Agroecology and Biodiversity Success Stories

Photo credits: Evans Ogeto / Biovision

Agroecology goes beyond principles related to the biophysical aspects of food production and is practiced through social initiatives such as the Community Sustainable Agriculture and Healthy Environment (CSHEP). CSHEP is a community-based organization (CBO) that focuses primarily on training and capacity-building for smallholder farmers, especially women, in Kiambu and Kajiado counties in Kenya. CSHEP’s main goal is to educate, train, and support farmers to use sustainable, organic, and bio-intensive gardening and farming techniques to improve production and earnings, to become food-secure, and to safeguard the environment. CSHEP’s long-term goal is to encourage smallholder farmers, especially women and youth, to take decisions and actions based on a full understanding of the synergies between livelihoods and the environment. The aim is to foster holistic community development and well-being. Ultimately, CSHEP envisions a farming society able to control, use, and manage local resources prudently for their environmental well-being.

CSHEP has the following objectives:

Local solutions such as the community-based approach implemented by CSHEP are at the core of the social dimension of agroecology and is crucial in the maintenance of agrobiodiversity.

Bio-intensive agriculture is defined by the FAO as a “sustainable organic farming system based on working with the basic elements needed for life – soil, water, air, and sun” to achieve maximum yields while increasing biodiversity and soil fertility.

Photo credit: Sara A. Fajardo for the International Potato Centre

Peru’s Potato Park (Parque de la papa), situated in the Cusco region, exemplifies a unique approach to sustainable land-use and biodiversity conservation. Managed by six Quechua communities, this 10,000-hectare biocultural conservation initiative is a living laboratory for agroecological practices and traditional knowledge. The park is dedicated to the cultivation and conservation of native potato varieties, with over 1,300 distinct types of potatoes grown in the region. This practice not only preserves genetic diversity but also sustains local agricultural traditions and livelihoods. This is in contrast to the enormous genetic erosion led by industrial agriculture, which specialized in a dozen varieties only. By utilizing traditional farming techniques and crop rotation, the communities maintain soil fertility and ecosystem health, ensuring long-term sustainability.

Traditional and in-situ conservation of biodiversity in the Potato Park demonstrate that sustainable use areas can effectively contribute to biodiversity preservation. The holistic management of the landscape, integrating agricultural use with biodiversity conservation and traditional knowledge, offers a viable alternative to conventional conservation strategies. This approach ensures that biodiversity conservation is not only about protecting species and habitats in isolation but also about maintaining the cultural and ecological fabric of the landscape.

Photo credit: Photo by Fani Llauradó for WorldFish Cambodia

The vast rice-growing areas of the Lower Mekong region harbour aquatic biodiversity that use water bodies and shallow flooded areas embedded in the landscape for shelter, breeding, and food. Through agroecological approaches, rice cultivation and wild fisheries are combined to a “rice field fisheries” food systems approach that uses the diverse wild fish, aquatic animals, and plants as a food source. This combined rice-growing and aquatic food harvesting system is prevalent in the rice-growing areas around the Tonle Sap Lake in Cambodia.

Rice field fisheries are particularly important for food security and income of impoverished and landless households, as they are a common-pool resource available to any fisher during the flood season. This has been recognized and included in Cambodia’s National Strategy for Food Security and Nutrition.44 Policies such as Cambodia’s that support the presence of wild aquatic species in agroecosystems can benefit local food systems, economies, and environments. The sustainability of rice field fisheries in Cambodia requires ongoing engagement between policymakers, investors, and practitioners. To enhance productivity of these rice field fisheries, Cambodia’s Fisheries Administration began establishing community fish refuges (CFRs), a year-round aquatic habitat protected from fishing and connected to adjacent rice fields, in 1995.

