Transformation of smallholder beef cattle production in Vietnam

This research describes and analyses how smallholder crop livestock farmers in rural Ea Kar, Vietnam, were able to take advantage of the rising demand for meat in urban centres and transform cattle production from a traditional, extensive grazing system to a more intensive, stall-fed system that supplied quality meat to urban markets. The traditional grazing system produced low-quality animals that could only be sold for local consumption. Introduction of the concept of farm-grown fodder production enabled farmers to produce fatter animals, achieving higher sale prices, and reduce labour inputs by moving from grazing to stall-feeding. These benefits convinced farmers, traders and local government that smallholder cattle production could be a viable enterprise and so stimulated stakeholder interest. Within 10 years, the way that cattle were produced and marketed changed considerably. By 2010, more than 3,000 smallholders had adopted farm-grown forages and stall-feeding, and many produced high-quality beef cattle. Traders had been able to develop access to urban markets as farmers were able to produce animals that satisfied the stringent quality requirements of urban markets. In addition to the underlying driver of strong market demand for quality meat, several factors contributed to this transition: (i) a convincing innovation – the use of farm-grown fodder – that provided immediate benefits to farmers and provided a vision for local stakeholders; (ii) a participatory, systems-oriented innovation process that emphasised capacity strengthening; (iii) a value chain approach that linked farmers and local traders to markets; (iv) the formation of a loosely structured coalition of local stakeholders that facilitated and managed the innovation process; and (v) technical support over a sufficiently long time period to allow innovation processes to become sustainable.     

The role of collaborations in the development and implementation of sustainable livestock concepts in The Netherlands

This paper discusses the role of collaborations in the development and implementation of sustainable livestock farming. The study reflects upon the experiences with two innovative pig farming concepts in the Netherlands that aim to address sustainability-related concerns regarding the economic viability, environmental impact and social responsibility of livestock production. The findings show that collaborations can result in smarter and innovative solutions and provide support in the development of more sustainable farming concepts. The study also shows that collaborations do not safeguard the implementing of these concepts in practice. Pioneers are confronted with higher production costs and the complex context of agricultural policies and regulations. These pioneering efforts are, however, the seeds for change, and the key ingredient for a transition towards more sustainable production. We rely upon their innovations, social networks and learning experiences in the transition towards more sustainable production. Therefore, pioneers need to be protected from market influences and regulatory barriers, and supported by intermediaries when developing novelties for a more sustainable agriculture. The findings emphasize the need for more knowledge exchange and understanding between farmers, policy-makers and researchers to navigate towards a more sustainable agriculture in the future.     

Intensification of conservation agriculture systems for increased livestock feed and maize production in Zimbabwe

Livestock and crops are key components of mixed farming systems and are a source of household food and income. However, mixed farming systems face livestock feed shortages and low soil productivity challenges. Conservation agriculture (CA) systems based on minimum soil disturbance, crop residue retention and crop rotations offer an opportunity to grow both fodder and food crops on the available land to improve productivity and crop output per-unit area. A four-year experiment involving maize monocropping as control treatment and four relay or intercropping treatments with different legume and fodder crops was set up on contrasting soils in Zimbabwe. Lablab was superior in biomass production compared with radish on both soil types. On the clay soil, continuous maize, sole lablab, sole radish, maize/lablab relay and radish/common beans relay treatments produced similar biomass when soil moisture was adequate. When soil moisture was limiting, lablab produced more biomass than continuous maize, radish, maize/lablab relay and radish/beans relay treatments on clay soil. On sandy soils, lablab produced more biomass than continuous maize, radish, maize/lablab relay and radish/beans relay treatments. Leguminous and non-leguminous fodder crops can be grown successfully in CA systems that are being promoted in the mixed crop/livestock farming systems of southern Africa.     

