no crop production is possible affect more than 1 million farmers (Bai et al., 2008). If restored, these soils could potentially contribute to increased local food provision and to climate change mitigation via global carbon sequestration. Advancements toward the imitation of dryland forest floors to restore agricultural soils in the Sahel, a form of ‘ecosystem mimicry’ (Ewel, 1999), can be achieved via the intensive application of carbon-rich mulches. Therefore, strategies are needed to restore and maintain soil productivity via greater inputs of organic matter, greater water retention, reduced evaporation and runoff, increased soil biological diversity, and nutrient cycling and availability. Indigenous forms of agroforestry based on the use of local shrubs, as practiced by farmers, offer opportunities to design sustainable farming systems that are based on agroecological principles and can contribute to building resilience and adaptability in the face of climate change

Agro-ecology: beyond food

Some may view indigenous communities as being conservative and backwards. However, the Kabekwa in Costa Rica show that such communities can be adaptable and innovative. In response to changing circumstances, this community has been adapting its farming practices constantly, benefiting from it in multiple ways. In this case study we show some of the additional advantages agro-ecology provides to farmers beside food. Using the concept of meaningful work we explore how knowledge-intensive farming stimulates the development of skills, improves self-determination and provides incentives for younger generations to work on the land

Adapting Food Production to Climate Change: An Inclusive Approach

On why agricultural innovation from the Global South can and should be used to adapt food production to climate change. Discussed on hand of three cases studie

Learning Agroecology Online During COVID-19

Since March 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic propelled the “stay-at-home” policy worldwide under public health uncertainty, resulting in increased individualization, as well as an increased reliance or dependency on digital communication technology. Based on a review of existing literature alongside a reflection on personal fieldwork experiences, we aim to: (1) describe major elements of agroecological pedagogy, (2) explore adaptation pathways to combine digitalization and participatory action-learning, and (3) briefly discuss opportunities and challenges for agroecologists beyond COVID-19. Agroecological pedagogy is deeply embedded in the praxis, the scientific knowledge and ways of knowing (academic or not), and in the politics and agency of food movements. In line with Freire's liberation pedagogy, seeing what already exists (e.g., in: ecosystems, home-gardens, fields, farms, and watersheds) through participation and volunteering. Alongside a critical analysis to explain and explore certain phenomena, causes and consequences will likely result in the act leading to the implementation of transformative practices and novel designs that improve the state of any situation being addressed. Participatory action research/learning methods are strategic in agroecological pedagogy. Overall, the lockdown period led to increased societal digitalization of human interactions. During lockdown, however, the implementation of strategies for remote agroecology participatory action-learning were hampered, but not vanquished. Key changes to agroecology education projects “before” and “during” lockdown include an increased reliance on digital and remote strategies. Creative adaptations in the virtual classrooms were designed to nurture, deepen, and foster alternatives in favor of diverse knowledges and ways of knowing for food system transformations