The strain on agricultural resources will continue to rise in conjunction with food demand and population growth. Will sustainable intensification be the right answer we're looking for? Is it even feasible? Join the discussion.
New month-long online discussion begins: Large-scale land interventions are on the rise. Whether through restoration projects such as the new 20x20 initiative and the Bonn Challenge, or foreign direct investment in huge swaths of land, investors are seeing big opportunities in large land projects. But can they fulfil their promises?
This infographic shows how ecosystem services contribute to agricultural productivity and provides examples of which agricultural practices can improve the delivery of ecosystem services.
From April 28 - May 31, 2014 the Agriculture and Ecosystems Blog will feature blog posts that focus on key resilience concepts in agricultural systems.
“Should we build more large dams”. In celebration of World Water Day (March 22), we asked this to a number of different thought leaders to stimulate discussion and dialogue around this issue. We feature brief excerpts from each of our respondents but we also want to hear from you. Share your comments...
How can development and poverty-alleviation focused investments be shaped to sustain landscapes and livelihoods to achieve the SDG’s? Find out at WLE and CIAT hosted session during the Global Landscapes Forum where researchers and investors are brought together to discuss.
For this year's World Food Day, themed “Sustainable Food Systems for Food Security and Nutrition", we're asking you: What do you think a sustainable food system looks like?
Over the past month, this blog has highlighted WLE’s approach to agricultural development through an ecosystem services lens. This post highlights blogs featured throughout the month on ecosystem services.
Water Cooperation: Building Partnerships is this year's theme at Stockholm World Water Week. Strong partnership and collaboration are vital components of WLE. Stay tuned for posts from this year's conference.
The role of agriculture in human wellbeing goes beyond crop production. Bali’s traditional rice terrace farming, the subak system, provides a good illustration of the bundle of ecosystem services provided by agricultural landscapes.
Is a small footprint really better than a large one? In light of World Day to Combat Desertification, Dennis Wichelns discusses the usefulness (or lack thereof) of using water footprints to mitigate water scarcity issues.
CIP has undertaken a series of studies analyzing and testing irrigation techniques in order to develop a system for producing sufficient potato crop yields in arid climates with poor water supplies.
Water productivity - the amount of a crop produced per unit water - is a much used measurement. A quick search for the phrase on Google Scholar yields nearly 18,000 citations. So it is popular, but is it of any use?
WLE and partners have a strong presence at: "Water in the Anthropocene: Challenges for Science and Governance. Indicators, Thresholds and Uncertainties of the Global Water System".
The debate about farm size in Africa, kicked off by Stephen Carr’s blog post, has sparked discussions far beyond the “farm size” issue. With over 100 comments generated on LinkedIn, we’d like to share some of the prominent points made with our larger blog audience.
"The tension between water use for agriculture and the environment lies at the very heart of many different situations around the world." Roberto Lenton addresses the role of agriculture in water use.
Some consider Raj-anna a pioneer and entrepreneur of human waste. He always knew the potential for reuse of faecal sludge in agriculture, but he was a pioneer at intercepting ‘honey suckers.’
In his new book, The Human Quest, scientist Johan Rockström and photographer Mattias Klum explore ways that humans can live within the planetary boundaries.
During a recent visit to the International Water Management Institute, Johan Rockström discusses the Planetary Boundary Framework with the Water, Land and Ecosystems team.
When we think of farming, an image of farmers tilling soil often comes to mind. Dr. Noble challenges this image by arguing that zero tillage farming can help prevent water and land degradation.
Improvements in rainfed systems have the potential to improve agricultural production, increase water productivity and lift millions of farmers, particularly in Africa, out of poverty.
