Devra I. Jarvis

TL;DR: It is argued that the contribution of biological diversity to ecosystem functioning in agricultural production systems is variable, but can be substantial, and occurs at the genetic, as well as species, level in arable systems.

TL;DR: Divergence estimates, measured as the proportion of community evenness displayed among farmers, underscore the importance of a large number of small farms adopting distinctly diverse varietal strategies as a major force that maintains crop genetic diversity on farm.

TL;DR: The role of seed exchange networks in the preservation and adaptation of crop specific and genetic diversity is discussed in this article, where the authors advocate a diversity of approaches to foster the creation of robust and policy-relevant knowledge.

TL;DR: Molecular evaluation of natural introgression linked to investigations of farmer recognition and use of introgressed types provide ways of evaluating whether farmer selection for introgressive types is a significant process in increasing the genetic diversity of crop plants.

TL;DR: In this article, the authors discuss how studies on on-farm diversity assessment, access to diversity and information, extent of use of available materials and information and benefits obtained by the farmer or farming community from their use of local crop diversity are necessary to identify the different ways of supporting farmers and farming communities in the maintenance of traditional varieties and crop genetic diversity within their production systems.