Household nutrition and income impacts of using dairy technologies in mixed crop–livestock production systems

Technologies like improved breeds of dairy cows and improved forages have the potential to significantly increase dairy cow productivity and farmers’ profits in developing countries. However, adoption of such technologies has been low in Ethiopia, despite numerous efforts to disseminate the technologies in the past. Some studies argue that adoption of technologies is low because welfare effects of the technologies could be insignificant or negative to certain groups of farmers. This article employed propensity score matching and inverse probability weighting estimator with regression adjustment to examine the difference in household nutrition and income between adopters and nonadopters of dairy technologies in rural Ethiopia. We find that adoption of cross‐bred dairy cows and improved forages increases household nutrition and income. The significant household nutrition and income impact for adopters support the notion that many Ethiopian smallholders have not adopted dairy technologies because adopters and nonadopters of dairy technologies have inherent differences in welfare outcome potentials. The results suggest that interventions that enhance access to farm resources and address barriers to input and output value chains could improve adoption of dairy technologies.     

永州渔业资源开发利用途径探讨

本文分析了制约永州渔业发展的主要因素:渔业在农林牧渔业经济中所占的比例小、地位低,渔业结构不合理,资源分散、欠丰富,资金投入严重不足,科技推广难度大等。探讨了永州渔业资源开发利用的途径:围绕市场抓结构调整,围绕决策抓科技推广,围绕效益抓规划布局,加大资金投入,增殖渔业资源,进一步完善渔业经营体制等。     

攀枝花市国土资源可持续利用研究

运用资源可持续理论,分析了攀枝花市国土资源开发的优势及其限制因子,提出该地区资源可持续利用的对策和建议。     

西藏渔业资源保护及其利用的思考

随着渔业经济的发展,保护渔业资源和发展高效渔业已成为必然。西藏地处世界屋脊,特殊而严酷的自然环境造就了其独特而又脆弱的渔业资源,如何正确处理好渔业经济发展和渔业资源保护、利用的关系成为西藏渔业面临的主要问题。本文综述了西藏渔业资源及其保护和利用现状,评述了当前西藏渔业资源保护和利用工作中存在的突出问题,并提出了一些改进措施和建议。     

洞庭湖区湿地资源的开发利用研究

针对洞庭湖区湿地资源利用水平不高,湿地垦殖强度大,湖泊调蓄功能下降,湿地环境污染加剧等一系列问题,从经济学与生态学的角度分析了洞庭湖区湿地资源特征。研究表明：控制人口总量,退田还湖,建立湿地自然保护区,大力发展避洪耐涝型湿地特色产业是保护和合理利用湿地资源的有效途径,并提出协调好人口、资源与环境的关系是实现湿地资源可持续利用的战略目标。     

Customary land allocation,urbanization and land use planning in Ghana: Implications for food systems in the Wa Municipality

Food insecurity remains persistent in the Global South due to constraints in food production capacities and intricate land tenure systems that stifle investment in agriculture. In the urbanized regions, uncontrolled urbanization and non-compliant land use systems have further worsened the potentials for urban food production. This research is based on a case study of the Wa Municipality in order to assess the influences of customary land allocation and peri-urbanization on land use planning and foods systems in Ghana using explorative and narrative research approaches. The study identified that customary stakeholders responsible for allocating such lands in the Wa Municipality were indiscriminately converting large tracts of hitherto agricultural lands to urban land uses. Statutorily prepared land use plans are hardly enforced and the planning priorities are on residential and commercial land uses that command higher land values to the detriment of agricultural lands. Weak institutional linkages also characterize the mandated planning and land administration institutions, with a planning system that is reactive rather than proactive in addressing development control challenges across the country. There is the need for planning authorities to adopt participatory land uses planning together with customary landholders and educating them on the essence of comprehensive land use planning approaches. Based on the findings, local governments need to partner landowners to identify and reserve high potential agricultural land for sustainable urban food production.     

烟台市海洋渔业可持续利用分析

分析了山东烟台市的海洋渔业资源的基本情况，开发利用现状和存在的问题，提出了今后海洋渔业资源可持续利用的思路与措施。     

云南金沙江流域热区土地资源及可持续利用探讨

针对金沙江流域土地资源利用现状，利用效益及存在的问题，以可持续利用为指导思想，以提高土地资源利用为目标，探讨本区土地资源可持续利用途径。     

A Participatory Simulation to Facilitate Farmers' Adoption of Livestock Feeding Systems Based on Conservation Agriculture in the Uplands of Northern Vietnam

In the mountain areas of northern Vietnam, extensive husbandry of large-ruminants is limited by the lack of natural forage. Since 2000, the Mountain Agrarian System Program has been concerned with this issue and has evaluated technical alternatives aimed at sustainable integration of crop-livestock systems. One alternative consists of feeding systems for largeruminants based on cropping systems with plant cover. Diffusion of information about the new system is supported by a set of interactive communication tools for use between farmers and researchers. A participatory simulation method was developed that combines a compartmental model of the village territory with five technical innovations. Farmers simulate the adoption of the innovations they choose among food-forage cropping systems in rotation or in association, and urea-treated straw. They evaluate the quantity of forage that can be grown for their herd using the chosen set of techniques.

