The global environmental and social-economic crises of industrialized agriculture have led to the emergence of agroecology as an alternative approach aiming to increase the ecological, social and economic sustainability of agri–food systems. The ‘multi-level perspective’ is now a widely used framework to understand and promote the upscaling of local innovation...

Traditional agroecological knowledge (TAeK) refers to the cumulative and evolving body of knowledge, practices, beliefs, institutions, and worldviews about the relationships between a society or cultural group and their agroecosystems. These knowledge systems contribute to maintaining environmental and culturally sensitive food systems and have been considered very relevant for agroecological...

Agronomic practices such as fertilizer application or seed rates have been known to affect rice pests and damage, but the evidence is often blurred in studies on pest management decisions and invisible in studies on pesticide lock-in. Combined agronomic practices and pesticide use may create technological lock-in, occurring when the combination has...

The paper provides an overview on the current status of NWFP certification by discussing three main questions: i) What are relevant standards for NWFP certification? ii) How des certification contribute to the sustainable use of NWFP? iii) What are the challenges and perspectives of NWFP certification? A preliminary assessment of the...

This paper was prepared by Ms. Els Wynen, consultant, under the guidance of the Environment and Natural Resources Service (SDRN). The first draft of this paper was shared with experts throughout FAO and IFOAM's Head Office for comments. The paper has been further reviewed by Ms. Kathleen Merrigan. In light...

Food security is defined as a condition in which “all people, at all times, have physical, social and economic access to sufficient, safe, and nutritious food which meets their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life … Food insecurity exists when people do not have adequate...