Applicability of sustainable development approaches in farming system design- Agro-ecosystem management like we’re here to stay (original) (raw)
Sustainability and sustainable development (SD) has become the standard philosophy in commerce, business and politics. Cradle-to-cradle® (C2C) and the Framework for Strategic Sustainable Development (FSSD) are two of the prominent SD approaches that have made significant impact in the manufacturing and building industry in Europe and the United States. It is also influencing spatial planning of urban centres. However, its applicability in agriculture and farm design has not been explored. If farming systems will adopt sustainability as a guiding principle, it is important to recognise that farm objectives have an influence beyond the farm gate. Prevailing models of farming system (re)design needs to integrate the interaction of elements within and outside the farm itself. Designers need to put a better balance on environmental, ecological and social goals. This can be done by integrating community ethics and biases and considering eco-effectiveness in design. Eco-effectiveness is about supporting the regenerative capacity of systems. This is implemented through continues cycle of material-use resulting in positive outcomes. Positive outcomes pertain to product or services that are inexhaustible (e.g. 100% use solar energy eliminating the necessity to burn oil). Furthermore, eco-effectiveness could be achieved by increasing efficiency by adjusting tactical choices at a small scale so that output is maximised and input minimised. On the other hand, eco-effectiveness is relevant at a larger aggregation since it takes community-wide approach to realise positive outcomes. Based on the foregoing, an alternative beta-gamma framework was presented based on goal-oriented approach in farm design that integrates farm and landscape interaction. It is composed of (1) goal definition, (2) goal characterisation, (3) integrative modelling and (4) assessment. Goal definition incorporates beta-gamma interaction of objectives. Beta refers to goals at the farm level and gamma pertains to objectives at the landscape level. Gamma objectives are positive externalities of goals at the beta scale. It involves values that reflect equity, economy and ecology. Goal characterisation involves identification of appropriate indicators and system definition at both scales. Integrative modelling refers to multi-objective optimisation of beta-gamma targets and incorporation of social preferences of the agro-landscape under investigation. Doing so will contribute to informed decision-making by reflecting community intentions and biases. The assessment component involves active stakeholder participation through consultation of results, goal definition and characterisation. Continuous coordination with the target group will capture shifting conception of sustainability as it may be affected by knowledge from the external environment. This study led to the conclusion that some concepts of cradle-to-cradle® and FSSD are useful in goal-oriented approach that lead to a truly holistic and integrated farming system design.
Loading Preview
Sorry, preview is currently unavailable. You can download the paper by clicking the button above.