Simulations revealed farmers' constraints and objectives in adopting sustainable cropping systems on the hillsides while maintaining a small animal husbandry system. The results obtained by each farmer provide a useful basis for discussion about the implementation of innovation. This participatory simulation method could be more widely used to facilitate the diffusion of innovations such as integrating livestock feeding systems with conservation cropping practices.     

东北地区城市水资源利用及其用水需求预测

从用水总量，用水结构，城镇人均生活用水量和万元工业产值用水量等方面。对东北3省区城市水资源利用的特征进行了分析；在对上述地区城市社会经济发展指标预测的基础上，对2010年和2030年城市社会经济发展的水资源需求量进行了预测。     

安徽省水资源可持续利用所面临的问题及其对策

安徽省水资源丰富，但随着全省经济的高速发展。由于自然和人为方面的原因。水资源的保护和可持续利用正面临着严峻的挑战。在分析安徽省水资源现状及其特点基础上，指明了安徽省水资源可持续利用存在的主要问题。并提出相应的对策。     

黄山生物资源和旅游资源永续利用研究

黄山是一座驰名中外的旅游名山,为世界自然与文化遗产和世界地质公园;黄山的生物资源和旅游资源十分丰富,有维管植物1800余种,脊椎动物297种;对黄山的资源现状进行了研究,并就其永续利用提出了建议。     

略论黑龙江省自然资源开发利用战略

本文论述了作为资源大省的黑龙江省自然资源开发利用所应遵循的思路、自然资源与社会经济系统及自然环境三者的协调、自然资源市场化等方面的问题,并提出了相应的对策。     

Facing the gap: exploring research on local knowledge of insect-provided services in agroecosystems

Sustainable agroecosystems must be managed to support biodiversity conservation and food production, which occur at the interface of regional/national policy frameworks, and local knowledge and perspectives. This paper examines the current breadth of research examining farmer knowledge of beneficial insect activities that provide ecosystem services (or benefits) in agroecosystems. We identify patterns and gaps in the literature and opportunities for future research. We found 34 studies that explicitly focused on and documented local knowledge of how insect taxa provided ecosystem services in agroecosystems, the majority of which were immediately observable in farmers’ daily practice: pest control (n?=?26), pollination (n?=?4). We suggest that there is a need for greater investigation of local knowledge of the breadth of ecosystem services provided by insects and identify key research areas that are opportunities for investigation.     

济南市水资源承载力及可持续利用对策

水是人类生存和发展的物质基础,但随着社会经济的发展,水的供需矛盾日益尖锐,水资源承载力成为水资源安全战略研究的一个基础;通过对济南水资源承载力分析和预测,为可持续发展提供对策.     

Assessing the effectiveness of rural credit policy on the adoption of integrated crop-livestock systems in Brazil

This study analyzes the effectiveness of rural credit policy to increase the adoption of ICLS. Analyzes are based on a survey with 175 farmers in the State of São Paulo, Brazil. Our estimates suggest that rural credit has positive and relevant impacts on the adoption of ICLS. In turn, the adoption of these systems may also involve investments in fixed capital and increases in operational costs, which create additional demand for rural credit. Other factors, such as access to extension policy, production scale, ex-ante perceptions, and market infrastructure also explain ICLS adoption. The access to rural credit policy is also determined by dependence on farm income, farmer’s perception of transaction costs, and supply of credit in the municipality. The study finally discusses important implications for the devising of rural credit policies and the diffusion of sustainable production systems in developing countries.     

通辽水资源开发利用现状及对策

通过对通辽水资源现状及开发利用的分析,指出了该区水资源开发利用中存在的问题,提出了节约用水、充分利用地表水和合理开采地下水、加强水资源的保护、污水净化利用等措施.