Agroforestry for Degraded Landscapes (eBook)

This book presents various aspects of agroforestry research and development, as well as the latest trends in degraded landscape management. Over the last four decades, agroforestry research (particularly on degraded landscapes) has evolved into an essential problem-solving science, e.g. in terms of sustaining agricultural productivity, improving soil health and biodiversity, enhancing ecosystem services, supporting carbon sequestration and mitigating climate change. This book examines temperate and tropical agroforestry systems around the world, focusing on traditional and modern practices and technologies used to rehabilitate degraded lands. It covers the latest research advances, trends and challenges in the utilization and reclamation of degraded lands, e.g. urban and peri-urban agroforestry, reclamation of degraded landscapes, tree-based multi-enterprise agriculture, domestication of high-value halophytes, afforestation of coastal areas, preserving mangroves and much more. Given its scope, the book offers a valuable asset for a broad range of stakeholders including farmers, scientists, researchers, educators, students, development/extension agents, environmentalists, policy/decision makers, and government and non-government organizations.

Jagdish Chander Dagar, Former Assistant Director General and Emeritus Scientist at ICAR, has long been actively involved in the areas of agroforestry, natural resources management, biosaline agriculture, rehabilitation of degraded lands, ethnobotany, plant ecology, environmental sciences, biodiversity, climate change and sustainable agriculture, as can be seen in his more than 300 research papers, published in peer-reviewed journals, book chapters and conference proceedings. He has been conferred with several awards and honours and is a Fellow of the National Academy of Agricultural Sciences and several other professional societies. He has also been a consultant to the UN, CIMMYT, and Haryana Forest Department. Dr Dagar is also Chief Editor of the Journal Soil Salinity & Water Quality.

S. R. Gupta, former Professor of Botany, Dean of Life Sciences, and Emeritus Fellow of the UGC, is a nationally and internationally recognised ecologist who has taught at the Department of Botany and at the Institute of Environmental Studies at Kurukshetra University, India. She has made significant contributions to better understanding the biodiversity and ecosystem functions of grasslands, forest ecosystems, soil biodiversity, ecological rehabilitation of salt-affected soils, carbon sequestration in agroforestry systems, and the sustainability of conservation agricultural systems. The author of 98 research papers published in national and international journals, she is also a Fellow of the National Institute of Ecology and is affiliated with the Institute of Environmental Studies.

Demel Teketay Fanta received his MSc in Plant Taxonomy from Reading University (UK) and PhD in Forest Vegetation Ecology from the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences. He is currently serving as a Professor of Forest Sciences and founding Dean of the Faculty of Natural Resources at Botswana University of Agriculture and Natural Resources (BUAN). He has published over 250 scientific articles and technical reports, including more than 150 peer-reviewed articles in national and international scientific journals. He is a Fellow of The World Academy of Sciences (TWAS), International Fellow of the Royal Swedish Academy of Agriculture and Forestry (KSLA), Fellow of the African Academy of Sciences (AAS), Associate Fellow of the Ethiopian Academy of Sciences (EAS), and a Member of the Botswana Academy of Science (BAS).

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This book presents various aspects of agroforestry research and development, as well as the latest trends in degraded landscape management. Over the last four decades, agroforestry research (particularly on degraded landscapes) has evolved into an essential problem-solving science, e.g. in terms of sustaining agricultural productivity, improving soil health and biodiversity, enhancing ecosystem services, supporting carbon sequestration and mitigating climate change. This book examines temperate and tropical agroforestry systems around the world, focusing on traditional and modern practices and technologies used to rehabilitate degraded lands. It covers the latest research advances, trends and challenges in the utilization and reclamation of degraded lands, e.g. urban and peri-urban agroforestry, reclamation of degraded landscapes, tree-based multi-enterprise agriculture, domestication of high-value halophytes, afforestation of coastal areas, preserving mangroves and much more. Given its scope, the book offers a valuable asset for a broad range of stakeholders including farmers, scientists, researchers, educators, students, development/extension agents, environmentalists, policy/decision makers, and government and non-government organizations.