From 2012 through 2016, the international organization WorldFish conducted interventions to strengthen management capacity and practices at 40 of the Community Fish Refuges in Cambodia, and conducted biological, catch and consumption surveys to study the contributions of rice field fisheries and CFR management to aquatic species diversity, fisheries production, and local food security. The results revealed that at least 150 wild aquatic species live in the rice field landscape of Cambodia’s Tonle Sap Region, including finfish, snakes, frogs, bivalves, prawn, crab, turtle, waterbirds, insects, and aquatic plants.45 Most of these species are used for food, and harvests can provide more than 60% of the fish and other aquatic animals consumed in local farming-fishing households, and one-third of total inland fish catch nationwide. Wild aquatic plants also contribute indirectly to livelihood and food and nutrition security through their use as feed for livestock. The harvests are processed into food products that can be stored for the future.

The Cambodia Fisheries Administration has now established 1200 CFR, and the impacts of continued interventions made from December 2020 to March 2024 measured by WorldFish showed a 14% improvement in fish biodiversity and a 30% increase in fish species, as well as a 20% jump in fish harvested,46 leading to improved food security and well-being, and demonstrating the strong links between biodiversity and social, human, and economic outcomes.

Photo credit: Georgina Smith | CIAT

In the Kavango-Zambezi landscape of Southern Africa, WWF works with local partners and communities on agroecology in three countries, Namibia, Zambia, and Zimbabwe to increase the resilience of communities and ecosystems, and to improve connectivity of wildlife habitats through food security, income diversification, and habitat conservation.

The project is based on collaborations with local communities, organizing farmers into seed cooperatives that specialize in locally adapted seeds. These seeds mature earlier and exhibit greater resistance to drought, diseases, and pests than genetically modified seeds from commercial breeders, which often result in sterile harvests. This sterility forces farmers to purchase new seeds each season, leading to dependency. By participating in these cooperatives, farmers reduce their reliance on intermediaries, thereby breaking a cycle of debt associated with buying seeds on credit.

In addition to using locally adapted seeds, the farmers implement sustainable agricultural practices, such as minimum tillage. This involves creating small planting basins filled with animal manure and crop residues, which enhance soil fertility and promote the formation of rich topsoil. A few grains of crops like corn, sorghum, or peanuts are then added to the plating basins, which have improved germination rates with the enriched top soil. The open basins also collect water, boosting the soil’s water retention before being covered.

The farmers now employ intercropping, a method that optimizes nutrient capture and benefits from nitrogen-fixing crops, thereby reducing the need for synthetic fertilizers. They also practice crop rotation to avoid the accumulation of pests and diseases that occur with the repeated planting of the same crop. This, combined with intercropping, helps minimize pest and disease attraction and spread. Additionally, using plant waste as mulch helps control weeds and retain soil moisture.

In addition, in communities that live close to wildlife like herds of wild elephants and lions, the project promotes human–wildlife coexistence through agroecological methods. Alongside improved farming techniques, farmers use bomas or kraals — locally constructed enclosures made from canvas material and steel poles. These structures last longer and thus reduce tree cutting for poles while protecting livestock from predators. The use of mobile bomas, which can be moved across the fields, spreads nutrient-rich manure over a larger area, naturally enriching the soil and enhancing its fertility. These mobile bomas also prevent cattle from grazing on young shrubs and trees, allowing the vegetation to mature. The protection provided by the bomas has led to a reduction in predation and, as a result, fewer retaliatory killings of predators like lions, thus supporting biodiversity and maintaining a natural ecological balance.

Photo credit: Brasil2

“Socio-biodiversity products” in the context of Brazil refers to goods and services derived from the country’s rich biological diversity that are produced in a manner that promotes social inclusion, cultural preservation, and sustainable development. These products often come from traditional communities, such as Indigenous Peoples, quilombolas (descendants of African slaves), and small family farmers. The concept emphasizes the interconnectedness of social and environmental dimensions, recognizing the value of traditional knowledge and practices in conserving biodiversity and promoting sustainable livelihoods.

Even though socio-biodiversity products have been extensively used by traditional communities and Indigenous populations in Brazil, and many projects have experimented with local biodiversity value chains, comprehensive policies to support them only began to take shape at the federal level in the 2000s. Before this period, efforts were fragmented and lacked a cohesive framework. The 2000s marked a shift as the government recognized the importance of these products, leading to structured policies that enhanced market access, fair trade opportunities, and institutional support while also benefiting traditional communities and promoting biodiversity conservation.

