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Agriculture is the traditional and leading field of economy of Tetritskaro Municipality, but it faces the challenge of changing climate. The study examines the perceptions of climate change among male and female farmers in Tetritskaro, including their primary sources of information, chosen adaptation measures, and their respective needs. Climate change data that are available in Tetritskaro focused on characteristic extreme weather events coupled with face-to-face interviews from 254 farmers (male - 53%, female - 47%) was analyzed. The study revealed that men and women have more or less similar perceptions of climate change issues. Male farmers primarily rely on conversations with fellow farmers for information on climate, seasonal prediction, and weather forecasts, while female farmers depend on indigenous knowledge of the local environment. Male and female farmers have adapted to the changes in climate similarly by applying some measures, while the exchange of information between fellow farmers, use of various hail protection products, and crop diversification techniques are more frequent among male farmers. Farmers expressed the need for low-interest loans to purchase agricultural products and equipment and restore/create windbreak zones. Most of the male farmers indicate the need for the introduction of new technologies, while female farmers are more in need of training in agricultural activities. The reliance on the experience of other farmers can be seen as a form of social learning and knowledge sharing. Understanding and respecting these local communication channels and sources of knowledge is important for designing effective extension programs and information campaigns. Addressing the traditional men-women roles and cultural and social norms is critical to increasing the adaptation opportunities of female farmers. The study highlights the necessity of developing climate change adaptation policies and interventions in Tetritskaro. The obtained results can be used in other agricultural regions with the same problems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) had almost 190 million tonnes produced in 2021. Tomato fruit suffer losses of up to 50% during harvest and transport, which causes financial hardship, reduces the amount of food available and causes environmental harm. Calcium plays an important role in cell wall strength. This work assessed the use of a calcium transport stimulant (MCAS) to increase the firmness of tomato fruit in the laboratory and the foliar application to tomato plants. Then, handling damage was simulated. In the laboratory, the calcium with MCAS significantly increased the fruit firmness compared to the untreated and calcium without MCAS, which were not significantly different. When calcium with MCAS was applied to tomato plants foliarly before harvest, the calcium with MCAS-treated fruit were significantly firmer than the untreated or calcium without MCAS-treated fruit for up to 10 weeks after harvest, and this was achieved by applying only 0.91 kg ha−1 calcium. Finally, when fruit were exposed to a simulated drop, the calcium with MCAS-treated fruit remained firmer than the undamaged fruit or dropped fruit with calcium without MCAS. Calcium with MCAS could significantly increase the fruit firmness and increase the shelf-life of tomatoes while applying less calcium. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Agriculture needs to be fundamentally transformed to be able to live up to and achieve Sustainable Development Goals and thereby improve its contribution to human well-being, as its outputs recently crossed global and European planetary boundaries. Reducing the use of agrochemicals by 75-86%, restoring 2/3 of the land to biodiversity rich habitats and achieving net zero emissions are the key measures to return to the path within the boundaries. Some recent policy initiatives, such as the EU Green Deal and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, set targets for such transformations by 2030. However, if these are not fully applied, no more progress can be expected than from previous failed environmental policies. We identified knowledge gaps, imbalances and other challenges, and we propose a roadmap to transform agriculture: fill knowledge gaps with research that links yield and income with ecosystem services; improve diet and nutrition; improve water retention; develop farming for both biodiversity and carbon sequestration. We argue that traditional farming systems and their knowledge holders can provide key information for setting the baselines of transformative agriculture. As a second step, capacities for a well-functioning science-policy interface need to be strengthened, where diverse evidence is used and harmonised to achieve an overarching nature-positive policy framework. Finally, we stress that implementation should be coherent by 2030 and set the path for transformation so that by 2050, European agriculture can provide healthy food and fair livelihoods in a healthy environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hydrological droughts are important for agriculture and other human activities such as navigation and groundwater pumping, so it is necessary to understand their characteristics at various temporal and spatial scales. This study aims to examine the characteristics of hydrological droughts and their propagation from meteorological droughts across Wisconsin. Hydrological droughts were identified for twenty-four U.S. Geological Survey streamflow monitoring sites using the 20th percentile threshold level for each calendar day. Meteorological droughts were identified in the same way using daily precipitation data. Drought events of both types