Against the odds: Network and institutional pathways enabling agricultural diversification

Jennifer Blesh; Zia Mehrabi; Hannah Wittman; Rachel Bezner Kerr; Dana James; Sidney Madsen; Olivia M. Smith; Sieglinde Snapp; Anne Elise Stratton; Mohamed Bakarr; Abram J. Bicksler; Ryan Galt; Lucas A. Garibaldi; Barbara Gemmill-Herren; Ingo Grass; Marney E. Isaac; Innocensia John; Sarah K. Jones; Christina M. Kennedy; Susanna Klassen; Christian Levers; Laura Vang Rasmussen; Claire Kremen

doi:10.1016/j.oneear.2023.03.004

Against the odds: Network and institutional pathways enabling agricultural diversification

Jennifer Blesh^*, Zia Mehrabi, Hannah Wittman, Rachel Bezner Kerr, Dana James, Sidney Madsen, Olivia M. Smith, Sieglinde Snapp, Anne Elise Stratton, Mohamed Bakarr, Abram J. Bicksler, Ryan Galt, Lucas A. Garibaldi, Barbara Gemmill-Herren, Ingo Grass, Marney E. Isaac, Innocensia John, Sarah K. Jones, Christina M. Kennedy, Susanna KlassenChristian Levers, Laura Vang Rasmussen, Claire Kremen

^*Corresponding author for this work

Environmental Geography

Research output: Contribution to Journal › Review article › Academic › peer-review

Abstract

Farming systems that support locally diverse agricultural production and high levels of biodiversity are in rapid decline, despite evidence of their benefits for climate, environmental health, and food security. Yet, agricultural policies, financial incentives, and market concentration increasingly constrain the viability of diversified farming systems. Here, we present a conceptual framework to identify novel processes that promote the emergence and sustainability of diversified farming systems, using three real-world examples where farming communities have found pathways to diversification despite major structural constraints. By applying our framework to analyze these bright spots in the United States, Brazil, and Malawi, we identify two distinct pathways—network and institutional—to diversification. These pathways emerge through alignment of factors related to social and ecological structure (policies, institutions, and environmental conditions) and agency (values, collective action, and management decisions). We find that, when network and institutional pathways operate in tandem, the potential to scale up diversification across farms and landscapes increases substantially.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	479-491
Number of pages	13
Journal	One Earth
Volume	6
Issue number	5
Early online date	27 Mar 2023
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.oneear.2023.03.004
Publication status	Published - 19 May 2023

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
We thank the Stakeholder Advisory Committee helping to guide the research project titled “Can enhancing diversity scale up agriculture’s benefits to people and the environment?”—Chuck Anderas, Rebecca Chaplin-Kramer, Sasha Gennet, Steve Gliessman, Tadesse Gole, Sarah Hargreaves, Ferd Hoefner, Amy Ickowitz, Sean Kearny, Sophia Murphy, Rebecca Nelson, Roseline Remans, Coral Sproule, Mardy Townsend, Jordan Treakle, and Julian Ramirez Villegas—especially for their input to co-design and develop the conceptual framework used in this paper. We also thank three anonymous reviewers for helpful comments that improved the manuscript. This work was supported by the National Socio-Environmental Synthesis Center (SESYNC) under funding received from the National Science Foundation DBI-1639145 awarded to Z.M. and C.K. L.V.R. was funded by the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Program (grant agreement 853222 FORESTDIET ).

Funding Information:
We thank the Stakeholder Advisory Committee helping to guide the research project titled “Can enhancing diversity scale up agriculture's benefits to people and the environment?”—Chuck Anderas, Rebecca Chaplin-Kramer, Sasha Gennet, Steve Gliessman, Tadesse Gole, Sarah Hargreaves, Ferd Hoefner, Amy Ickowitz, Sean Kearny, Sophia Murphy, Rebecca Nelson, Roseline Remans, Coral Sproule, Mardy Townsend, Jordan Treakle, and Julian Ramirez Villegas—especially for their input to co-design and develop the conceptual framework used in this paper. We also thank three anonymous reviewers for helpful comments that improved the manuscript. This work was supported by the National Socio-Environmental Synthesis Center (SESYNC) under funding received from the National Science Foundation DBI-1639145 awarded to Z.M. and C.K. L.V.R. was funded by the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union's Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Program (grant agreement 853222 FORESTDIET). Conceptualization, all authors; methodology, Z.M. and C.K.; visualization, S.M. O.M.S. and J.B. with input from all authors; writing – original draft, J.B. with contributions from H.W. D.J. A.E.S. R.B.K. S.M. S.S. Z.M. C.K. and R.G.; writing – review & editing, all authors.

