Key Features
* Coverage provides students with an enhanced understanding of how research can be harnessed for sustainable agriculture
* Incorporates social, biological, chemical, and geographical aspects important to agroecology
* Addresses social and development issues related to farming systems
* Companion Website for training and teaching: learning modules, student exercises, case studies, illustrative power point presentations, and reference links
Description
With the inclusion of research theory and examples using the principles of cropping system design, students will gain a unique understanding of the technical, biological, ecological, economic and sociological aspects of farming systems science for rural livelihoods. Editors Snapp and Pound provide a much-needed synthetic overview of the emerging area of agroecology applications to transforming farming systems and supporting rural innovation. The wide range of subjects, integrated references, and companion website, make this core reading for courses in international agricultural systems and management, sustainable agricultural management, and cropping systems.
Readership
Students of agricultural science, environmental engineering, rural planning; researchers and scientists in agricultural development agencies; practitioners of agricultural development in government extension programs, development agencies, and NGOs
Agricultural Systems: Agroecology and Rural Innovation for Development, 1st Edition
Section I. Re-inventing Farming Systems
Chap 1. Introduction
Chap 2. Livelihoods and Innovation
Chap 3. Agroecology: Principles and Practice
Chap 4. Designing for the Long-term: Sustainable Agriculture
Section II. Resources for Agricultural Development
Chap 5. Agricultural Change and Low-Input Technology
Chap 6. Ecologically-based Nutrient Management
Chap 7. Participatory Plant Breeding: Developing Improved and Relevant Crop Varieties with Farmers
Chap 8. Livestock, Livelihoods, and Innovation
III. Context for Sustainable Agricultural Development
Chap 9. Gender and Agrarian Inequality at the Local Scale
Chap 10. The Nature of Agricultural Innovation
Chap 11. Outreach to Support Rural Innovation
Chap 12. Tying it Together: Global, Regional and Local Integrations
Quotes and reviews
"A valuable set of principles, strategies and case studies that paint a new and feasible greenprint for development. Agricultural Systems is particularly valuable in its practical approach to development and its focus on the role of farmers, especially women, in the process. Each chapter is supported by several case studies that direct the reader’s attention to grassroots strategies that work. The
chapter on animal systems is a welcome addition, since many similar books focus almost entirely on cropping systems. It is well written and well worth adding to your personal library and recommending as a resource for students interested in
developing countries and their agriculture.
- Charles Francis, University of Nebraska—Lincoln, Nebraska, USA