were identified for the period from 1980 to 2018, and the drought in 2012 was examined in detail. Our results indicate that (1) unlike meteorological droughts, hydrological droughts tend to occur more frequently in recent years; (2) characteristics of hydrological droughts are not correlated with those of meteorological droughts or annual precipitation; (3) there are generally three drought regions in Wisconsin showing different drought trends and propagation characteristics; and (4) groundwater withdrawal from unconfined aquifers has exacerbated hydrological droughts. In conclusion, hydrological droughts have become less synchronous with meteorological droughts, which will make drought early warning more challenging. The study sheds light on drought characteristics and propagation in relation to catchment characteristics and human activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the role of rural Palestinian women in the South Hebron Hills (SHH) in fighting back against both Israeli settler colonial practices and environmental destruction resulting from such practices. We contend that Israel is waging a war on the environment as a tool to deprive Palestinians in Area 'C' of what sustains life, land and natural resources. Through their everyday practices of defiance, we argue that, rural women wielding an indigenous lifestyle of farming in the SHH create an agro-ecological structure of sumud, or steadfastness through their domestic everyday practices, where they strengthen their attachment to the land and regenerate the environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When cultivars present a differential response to diverse edaphoclimatic conditions, it is necessary to have high performance and stable genotypes, as well as stability allows the genotype to adjust its productive capacity to the widest environmental variation. The objective of this work was to determine the genotype-environment interaction in 19 sugarcane cultivars in the locality of Cienfuegos, in the variable Pol percentage. The study was carried out in the experimental block of sugarcane, located in Espartaco, Palmira, Cienfuegos, belonging to the Territorial Station of Sugarcane Research (ETICA Centro Villa Clara). The design used was a completely randomized block with three replications on a sialitic Brown soil, in the strains of cane plant and first ratoon. It was obtained as a result that the month of December in the ratoon strain (C2M2) is the ideal environment, where the cultivar 'C88-380' presented high yield and phenotypic stability, 'C91-356' presented the lowest yield values and 'C91-367' was the most unstable. Two mega-environments are formed, where cultivars 'C90-317', 'C86-12', 'C90-501' and 'C1051-73' are represented by environments C1M1 and C1M2, as well as 'C88-380', 'C89-372', 'C89-176', 'C89-148' and 'C86-56' with most of the remaining environments, while 'C91-356', 'C323-68', 'C86-165', 'C91-115', 'C90-530', 'C86-156', 'C91-367', 'C90-469', 'C89-250' and 'C86-251' are not related to any specific environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As sustainable agriculture turns in fashion, it becomes a contested territory between social movements and institutionality. In this article I analyze how three popular imaginaries around farming are entangled in the institutionalization of farming training programs, as spaces where sustainable agriculture is taught and enacted. These imaginaries relate to the lack of farmers, the responsibilization of farming heroes, and the social value of sustainable agriculture. Using a case study approach, I show how initiatives are molded by imaginaries that (re)construct and (re)define them as they get inserted into formal structures of funding, regulation, and dissemination. The inherited imaginaries are adopted—and adapted—by organizations both unconsciously and strategically. I also untangle how a politics of imaginaries unfolds as the popular social imaginaries about farming are contested and negotiated on the ground by staff members and apprentices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding the Anthropocene—as both a set of physiological phenomena and as an existential crisis of modernity—requires interrogating Earth-changing transformations in food and agriculture. Agri-food systems are not only at the core of alarming environmental trends; they also offer opportunities to directly engage important challenges to the Anthropocene concept. Many human geographers and other social scientists have raised critiques of the Anthropocene designation as glossing over social inequities, codifying a separation of humans from their environments, and naturalizing current transformations as complete and irreversible. In this article we interrogate the intersection between agri-food studies and critical Anthropocene scholarship, arguing that agri-food systems serve as a through line to competing Anthropocene origin stories, a source of theoretical insight for the complexity of human–environment relations, and a site of agency for engaging alternative futures. First, we examine four of the most commonly proposed starting points for the Anthropocene epoch, arguing that a focus on food and agriculture at each historical moment reveals the limits, frictions, and social unevenness of anthropogenic change. Second, we highlight theoretical tools from critical agrarian studies that help build a more complex understanding of agriculture and the Anthropocene, emphasizing the active role of agroecosystems and the centrality of structural inequalities to agroenvironmental change. Finally, we examine how food- and agriculture-related social movements are working to forge more livable futures by accounting for precisely the matters that characterizations of the Anthropocene as an epoch of global human dominance frequently overlook: socioecological unity and political economic difference. