Land‐use history determines ecosystem services and conservation value in tropical agroforestry

2020 | journal article; research paper. A publication with affiliation to the University of Göttingen.

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​Land‐use history determines ecosystem services and conservation value in tropical agroforestry​
Martin, D. A.; Osen, K.; Grass, I.; Hölscher, D. ; Tscharntke, T. ; Wurz, A. & Kreft, H. ​ (2020) 
Conservation Letters13(5).​ DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/conl.12740 

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Authors
Martin, Dominic Andreas; Osen, Kristina; Grass, Ingo; Hölscher, Dirk ; Tscharntke, Teja ; Wurz, Annemarie; Kreft, Holger 
Abstract
Abstract Agroforestry is widely promoted as a potential solution to address multiple UN Sustainable Development Goals, including Zero Hunger, Responsible Consumption and Production, Climate Action, and Life on Land. Nonetheless, agroforests in the tropics often result from direct forest conversions, displacing rapidly vanishing and highly biodiverse forests with large carbon stocks, causing undesirable trade‐offs. Scientists thus debate whether the promotion of agroforestry in tropical landscapes is a sensible policy. So far, this debate typically fails to consider land‐use history, that is, whether an agroforest is derived from forest or from open land. Indeed, 57% of papers which we systematically reviewed did not describe the land‐use history of focal agroforestry systems. We further find that forest‐derived agroforestry supports higher biodiversity than open‐land‐derived agroforestry but essentially represents a degradation of forest, whereas open‐land‐derived agroforestry rehabilitates formerly forested open land. Based on a conceptual framework, we recommend to (a) promote agroforestry on suitable open land, (b) maintain tree cover in existing forest‐derived agroforests, and (c) conserve remaining forests. Land‐use history should be incorporated into land‐use policy to avoid incentivizing forest degradation and to harness the potential of agroforestry for ecosystem services and biodiversity.
Issue Date
2020
Journal
Conservation Letters 
Organization
Zentrum für Biodiversität und Nachhaltige Landnutzung ; Fakultät für Forstwissenschaften und Waldökologie ; Burckhardt-Institut ; Abteilung Biodiversität, Makroökologie und Biogeographie ; Abteilung Waldbau und Waldökologie der Tropen ; Abteilung Agrarökologie 
ISSN
1755-263X
Language
English
Sponsor
Volkswagen Foundation http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100001663
Open-Access-Publikationsfonds 2020

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