From a landscape perspective, land is seen to “…simultaneously provide food security, livelihood opportunities, maintenance of ecological functions such as species diversity, and fulfill cultural, aesthetic, and other recreational needs”. This holistic perspective recognizes the dynamic nature of human-natural capital interactions, and that land use can be managed for multiple benefits. For example, agroforestry stresses on the multi-dimensional interactions that exist between farmers and their lands, including trees on agricultural farms, farming in forests, and managing land to protect species diversity. This can take the form of spatially segregated plots – each producing a different output, or integrated plots with multiple land uses. Irrespective of the spatial structure, each agroforestry system helps to generate several different ecosystem services that are valued locally (erosion control, hydrological balance, and biodiversity) and globally (biodiversity, carbon sequestration).

Authors: Jindal, R.; Vardhan, M.

Subjects: ecosystem services, incentive

Publication type: Chapter-R, Publication

Year: 2017