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Agriculture needs a radical transition towards a more sustainable model. Multi-Level Perspective has gained prominence as a framework for analysing sustainable transitions. However, Multi-Level Perspective has received criticism for the unclear operationalization of its hierarchical levels and bias towards bottom-up change. This longue durée study applies the Multi-Level Perspective framework to the case of the Danish dairy cattle sector to understand the foundations for sustainable agricultural transitions, and in doing so addresses these Multi-Level Perspective critiques. The results highlighted system elements that have persisted over time to reveal stable, recurring patterns. These patterns helped delineate the system's deep structure. Our results show that uncovering this deep structure is key to understanding how actors and elements come together to either permit or constrain development pathways. Thus, integration and alignment with these actors and elements will be necessary to extend the possibilities for future agricultural transitions. Finally, understanding a system's deep structure can correct Multi-Level Perspective's bias towards bottom-up change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Horn of Africa is at stake concerning climate change. The considerable population size of the Horn of Africa is a pastoral community living out of livestock and small farmers living in subsistence agricultural production. The loss of livestock and harvests resulting from a drought causes the deprivation of millions of citizens. The effect has triggered mass migration within and several offshore destinations. The question is, while Africa produces a low carbon emission, remains the primary victims of climate change. Africa lacks resources and technical expertise to respond to the devastating effects of climate change. This study aims to analyse the agency of climate change as a social and political process. Therefore, this paper seeks remedies on how to avert climate change threats by examining the collective responsibilities and different stakeholders. The article would conduct an inquiry on the responsibility of industrial nations vis-à-vis climate change. The paper employs a qualitative research method to explores how to mitigate climate change threats. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Industrial agriculture has promoted the expansion of monocrops around the world, aided by the circulation of highly standardized plant varieties. However, given the adverse environmental effects of this agricultural approach (such as genetic erosion) and the challenges posed by climate change, some biotech companies are trying to complexify industrial agriculture's relationship to "place". They are beginning to consider local particularities in the design of seed products. Focusing on the experience of an Argentinian biotech company, this article explores the creation of microbial seed treatments that claim to be "region-specific" and whose production is mediated by novel meta-genomic techniques. Through the notions of association and mediation, the article reflects on the diverse meanings of region-specificity (geographical, environmental, relational) that are mobilized in the creation of these products. In this way, the article highlights the role of computational technologies, plants, and microorganisms in the shaping of scientific and corporate meanings of place. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The nascent cellular agriculture industry seeks to produce cell-cultured animal tissue for human consumption. Effectively rendering farmed animals obsolete in food production could mitigate an array of harms inflicted by industrial animal farming on the environment, public health, and human and animal wellbeing, but achieving this outcome is contingent on cellular agriculture entrepreneurs successfully creating a product that closely resembles conventional meat enough to appeal to consumers despite its synthetic origins. This article examines how these politics of resemblance may shape and limit the realization of the industry's potential benefits. Specifically, it argues that, while cellular agriculture can only realize such benefits through the facilitation of agricultural animal obsolescence, its potential for positive transformations in food production may ultimately be blunted by the degree to which a failure to extend the politics of resemblance from the consumer market to the labor market renders agricultural human laborers obsolete as well. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effect of age of storage under farm conditions on the deterioration of seeds from Erythrina berteroana (erythrina), Albizia lebbeck (albizia), Gliricidia sepium (gliricidia) and Bauhinia purpurea (bauhinia) was studied. For this purpose, a simple classification design was used in each species with four replications of 100 seeds each. The viability (%) and, germination (%) were determined, which analysis was conducted through variance analysis and the mean multiple comparison matrix of Student-Newman Keuls (SNK) of SAS®. The variable germination in erythrina showed a significant increase during the study (from 20% in month 0 to 68% in month 12); while in albizia it showed a variable performance. In both species, viability decreased but in the final evaluation, it still exceeded 80%. Seed age in erythrina and albizia decisively influenced the reinforcement of the coat impermeability and thus their high survival. The germination and viability values coincided during the whole study for bauhinia