Publisher Copyright:
© 2023 The Authors

Funding

We thank the Stakeholder Advisory Committee helping to guide the research project titled “Can enhancing diversity scale up agriculture’s benefits to people and the environment?”—Chuck Anderas, Rebecca Chaplin-Kramer, Sasha Gennet, Steve Gliessman, Tadesse Gole, Sarah Hargreaves, Ferd Hoefner, Amy Ickowitz, Sean Kearny, Sophia Murphy, Rebecca Nelson, Roseline Remans, Coral Sproule, Mardy Townsend, Jordan Treakle, and Julian Ramirez Villegas—especially for their input to co-design and develop the conceptual framework used in this paper. We also thank three anonymous reviewers for helpful comments that improved the manuscript. This work was supported by the National Socio-Environmental Synthesis Center (SESYNC) under funding received from the National Science Foundation DBI-1639145 awarded to Z.M. and C.K. L.V.R. was funded by the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Program (grant agreement 853222 FORESTDIET ). We thank the Stakeholder Advisory Committee helping to guide the research project titled “Can enhancing diversity scale up agriculture's benefits to people and the environment?”—Chuck Anderas, Rebecca Chaplin-Kramer, Sasha Gennet, Steve Gliessman, Tadesse Gole, Sarah Hargreaves, Ferd Hoefner, Amy Ickowitz, Sean Kearny, Sophia Murphy, Rebecca Nelson, Roseline Remans, Coral Sproule, Mardy Townsend, Jordan Treakle, and Julian Ramirez Villegas—especially for their input to co-design and develop the conceptual framework used in this paper. We also thank three anonymous reviewers for helpful comments that improved the manuscript. This work was supported by the National Socio-Environmental Synthesis Center (SESYNC) under funding received from the National Science Foundation DBI-1639145 awarded to Z.M. and C.K. L.V.R. was funded by the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union's Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Program (grant agreement 853222 FORESTDIET). Conceptualization, all authors; methodology, Z.M. and C.K.; visualization, S.M. O.M.S. and J.B. with input from all authors; writing – original draft, J.B. with contributions from H.W. D.J. A.E.S. R.B.K. S.M. S.S. Z.M. C.K. and R.G.; writing – review & editing, all authors.

Funders	Funder number
National Science Foundation	DBI-1639145
National Science Foundation
Horizon 2020 Framework Programme
National Socio-Environmental Synthesis Center
European Research Council
Horizon 2020	853222
Horizon 2020

Keywords

biodiversity
conceptual framework
diversified farming system
food security
policy
social-ecological systems
transitions

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Access to Document

10.1016/j.oneear.2023.03.004

Persistent URL (handle)

Persistent link

Cite this

Blesh, J., Mehrabi, Z., Wittman, H., Kerr, R. B., James, D., Madsen, S., Smith, O. M., Snapp, S., Stratton, A. E., Bakarr, M., Bicksler, A. J., Galt, R., Garibaldi, L. A., Gemmill-Herren, B., Grass, I., Isaac, M. E., John, I., Jones, S. K., Kennedy, C. M., ... Kremen, C. (2023). Against the odds: Network and institutional pathways enabling agricultural diversification. One Earth, 6(5), 479-491. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.oneear.2023.03.004

@article{9046e29ce8e24b8b9ade5d859fcb4f8a,

title = "Against the odds: Network and institutional pathways enabling agricultural diversification",

abstract = "Farming systems that support locally diverse agricultural production and high levels of biodiversity are in rapid decline, despite evidence of their benefits for climate, environmental health, and food security. Yet, agricultural policies, financial incentives, and market concentration increasingly constrain the viability of diversified farming systems. Here, we present a conceptual framework to identify novel processes that promote the emergence and sustainability of diversified farming systems, using three real-world examples where farming communities have found pathways to diversification despite major structural constraints. By applying our framework to analyze these bright spots in the United States, Brazil, and Malawi, we identify two distinct pathways—network and institutional—to diversification. These pathways emerge through alignment of factors related to social and ecological structure (policies, institutions, and environmental conditions) and agency (values, collective action, and management decisions). We find that, when network and institutional pathways operate in tandem, the potential to scale up diversification across farms and landscapes increases substantially.",

keywords = "biodiversity, conceptual framework, diversified farming system, food security, policy, social-ecological systems, transitions",

