Exploring the Ecological History of a Tropical Agroforestry Landscape Using Fossil Pollen and Charcoal Analysis from Four Sites in Western Ghats, India

Contrary to expectations, some human-modified landscapes are considered to sustain both human activities and biodiversity over the long-term. Agroforestry systems are among these landscapes where crops are planted under native shade trees. In this context, ancient agroforestry systems can provide insight into how farmers managed the landscape over time. Such insight can help to quantify the extent to which tropical forests (especially habitat-specialist trees) are responding to local and landscape-level management. Here, we extracted fossil pollen (indicator of past vegetation changes) and macroscopic charcoal (indicator of biomass burning) from four forest hollows’ sedimentary sequences in an ancient agroforestry system in Western Ghats, India. We used a mixed-modelling approach and a principal components analysis (PCA) to determine past trajectories of forest change and species composition dynamics for the last 900 years. In addition, we reconstructed the long-term forest canopy dynamics and examined the persistence of habitat-specialist trees over time. Our results show that the four sites diverged to a surprising degree in both taxa composition and dynamics. However, despite these differences, forest has persisted over 900 years under agricultural activities within agroforestry systems. This long-term analysis highlights the importance of different land-use legacies as a framework to increase the effectiveness of management across tropical agricultural lands

Could Moral Enhancement Interventions be Medically Indicated?

This paper explores the position that moral enhancement interventions could be medically indicated (and so considered therapeutic) in cases where they provide a remedy for a lack of empathy, when such a deficit is considered pathological. In order to argue this claim, the question as to whether a deficit of empathy could be considered to be pathological is examined, taking into account the difficulty of defining illness and disorder generally, and especially in the case of mental health. Following this, Psychopathy and a fictionalised mental disorder (Moral Deficiency Disorder) are explored with a view to consider moral enhancement techniques as possible treatments for both conditions. At this juncture, having asserted and defended the position that moral enhancement interventions could, under certain circumstances, be considered medically indicated, this paper then goes on to briefly explore some of the consequences of this assertion. First, it is acknowledged that this broadening of diagnostic criteria in light of new interventions could fall foul of claims of medicalisation. It is then briefly noted that considering moral enhancement technologies to be akin to therapies in certain circumstances could lead to ethical and legal consequences and questions, such as those regarding regulation, access, and even consent

Climate-Resilient Agricultural Practices in Different Agro-ecological Zones of Bangladesh

Bangladesh is one of the most vulnerable countries to climate change due to its unique geographical position, the dominance of floodplains, low elevation, high population density, high levels of poverty, and overwhelming dependence on nature, its resources, and services. Increasing temperatures, irregular rainfall, drought, and cyclones are adversely affecting agricultural production, in turn creating a high risk to the food security of Bangladesh’s large population. Large-scale climate-resilient practices (structural and nonstructural) are being implemented in different agro-ecological zones (AEZs) of Bangladesh, which have the potential to reduce the vulnerability and risks associated with climate change and contribute to sustainable agricultural development. This chapter explores the spontaneous and planned resilient practices and their possible contribution to food security in different AEZs of Bangladesh. We systematically classify and characterize agrarian adaptation options to climate change. To this end, first, we assess the impacts of climate change on the agriculture sector in Bangladesh. In addition, we analyze the determinants of farmer’s choices between alternative adaptation measures available in different AEZs. Finally, we identify the gaps in the implementation of those practices and the way forward with policy recommendations