and gliricidia and decreased significantly during storage; in the former, the seeds evaluated after 10 months had lower quality, while in the latter physiological death was reached after nine months; such species have a high deterioration rate during storage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study of security implications of climate change has developed rapidly from a nascent area of academic inquiry into an important and thriving research field that traverses epistemological and disciplinary boundaries. Here, we take stock of scientific progress by benchmarking the latest decade of empirical research against seven core research priorities collectively emphasized in 35 recent literature reviews. On the basis of this evaluation, we discuss key contributions of this special issue. Overall, we find that the research community has made important strides in specifying and evaluating plausible indirect causal pathways between climatic conditions and a wide set of conflict-related outcomes and the scope conditions that shape this relationship. Contributions to this special issue push the research frontier further along these lines. Jointly, they demonstrate significant climate impacts on social unrest in urban settings; they point to the complexity of the climate–migration–unrest link; they identify how agricultural production patterns shape conflict risk; they investigate understudied outcomes in relation to climate change, such as interstate claims and individual trust; and they discuss the relevance of this research for user groups across academia and beyond. We find that the long-term implications of gradual climate change and conflict potential of policy responses are important remaining research gaps that should guide future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We examine how Syria's local growing seasons and precipitation variability affected patterns of violence during the country's civil war (2011–19). Among Syria's 272 subdistricts (nahiyah), we study conflict events initiated by the Assad regime or its allies, and, separately, by other armed non-government groups ('rebels'). Throughout the war, violence to capture agriculture has been used regularly to control valuable cropland and harvests. Combatants also seek to deny their adversaries access to these resources by deploying violence to destroy agriculture. We test the hypothesis that conflict was most likely during local growing seasons due to both of these motivations. Additionally, we examine whether unusually dry conditions further elevated the risk of conflict during growing season months. A theory for why higher levels of conflict would occur during unusually dry conditions is that livelihood losses elevate incentives to control scarce crops and also facilitate recruitment of militants or their sympathizers. We find that violent events initiated by the government and rebel groups are both more likely during the growing season than other times of the year. There is also evidence that dry conditions during the growing season led to an increase in government-initiated attacks over the duration of the war. We find the strongest relationship between precipitation deficits and both government- and rebel-initiated violence in later years of the war. Compared with our growing season results, the rainfall deviation estimates are less consistent across models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, we draw on a case study of a weather information system in West Bengal, India to examine how the design and usage of ICTs can play a much larger role in steering holistic changes in everyday practices of smallholder farmers as they cope with effects of climate change. In doing so, we focus on the role of the information system in forging collaborative practices across diverse set of actors with varied interests. We show how collaborative practices facilitate village capacity building to make effective use of outside expertise, convert them into locally relevant knowledge, and imbue them with new meaning in their everyday practices. We argue that these capacities are a necessary means by which smallholder farmers can build resilience in the face of the global climate crisis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this interview, pioneering environmental analyst Lester Brown warns about the growing mismatch between modern agriculture and a changing climate system, including the risk of widespread water shortages and a food crisis in poor countries. He talks about the changes required to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, including his assessment that emissions must be reduced 80 percent by 2020. He makes the case for climate change as a national security issue, and predicts that society is reaching a cultural tipping point beyond which climate action will be more widely accepted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In South Africa, the smallholding-farming system is a dominant economic activity in rural communities. This study examines smallholder-farmers' perceptions in regards to climate changes, in comparison with evidence from meteorological data from 1980–2015, across Vhembe District; data from a questionnaire and recorded meteorological were used. The results reveal that, farmers' perceptions of climatic conditions are consistent with meteorological details on climatic change. In other words, the study, showed that, farmers' perceptions using climate indicators, mirror meteorological data. It was concluded that it is imperative for farmers to understand issues such as, temperature and rainfall patterns in order to identify adaptive strategies to the negative impacts of climate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Infraspecific variation