author = "Jennifer Blesh and Zia Mehrabi and Hannah Wittman and Kerr, \{Rachel Bezner\} and Dana James and Sidney Madsen and Smith, \{Olivia M.\} and Sieglinde Snapp and Stratton, \{Anne Elise\} and Mohamed Bakarr and Bicksler, \{Abram J.\} and Ryan Galt and Garibaldi, \{Lucas A.\} and Barbara Gemmill-Herren and Ingo Grass and Isaac, \{Marney E.\} and Innocensia John and Jones, \{Sarah K.\} and Kennedy, \{Christina M.\} and Susanna Klassen and Christian Levers and Rasmussen, \{Laura Vang\} and Claire Kremen",

note = "Funding Information: We thank the Stakeholder Advisory Committee helping to guide the research project titled “Can enhancing diversity scale up agriculture{\textquoteright}s benefits to people and the environment?”—Chuck Anderas, Rebecca Chaplin-Kramer, Sasha Gennet, Steve Gliessman, Tadesse Gole, Sarah Hargreaves, Ferd Hoefner, Amy Ickowitz, Sean Kearny, Sophia Murphy, Rebecca Nelson, Roseline Remans, Coral Sproule, Mardy Townsend, Jordan Treakle, and Julian Ramirez Villegas—especially for their input to co-design and develop the conceptual framework used in this paper. We also thank three anonymous reviewers for helpful comments that improved the manuscript. This work was supported by the National Socio-Environmental Synthesis Center (SESYNC) under funding received from the National Science Foundation DBI-1639145 awarded to Z.M. and C.K. L.V.R. was funded by the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union{\textquoteright}s Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Program (grant agreement 853222 FORESTDIET ). Funding Information: We thank the Stakeholder Advisory Committee helping to guide the research project titled “Can enhancing diversity scale up agriculture's benefits to people and the environment?”—Chuck Anderas, Rebecca Chaplin-Kramer, Sasha Gennet, Steve Gliessman, Tadesse Gole, Sarah Hargreaves, Ferd Hoefner, Amy Ickowitz, Sean Kearny, Sophia Murphy, Rebecca Nelson, Roseline Remans, Coral Sproule, Mardy Townsend, Jordan Treakle, and Julian Ramirez Villegas—especially for their input to co-design and develop the conceptual framework used in this paper. We also thank three anonymous reviewers for helpful comments that improved the manuscript. This work was supported by the National Socio-Environmental Synthesis Center (SESYNC) under funding received from the National Science Foundation DBI-1639145 awarded to Z.M. and C.K. L.V.R. was funded by the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union's Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Program (grant agreement 853222 FORESTDIET). Conceptualization, all authors; methodology, Z.M. and C.K.; visualization, S.M. O.M.S. and J.B. with input from all authors; writing – original draft, J.B. with contributions from H.W. D.J. A.E.S. R.B.K. S.M. S.S. Z.M. C.K. and R.G.; writing – review \& editing, all authors. Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2023 The Authors",

year = "2023",

month = may,

day = "19",

doi = "10.1016/j.oneear.2023.03.004",

language = "English",

volume = "6",

pages = "479--491",

journal = "One Earth",

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Blesh, J, Mehrabi, Z, Wittman, H, Kerr, RB, James, D, Madsen, S, Smith, OM, Snapp, S, Stratton, AE, Bakarr, M, Bicksler, AJ, Galt, R, Garibaldi, LA, Gemmill-Herren, B, Grass, I, Isaac, ME, John, I, Jones, SK, Kennedy, CM, Klassen, S, Levers, C, Rasmussen, LV & Kremen, C 2023, 'Against the odds: Network and institutional pathways enabling agricultural diversification', One Earth, vol. 6, no. 5, pp. 479-491. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.oneear.2023.03.004

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T1 - Against the odds: Network and institutional pathways enabling agricultural diversification

AU - Blesh, Jennifer

AU - Mehrabi, Zia

AU - Wittman, Hannah

AU - Kerr, Rachel Bezner

AU - James, Dana

AU - Madsen, Sidney

AU - Smith, Olivia M.

AU - Snapp, Sieglinde

AU - Stratton, Anne Elise

AU - Bakarr, Mohamed

AU - Bicksler, Abram J.

AU - Galt, Ryan

AU - Garibaldi, Lucas A.

AU - Gemmill-Herren, Barbara

AU - Grass, Ingo

AU - Isaac, Marney E.

AU - John, Innocensia

AU - Jones, Sarah K.

AU - Kennedy, Christina M.