The main institutional framework that supported these was the National Plan for Promoting the Chains of Products from Socio-biodiversity (PNPSB), established in 2009. PNPSB “has the objective of developing integrated actions for promoting and strengthening the economic chains of products from socio-biodiversity, aggregating value, and consolidating sustainable markets, in addition to promoting and accelerating actions to reduce poverty and social inequalities in rural areas (including gender, race, and ethnic inequality), through a strategy of sustainable territorial development.”

Supporting the PNPSB, a Minimum Price Guarantee Policy for Socio-Biodiversity Products (PGPMBIO) also launched in 2009, ensuring price supports to stabilize farmers’ incomes and to promote market access. This is supplemented by institutional procurement of socio-biodiversity products through other policies such as the Food Acquisition Program (Programa de Aquisição de Alimentos/PAA) and the National School Feeding Program (Programa Nacional de Alimentação Escolar/PNAE), which also involved market development.

Following government changes a revival of policies supporting socio-biodiversity products has taken place, driven by a renewed interest in integrating these products into a broader bioeconomy strategy. This approach emphasizes the sustainable use of biological resources, biotechnology innovations, and the development of eco-friendly products and services. The renewed focus aims to explore new market opportunities, foster technological innovations, and create value-added products, aligning socio-biodiversity initiatives with economic and environmental goals. Sources: Brazil’s National Biodiversity Action Plan and C. Oliveira, et al., Biodiversity for Food and Nutrition Project.

Photo credit: Biovision

Ever since President Maky Sall declared in 2015 that Senegal would make an agroecological transition a priority for the country, there have been a number of promising multistakeholder initiatives established to realize this vision. One of them, DyTAES or “Dynamic for an Agroecological Transition in Senegal,” brings together farmers, community organizations, civil society organizations, researchers, and private companies in a network geared to accelerating the agroecological transition in Senegal. DyTAES aims, in the field of agroecology, to support the State in its sovereign mission to formulate public policies.

DyTAES organizes the Agroecology Days (Journées de l’Agroécologie) to dialogue, assess the current situation, and develop recommendations for actions to advance the transformation to agroecology. In addition, DyTAES holds numerous dialogues that create an inclusive space for the government to deliberate with key actors. For example, a 2019 consultation on national agroecology policies involved an elaborate and inclusive consultation process: DyTAES consulted more than 1000 actors involved in agriculture, livestock, rural development, and food security in 36 sites in the 6 geographic zones of the country (Casamance, Niayes, eastern Senegal, groundnut basin, Ferlo, and river valley). The consultation resulted in the formulation of a set of policy recommendations for the country’s agroecological transition.

Bankable Nature Solutions (BNS) are projects that reduce pressure on ecosystems and drive resilience for people and nature while generating financial returns for communities and investors. They typically involve deploying grant funding to a local company to aid its transition to more climate-resilient and biodiversity-rich practices in a given landscape. The Dutch Fund for Climate and Development (DFCD) and Mobilising More for Climate (MoMo4C) have accumulated experience in testing and scaling these sorts of financial innovations.

For example, Financoop, a central cooperative financial institution in Ecuador that acts as a common reserve for 135 other financial cooperatives, has received a grant from DFCD to expand its investments in climate adaptation with smallholder farmers. In Kenya, Cinch Markets Ltd. has developed a lease system for smallholder farmers that is expanding to integrate agroforestry and intercropping. Their model improves the productivity of degraded land, improves incomes for smallholders, and creates employment for local women and youth. Both of these projects have since secured large-scale private investment.

Elsewhere, Minh Phu Seafood Corporation in Vietnam also received a grant from DFCD to scale up sustainable rice-shrimp farming, investing in mixed ponds that replaced intensive monoculture. This bankable model supports low-income communities involved in the shrimp industry while contributing to the restoration of the long-term resilience of the Mekong Delta. Wuchi Wami, in Zambia, is receiving technical and financial assistance from MoMo4C to support local bee farmers to switch to environmentally sustainable soft wood top bar beehives instead of traditional bark hives that contribute to deforestation. By producing and distributing local raw and organic honey sourced from wild Miombo forests, this model enhances marketing and sales strategies.