has transcendental ecological consequences for species adaptation to new niches. Estimating levels of variation is key for understanding the life history of a species, as well as for designing strategies for use and conservation. For this reason, the objective of this study was to characterize infra-specific morphological variation of the labellum of V. planifolia, of 122 flowers from 28 specimens from the state of Oaxaca and two specimens from Veracruz, Mexico. The labellum of each flower was dissected and analyzed by morphometry. Sixty variables were obtained and grouped into basal, middle and apical regions. An analysis of variance was performed considering the collections and the origin of each individual as sources of variation. Principal components and cluster analyses were also conducted. Differences in the 60 variables analyzed were highly significant among the collections. Among environments, 18 variables showed significant differences, which were situated in the lateral and middle lobes of the labellum. Thus, these structures were considered susceptible to environmental changes. The remaining 42 variables situated in the basal and middle regions of the labellum, which were fused to the edges of the floral column were not significantly different among environments. With the first three principal components, the model explained 73% of the total variation studied. Morphological variation of the flower labellum was represented by four morphotypes distributed in three environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Analyze the People as Teacher as a collective subject, and how it contributes to the territorial construction of agroecologies in the experience of La Alianza Lara State, Venezuela. Methodology: The analysis is assumed from the historical-cultural context and under the method of systematization of experiences. Results: We find that this peasant experience enriches agroecological perspectives by its organizational capacity, where a collective subject arises out of awareness and training, capable of "infiltrating" conventional curricula and thus able to promote an educational network, influencing the national agroecological movement. Limitations: It is not an easily reproducible model due to its situated character. Conclusions: We find that the collective subject favors the processes of territorialization of agroecology, because it allows not only the consolidation of material territories in the productive processes, but also the symbolic ones, with the revaluation of peasant senses, which are affirmed in educational dynamics rooted in collective interests. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Changes in climatic conditions are associated with changes in the physicochemical properties of many fruits. Four germplasms of cashew apple originating from Brazil, Tanzania, Ghana (herein referred to as local) and Mozambique but all grown in Ghana were studied to assess the effect of agro-climatic zones on the sugar accumulation, pH, and weight of these cashew apples. Cashew apples were sourced from experimental stations in Bole and Wenchi in the Northern and Savannah regions of Ghana, respectively. A total of 1800 fruits were used for the experiment. Inter and intra significant differences (P < 0.05) were scored amongst germplasms collected from both locations concerning the measured parameters. Sugar ranged between 8.7% - 12.5% with fruits from Bole having the highest sugar content. The pH value ranged from 3.9 (Local germplasm from Bole) - 4.3 (Tanzania germplasm from both locations). The weight ranged between 33 g (Tanzania germplasm from Bole) - 69.8 g (Brazil germplasm from Bole). Meteorological data (from February 2017-April 2018) collected from both locations influenced the parameters, thus associating with the fruits from both locations. Conclusively, the present study indicated that, weather and geographical locations had effect on sugar content, pH, and weight of cashew apples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper sought to assess the understanding of climate change among the Maasai community in Ngerengere Division, Morogoro Region, in Tanzania. A recent study that involved 70 participants in an embedded case study design revealed that the Maasai pastoralists and farmers understand the weather patterns and can cope well with climatic variability typical of semi-arid areas. This understanding helps individuals and social groups to access and process climate information to the level that raises their capability to adopt relevant mitigation measures. Presented narratives obtained through the triangulation of data indicate that the Maasai people have established coping strategies to help them reduce the impacts of climate change in their contexts. Captured strategies include: shifting from livestock to small-scale farming, cattle raiding, and increasing the number of livestock. The paper uncovers that the target community has developed indicators that help individuals and social groups to access climate change knowledge in their area, and adopt necessary and useful measures. Cited indicators include; prevalence of new types of diseases, change in patterns of human activities, extreme fluctuations of Ngerengere river volume, and shifting of the river flow. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• We provide new evidence on the effectiveness of PAs and the role of institutions. • We use high-resolution satellite imagery and regression discontinuity methods. • PAs significantly reduce deforestation in both national PAs and collective lands. • National PAs are only effective near human settlements, in more developed regions. • In contrast, Collective lands avoid deforestation in remote, less developed regions. Protected areas (PAs) are a cornerstone of conservation policy. While evidence shows that, overall, PAs have contributed to preserving forests, their impact varies greatly depending on the institutional context. This paper provides new evidence on the mechanisms through which local institutions shape the effectiveness of PAs. We use high-resolution satellite imagery of deforestation and illicit activities in Colombia and spatial regression discontinuity methods to estimate the causal effect of PAs in different institutional contexts. Our main results indicate that PAs significantly reduce deforestation, with larger effects for collective lands than national (strict-use) PAs, and no impact for regional (multiple-use) PAs. However, national PAs are only effective near human settlements, in municipalities that provide more public goods and are less violent. In remote areas, national PAs are particularly vulnerable to the expansion of coca crops and gold mining. In contrast, collective lands reduce coca crops and avoid deforestation in remote, less developed regions. These results highlight the extent to which natural PAs rely on the institutional capacity of the national and local governments, while collective lands protect forests even when state presence is weak. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Agroforestry systems contributed positively to greenhouse gas mitigation. • Agroforestry potentially contributes to property alleviation and food security. • Ecosystem services provided by agroforestry systems are beneficial to the household. • The Life Cycle Assessment method provided robust and essential information to inform stakeholders. Agriculture and land use practices must be significantly improved to satisfy the needs of future generations without placing further pressure on global ecosystems. Agroforestry systems (AFS) have been quoted as one of the best options to mitigate environmental impacts and at the same time, improve smallholders' livelihoods in agricultural areas. However, studies investigating the environmental aspects and yield of agroforestry systems in rural settlements, established by governmental initiatives, are still uncommon in the literature. Therefore, the goal of this paper was to assess the contribution of five biodiverse AFS, located in the Cerrado biome, to global warming mitigation and the provision of ecosystem services to smallholder farmers. Additionally, the importance of agroforestry projects to family farms in Brazil was discussed. Relying on data from forestry inventory and in-depth interviews with farmers, the crop yield (including fruit) was estimated; and the life cycle assessment method was used to determine the Global Warming Potential (GWP), accounting for all emissions to establish and manage the AFS up until the date of analysis. The results show the significant capacity of AFS sequester carbon, represented by the negative values of GWP, ranging from (−263) to (−496) t CO 2 equivalents per hectare. Each farmer adopted different tree and crop species at the AFS establishment what influenced yields and GWP. The high number of fruit trees contributed positively to the AFS outputs, allowing farmers to consume and sell a large variety of products. Furthermore, the households also benefit from microclimate and aesthetic benefits provided by the AFSs. Future agroforestry projects in rural settlements can contribute significantly to improve household livelihoods, as well as environmental protection. However, efforts should be taken to provide farmers with sound knowledge, financial support, and access to markets to thrive. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• We examine adoption of multiple climate smart innovations (CSAP) and their impact on household nutrition. • When a climate is hot and rainfall is variable, farmers prefer a combination of practices over practice in isolation. • We find adoption of combination of CSAP improves household nutrition relative to adopting an innovation in isolation. • Gender difference in nutrition is observed due to difference in household characteristics and returns to resources. Since the beginning of the decade, climate resilient green economy strategies have been proposed in many African countries. One of the pillars of the strategies is the adoption and diffusion of various climate smart agricultural practices for improving crop and livestock production and farmer income while reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The effects of these innovations on household nutritional security, including gender-differentiated nutritional status, have hardly been analyzed. We examine the determinants of adoption of combinations of multiple climate smart agricultural innovations and their impact on different nutrition outcomes. We find that adoption of climate smart innovations increases dietary diversity and improves calorie and protein availability. These benefits increase with adoption of combinations of innovations, relative to adopting an innovation in isolation. Gender-disaggregation results suggest nutritional outcome differentials between male and female headed households due to both differences in household characteristics, including household resources, and differences in returns to resources. The study provides insight into the interaction between climate change adaptation and nutrition security among male and female headed households, with implication for the Sustainable Development Goals of ending hunger, achieving gender equality, and taking action on climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Identifies the processes by which sustainable agricultural production is being implemented and scaled-up in the tropics. • Proposes a typology that, in broad terms, attempts to