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WHY

Source: Adapted from Third World Network (2024), Exporting Extinction.

Agroecology: An Approach for Sustainable and Equitable Agriculture and Food Systems that Enhance Food Security and Nutrition.

The 13 Principles of Agroecology

Source: UN Committee on World Food Security, High Level Panel of Experts (HLPE)

Genetic Level

GENETIC LEVEL

  • Conservation of wild relatives
  • In-situ conservation of intra- and inter-variety/breed diversity of domesticated and semi-domesticated species
  • Preservation of farmer-led selection practices maintaining locally adapted landraces
Species Level

SPECIES LEVEL

  • Maintenance of managed diversity of crops/managed plants/fish/livestock species and non-food species (shade trees, companion plants)
  • In-situ conservation of Indigenous, underutilized, and native crops
  • Protection of rare and endangered species, and characteristic cultural landscapes (e.g., skylark or lapwing)
Agroecosystem Level

AGROECOSYSTEM LEVEL

  • Maintenance of diverse and biologically active soil ecosystems (e.g., by reducing soil disturbance, increasing organic matter, and high-quality organic input)
  • Increase in micro-climatic niches at the plot level by increasing habitat structure (e.g., through intercropping, establishment of canopy, understory, and ground cover)
  • Promotion of functional groups (pollinators, beneficial insects, detritivores, and producers)

Source: Authors.

Production Landscapes

PRODUCTION LANDSCAPES

  • Increase overall biodiversity dimensions (e.g., species richness and abundance, as well as ecosystem connectivity)
  • Increase landscape complexity and suitable habitat for species of local and global importance
  • Support pollinators and insectivorous communities that are currently in decline
  • Support ecosystem restoration efforts by improving soils and vegetation cover
Mosaic Landscapes

MOSAIC LANDSCAPES

  • Reduce edge effects in natural habitats within the landscape
  • Support species movement and dispersal through the landscape
  • Reduce runoff impacts to wetlands and other water ecosystems
  • Maintain ecological processes, like local climate regulation, that are key to long-term persistence of natural habitats
Intact/Semi-Intact Landscapes

INTACT/SEMI-INTACT LANDSCAPES

  • Increase connectivity between conserved landscapes
  • Support food security of communities in buffer areas around these landscapes (e.g., through agroforestry)
  • Support alternative livelihood options such as ecotourism that can direct more funding towards conservation
  • Support the sustainable use of species associated with these landscapes by increasing diversity within farming systems

Source: FAO, Biovision Foundation, and Agroecology Coalition, Agroecology Dialogue Series.

  • International organizations have increasingly advocated for agroecological approaches.
  • A wide variety of countries, including Brazil, Colombia, Denmark, Ecuador, France, Mexico, Senegal, and Vietnam, among others, have launched or renewed agroecology-related policies and strategies.
  • Countries in East Africa, Uganda, Kenya, and Tanzania have launched or are working on their national and sub-national agroecology strategies.
  • State-level programs are also taking off around the world, as in the case of India’s southern state of Andhra Pradesh.
  • Funding and international cooperation has improved, including through support from the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the Global Environmental Facility, the European Commission, and private philanthropic institutions such as the Agroecology Fund, which pools funding from more than two dozen donors and many other foundations around the world.
  • In 2023, 25 philanthropies aligned with the Global Alliance for the Future of Food to announce a shared goal of catalyzing a transition to 50% regenerative and agroecological systems by 2040, and to ensure that all agriculture and food systems are transitioning by 2050. This builds on a prolific network of research centres and projects, and a web of thousands of civil society organizations dedicated to promoting agroecology.
  • The Agroecology Coalition, created in 2021, now comprises almost 50 national governments, 2 sub-national governments, 3 regional commissions, and approximately 250 organizations from different stakeholder categories (e.g., NGOs, farmers organizations, research centres, philanthropy, donor, international and UN agencies, SMEs, etc.).

For more information and resources see Chapter 1

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Boosting Biodiversity Action Through Agroecology

Guidance for developing and updating National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans

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