COVID-19 Pandemic and Agroecosystem Resilience: Early Insights for Building Better Futures

The way the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted human lives and livelihoods constituted a stress test for agroecosystems in developing countries, as part of rural–urban systems and the global economy. We applied two conceptual schemes to dissect the evidence in peer-reviewed literature so far, as a basis fo...

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Main Authors: Duguma, L.A., Noordwijk, M. van, Minang, Peter A., Muthee, K.
Format: Journal Article
Language:Inglés
Published: MDPI 2021
Subjects:
Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/10568/111643
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author Duguma, L.A.
Noordwijk, M. van
Minang, Peter A.
Muthee, K.
author_browse Duguma, L.A.
Minang, Peter A.
Muthee, K.
Noordwijk, M. van
author_facet Duguma, L.A.
Noordwijk, M. van
Minang, Peter A.
Muthee, K.
author_sort Duguma, L.A.
collection Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace)
description The way the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted human lives and livelihoods constituted a stress test for agroecosystems in developing countries, as part of rural–urban systems and the global economy. We applied two conceptual schemes to dissect the evidence in peer-reviewed literature so far, as a basis for better understanding and enabling ‘building back better’. Reported positive impacts of the lockdown ‘anthropause’ on environmental conditions were likely only short-term, while progress towards sustainable development goals was more consistently set back especially for social aspects such as livelihood, employment, and income. The loss of interconnectedness, driving loss of assets, followed a ‘collapse’ cascade that included urban-to-rural migration due to loss of urban jobs, and illegal exploitation of forests and wildlife. Agricultural activities geared to international trade were generally disrupted, while more local markets flourished. Improved understanding of these pathways is needed for synergy between the emerging adaptive, mitigative, transformative, and reimaginative responses. Dominant efficiency-seeking strategies that increase fragility will have to be re-evaluated to be better prepared for further pandemics, that current Human–Nature interactions are likely to trigger.
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spelling CGSpace1116432024-03-06T10:16:43Z COVID-19 Pandemic and Agroecosystem Resilience: Early Insights for Building Better Futures Duguma, L.A. Noordwijk, M. van Minang, Peter A. Muthee, K. agroforestry agroecology natural resources developing countries ecological restoration The way the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted human lives and livelihoods constituted a stress test for agroecosystems in developing countries, as part of rural–urban systems and the global economy. We applied two conceptual schemes to dissect the evidence in peer-reviewed literature so far, as a basis for better understanding and enabling ‘building back better’. Reported positive impacts of the lockdown ‘anthropause’ on environmental conditions were likely only short-term, while progress towards sustainable development goals was more consistently set back especially for social aspects such as livelihood, employment, and income. The loss of interconnectedness, driving loss of assets, followed a ‘collapse’ cascade that included urban-to-rural migration due to loss of urban jobs, and illegal exploitation of forests and wildlife. Agricultural activities geared to international trade were generally disrupted, while more local markets flourished. Improved understanding of these pathways is needed for synergy between the emerging adaptive, mitigative, transformative, and reimaginative responses. Dominant efficiency-seeking strategies that increase fragility will have to be re-evaluated to be better prepared for further pandemics, that current Human–Nature interactions are likely to trigger. 2021-01-26 2021-02-28T10:58:27Z 2021-02-28T10:58:27Z Journal Article https://hdl.handle.net/10568/111643 en Open Access MDPI Duguma, L.A., van Noordwijk, M., Minang, P.A., Muthee, K. 2021. COVID-19 pandemic and agroecosystem resilience: Early insights for building better futures. Sustainability, 13(3): 1278. https://doi.org/10.3390/su13031278
spellingShingle agroforestry
agroecology
natural resources
developing countries
ecological restoration
Duguma, L.A.
Noordwijk, M. van
Minang, Peter A.
Muthee, K.
COVID-19 Pandemic and Agroecosystem Resilience: Early Insights for Building Better Futures
title COVID-19 Pandemic and Agroecosystem Resilience: Early Insights for Building Better Futures
title_full COVID-19 Pandemic and Agroecosystem Resilience: Early Insights for Building Better Futures
title_fullStr COVID-19 Pandemic and Agroecosystem Resilience: Early Insights for Building Better Futures
title_full_unstemmed COVID-19 Pandemic and Agroecosystem Resilience: Early Insights for Building Better Futures
title_short COVID-19 Pandemic and Agroecosystem Resilience: Early Insights for Building Better Futures
title_sort covid 19 pandemic and agroecosystem resilience early insights for building better futures
topic agroforestry
agroecology
natural resources
developing countries
ecological restoration
url https://hdl.handle.net/10568/111643
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