conceptualize the implementation of sustainable agriculture. • Introduces a set of articles that advance research on sustainable agriculture production in the tropics. Wide-scale transformation promoting sustainable agricultural production in the tropics will be crucial to global sustainability and development. Although contemporary agricultural production has increased alongside international demand, it has resulted in extensive changes in land cover, often at the expense of tropical forests and other native habitats. Conservation and development professionals from civil society, private foundations, multilateral and specialized international agencies, along with academic organizations and, increasingly, the private sector, have cited the urgent need to transform tropical agricultural production to meet current and future food needs without compromising environmental, economic, and sociocultural outcomes for present and future generations. This introduction identifies the processes by which sustainable agricultural production is being implemented and scaled-up in the tropics. We propose a typology that, in broad terms, conceptualizes the implementation of sustainable agriculture. This typology depicts how contributions to this special issue advance the understanding of sustainable agriculture in the tropics. Together, these articles demonstrate that implementing the sustainable production of agriculture often occurs through hybrid governance, with actors from the public sector, private sector, and civil society working together to define and implement interventions. Evaluation of sustainable agriculture production in the tropics often relies upon transdisciplinary teams that bring data, analysis, and firsthand knowledge together. Future research would do well to focus on sustainability outcomes as a combination of environmental and human well-being indicators; the composition and outcomes of different intervention mixes; and how implementation cycles influence subsequent definition, governance, and evaluation of sustainable agriculture in the tropics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights • Effect of low nitrogen on potato tubers using a soil-based growth system. • Low nitrogen decreases yield in table potatoes but not in the wild ssp. Andigena. • Cultivar-dependent differences in sugar, vitamin C and hormone levels. • Growth on limited nitrogen delays tuber sprouting. • Saturna performs better under limited nitrogen in terms of internal quality. Abstract An excess of nitrogen (N) is used in agriculture endangering the environment and food quality. One approach to circumvent this is to generate crops with a stable or even increased productivity under limited N. Here, we studied the effect of reduced N availability on potato (Solanum tuberosum) tuber yield and quality traits using five varieties: the wild Andigena and the commercial cultivars Désirée, Milva, Saturna and Alegria. Growth on limited N resulted in less tubers with a reduced weight except for Andigena. Tubers from low N-grown plants contained more starch, less sucrose and were delayed in sprouting. Some of the trait differences can be explained by changes in hormone levels between cultivars and N conditions. In general, Saturna and Alegria performed better under limited N making them excellent breeding candidates. Our results suggest that wild species more flexibly adapt to limited N, a trait lost in commercial potatoes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The interaction between agriculture, particularly intensive greenhouse horticulture, and climate, is of dual nature. The resources required to produce crops, such as fossil fuel, affect climate change (CC), which, in turn, will backfire with altered growing conditions in the future. For instance, phenomena like heat waves and severe droughts would significantly affect management of protected cultivation systems, which would require adaptation processes. This puts greenhouse vegetable producers under high pressure, as they are required to adopt environmentally friendly production strategies. Here, we provide a comprehensive critical review of the effects of present and future CC scenarios on controlled environment agriculture as well as the mapping of climate protection measures in these environments. We examined published articles from 1990 to 2019, focused mainly on the European region and pinpointing the differences between the temperate North and the Mediterranean basin, although some research works from other regions were also considered. We recommend adaptations in terms of sufficient cooling, and improvement of natural and additional light for winter production. Technical and conceptual innovations such as the semi-/closed greenhouse based on mechanical cooling and dehumidification are discussed along with structural solutions such as passively ventilated greenhouses and screenhouses. Moreover, we recommend adaptation in terms of cultivar selection, greenhouse type, cover material, cultural practices and production technology to cope with abnormal climate alterations and extreme weather conditions associated with CC. We believe that this work will contribute to advance sustainable year-round production. Image 1 • Studies on the effects of climate change on protected cultivation are scarce. • This paper reviews the effect of climate change impacts on controlled environment agriculture. • New adaptation strategies, such as innovations in combination with "next generation" of culture methods are suggested. • A new redesigned, multi-disciplinary research is needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lowland rice production has been introduced in many African countries because it more than double yields from upland. Irrigated lowland