Dataset
Joint environmental and social benefits from diversified agriculture
Borealis
03/25/2024
Abstract
Abstract
Agricultural simplification continues to expand at the expense of more diverse forms of agriculture. This simplification in the form of, for example, intensively-managed monocultures, poses a risk to keeping the world within safe and just Earth system boundaries. Here, we estimate how agricultural diversification simultaneously affects social and environmental outcomes. Drawing from 24 studies in 11 countries across 2,655 farms, we show how five diversification strategies focusing on livestock, crops, soils, non-crop plantings, and water conservation benefit social (human well-being, yields, food security) and environmental (biodiversity, ecosystem services, reduced environmental externalities) outcomes. We find that applying multiple diversification strategies creates more positive outcomes than individual management strategies alone. To realize these benefits, well-designed policies are needed to incentivize the adoption of multiple diversification strategies in unison.
Methods
As a first step to identify relevant datasets, participants of the SESYNC working group ‘Can Enhancing Diversity Help Scale Up Agriculture's Benefits to People and the Environment?’ were identified who had studied farm sites with varying levels of diversification in different parts of the world. Our goal was to encompass a wide range of farming systems across geographic latitudes, from subsistence to commercial farming, while also considering the geophysical landscape context of agricultural diversification outcomes. As a second step to obtain a sufficient representation of various geographic regions as well as types of agricultural diversification strategies, the group identified additional data contributors with relevant datasets (done through a broader solicitation request for data) as potential collaborators.
We had three inclusion criteria for datasets. That is, datasets should have recorded at least: 1) one agricultural diversification practice, while also including control study sites without or with less diversification, 2) one environmental outcome variable, and 3) one social outcome variable. We compiled 24 datasets that cover 11 countries from 5 world regions: Brazil (5); Malawi (3); Costa Rica (2); Ethiopia (2); Germany (2); Bolivia (1); Canada (1); Colombia (1); USA (5); Ghana (1); and Indonesia (1).
Usage notes
The raw data file is .xlsx and the compound variables and other constructed variables are in a CSV file. All data processing and statistical analyses were performed using R software.
Metrics
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Details
- Title
- Joint environmental and social benefits from diversified agriculture
- Creators
- Laura Vang Rasmussen - University of CopenhagenIngo Grass - University of HohenheimZia Mehrabi - University of Colorado BoulderOlivia Smith - Michigan State UniversityRachel Bezner Kerr - Cornell UniversityJennifer Blesh - University of MichiganLucas Garibaldi - National University of Río NegroChristina Kennedy - The Nature ConservancyHannah Wittman - University of British ColumbiaPeter Batery - HUN-REN Centre for Ecological ResearchDamayanti Buchori - IPB UniversityRolando Cerda - Centro Agronomico Tropical de Investigacion y Ensenanza CatieJulián Chará - Centro para la Investigación en Sistemas Sostenibles de Producción AgropecuariaDavid Crowder - Washington State UniversityKevin Darras - Institut National de Recherche pour l'Agriculture, l'Alimentation et l'EnvironnementKathryn DeMaster - University of California, BerkeleyKarina Garcia - University of KentuckyManuel Gómez - Federación Nacional de Cultivadores de Palma de AceiteDavid Gonthier - University of KentuckyPurnama Hidayat - IPB UniversityJuliana Hipólito - Universidade Federal da BahiaMark Hirons - University of OxfordLesli Hoey - University of MichiganInnocensia John - University of Dar es SalaamAndrew Jones - University of MichiganDaniel Karp - University of California, DavisYodit Kebede - Université de MontpellierCarmen Kerr - University of TorontoSusanna Klassen - University of British ColumbiaMartyna Kotowska - University of GöttingenHolger Kreft - University of GöttingenChristian Levers - University of British ColumbiaDiego Lizcano - The Nature ConservancyRamiro Llanque - Rural ResourcesAdrian Lu - University of California, BerkeleySidney Madsen - University of British ColumbiaRosebelly Marques - Universidade de São PauloPedro Martins - Universidade de São PauloAmerica Melo - The Nature ConservancyElissa Olimpi - Virginia TechJeb Owen - Washington State UniversityHeiber Pantevez - Federación Nacional de Cultivadores de Palma de AceiteMatin Qaim - University of BonnSarah Redlich - University of WürzburgChristoph Scherber - University of BonnAmber Sciligo - The Organic CenterSieglinde Snapp - International Maize and Wheat Improvement CenterWilliam Snyder - University of GeorgiaIngolf Steffan-Dewenter - University of WürzburgAnne Stratton - University of MichiganJoseph Taylor - Michigan State UniversityTeja Tscharntke - University of GöttingenVivian Valencia - Bishop's UniversityNyantakyi-Frimpong, HansonCassandra Vogel - Swedish University of Agricultural SciencesClaire Kremen - University of British Columbia
- Publisher
- Borealis
- Grant note
- DFG, CRC 990 / Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft 295442 / The Research Council of Norway 523660-2018 / Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council 727284 / European Union 2015-51300-24155 / United States Department of Agriculture BiodivERsA University of British Columbia 311781 / European Union NE/P001092/1 / NERC 390732324 / Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft
- Identifiers
- 99901397975101842
- Language
- English
- Resource Type
- Dataset