AU - Klassen, Susanna

AU - Levers, Christian

AU - Rasmussen, Laura Vang

AU - Kremen, Claire

N1 - Funding Information: We thank the Stakeholder Advisory Committee helping to guide the research project titled “Can enhancing diversity scale up agriculture’s benefits to people and the environment?”—Chuck Anderas, Rebecca Chaplin-Kramer, Sasha Gennet, Steve Gliessman, Tadesse Gole, Sarah Hargreaves, Ferd Hoefner, Amy Ickowitz, Sean Kearny, Sophia Murphy, Rebecca Nelson, Roseline Remans, Coral Sproule, Mardy Townsend, Jordan Treakle, and Julian Ramirez Villegas—especially for their input to co-design and develop the conceptual framework used in this paper. We also thank three anonymous reviewers for helpful comments that improved the manuscript. This work was supported by the National Socio-Environmental Synthesis Center (SESYNC) under funding received from the National Science Foundation DBI-1639145 awarded to Z.M. and C.K. L.V.R. was funded by the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Program (grant agreement 853222 FORESTDIET ). Funding Information: We thank the Stakeholder Advisory Committee helping to guide the research project titled “Can enhancing diversity scale up agriculture's benefits to people and the environment?”—Chuck Anderas, Rebecca Chaplin-Kramer, Sasha Gennet, Steve Gliessman, Tadesse Gole, Sarah Hargreaves, Ferd Hoefner, Amy Ickowitz, Sean Kearny, Sophia Murphy, Rebecca Nelson, Roseline Remans, Coral Sproule, Mardy Townsend, Jordan Treakle, and Julian Ramirez Villegas—especially for their input to co-design and develop the conceptual framework used in this paper. We also thank three anonymous reviewers for helpful comments that improved the manuscript. This work was supported by the National Socio-Environmental Synthesis Center (SESYNC) under funding received from the National Science Foundation DBI-1639145 awarded to Z.M. and C.K. L.V.R. was funded by the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union's Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Program (grant agreement 853222 FORESTDIET). Conceptualization, all authors; methodology, Z.M. and C.K.; visualization, S.M. O.M.S. and J.B. with input from all authors; writing – original draft, J.B. with contributions from H.W. D.J. A.E.S. R.B.K. S.M. S.S. Z.M. C.K. and R.G.; writing – review & editing, all authors. Publisher Copyright: © 2023 The Authors

PY - 2023/5/19

Y1 - 2023/5/19

N2 - Farming systems that support locally diverse agricultural production and high levels of biodiversity are in rapid decline, despite evidence of their benefits for climate, environmental health, and food security. Yet, agricultural policies, financial incentives, and market concentration increasingly constrain the viability of diversified farming systems. Here, we present a conceptual framework to identify novel processes that promote the emergence and sustainability of diversified farming systems, using three real-world examples where farming communities have found pathways to diversification despite major structural constraints. By applying our framework to analyze these bright spots in the United States, Brazil, and Malawi, we identify two distinct pathways—network and institutional—to diversification. These pathways emerge through alignment of factors related to social and ecological structure (policies, institutions, and environmental conditions) and agency (values, collective action, and management decisions). We find that, when network and institutional pathways operate in tandem, the potential to scale up diversification across farms and landscapes increases substantially.

AB - Farming systems that support locally diverse agricultural production and high levels of biodiversity are in rapid decline, despite evidence of their benefits for climate, environmental health, and food security. Yet, agricultural policies, financial incentives, and market concentration increasingly constrain the viability of diversified farming systems. Here, we present a conceptual framework to identify novel processes that promote the emergence and sustainability of diversified farming systems, using three real-world examples where farming communities have found pathways to diversification despite major structural constraints. By applying our framework to analyze these bright spots in the United States, Brazil, and Malawi, we identify two distinct pathways—network and institutional—to diversification. These pathways emerge through alignment of factors related to social and ecological structure (policies, institutions, and environmental conditions) and agency (values, collective action, and management decisions). We find that, when network and institutional pathways operate in tandem, the potential to scale up diversification across farms and landscapes increases substantially.

KW - biodiversity

KW - conceptual framework

KW - diversified farming system

KW - food security

KW - policy

KW - social-ecological systems

KW - transitions

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U2 - 10.1016/j.oneear.2023.03.004

DO - 10.1016/j.oneear.2023.03.004

M3 - Review article

AN - SCOPUS:85159167609

SN - 2590-3330

VL - 6

SP - 479

EP - 491

JO - One Earth

JF - One Earth

IS - 5

ER -

Against the odds: Network and institutional pathways enabling agricultural diversification

Abstract

Bibliographical note

Funding

Keywords

UN SDGs

Access to Document

Persistent URL (handle)

Other files and links

Fingerprint

Cite this