rice production generates Green House Gas (GHG) emissions roughly four times the GHG emissions per ton of crop as wheat or maize, mostly in form of methane and nitrous oxide. Alternate Wet and Dry (AWD) as a water management was introduced as a system to reduce GHG, however what factors affects the use of Alternate Wet and Dry Technique? A simple random sampling technique was used to select 120, 150 and 300 rice farmers from irrigation schemes in (Tema) Ghana, (Doho) Uganda and (Ndop) Cameroon respectively. Data were collected on their socio-economic characteristics, use of Alternate Wet and Dry Irrigation and knowledge of AWD for climate smart agriculture. Data analysis was carried out using descriptive statistics and probit regression was used as an inferential statistics to analyze the factors influencing the respondents' adoption of Alternate Wet and Dry technique. The results show that majority of farmers were female and male, married, with mean age of 50 and 45.6; having mean farm size of 0.4 and 0.25ha in Ghana and Uganda respectively. In Cameroon, majority of farmers were male, married, with mean age of 45years; having mean farm size of 1ha. Significant determinants of the use of Alternate Wet and Dry technique across the countries were knowledge of the production technique, contact with extension, farm size, farming experience, awareness of climate smart practices, timeliness of operations, sources of information and implementation accuracy of technology. These significant variables have implication for reductions of GHG emissions from lowland rice production and points out the important roles of extension and rural advisory services in promoting effective adoption of climate smart agricultural innovations for sustainable food security and safer environment for all. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Newly arrived pests and diseases pose a continuous threat to agriculture and the environment, and there are limited resources available for early detection programs. We formulate an optimal resource-allocation framework for early detection. The approach is based on the principles of portfolio theory although, unlike standard portfolio theory and its previous applications to biosecurity problems, return is modelled using a flexible mixed-distribution and an uncertainty measure is defined using the Chernoff bound. The Chernoff bound does not assume underlying symmetry and allows sensitivity to both stochasticity and parameter uncertainty to be incorporated systematically into the optimisation process. Optimisation is a trade-off between expected return values and uncertainty while, at the same time, hedging against low-probability high-impact events. In an application to the islands of Torres Strait (Australia), we demonstrate how uncertainty, stochasticity and linkages between surveillance locations interact to significantly alter relative allocation, when compared with allocation based on expected values alone. Locations of particular interest for biosecurity are identified and results lead to a more even spread of resources, or greater surveillance 'diversification'. • Optimal resource allocation under uncertainty to support early-detection surveillance strategies for plant health • Methodology is based on portfolio theory, underpinned by distributions and an uncertainty measure using the Chernoff bound • Optimisation incorporates biosecurity priorities, location-level characteristics, parameter uncertainty and stochasticity • Uncertainty, risk pathways that link locations, and covariance, are shown to affect allocation in a systematic way • The inclusion of linkage pathways can identify locations of particular interest for biosecurity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Agroecosystems are human-made ecosystems to obtain products and services of their own interest. In this manner, the ecosystems come into being agroecosystems. Therefore, in order to describe, understand or intervene on them, it is necessary to observe emerging biological properties and attributes related to social, economic, cultural and institutional aspects. At the same time, if these agroecosystems are to be analyzed in terms of sustainability, in addition to contemplating the different dimensions that integrate it, a systemic perspective must be taken into account in the conceptual and operational constructions that allow sustainability indicators to be obtained. In this sense, the present work reviews and classifies the different forms exposed in the bibliography to obtain indicators and shows the scarcity of proposals that operate with a systemic perspective in order to resolve the tension between production and conservation which swings around the idea of sustainability. Taking all this into account, a methodological proposal alternative is presented to obtaining indicators of aroecosystems sustainability, which operates conceptually and empirically from a multidimensional and systemic perspective by contrasting the state of the agroecosystem, in each of its dimensions, with the demands established by the sustainability of these dimensions. Finally methodological considerations about its use are made and advantages and limitations of its application are highlighted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents news briefs on scientific issues. A study by David Lobell of the impact of intensive agricultural practices on local aberrations to the climate relative to models used in the study of global warming is noted. The use of rumen fluid from the digestive tracts of cows to power small microbial fuel cells is described. Work at the Preventive Defense Project by Harvard and Stanford Universities on civil defense planning for a nuclear attack by terrorists is discussed.