Despite its acceptance, sustainability has not been made operational, due, among other reasons, the difficulty of translating philosophical and ideological aspects in the ability to make decisions. This paper proposes a methodology consisting in a series of steps leading to obtain a set of indicators to assess the sustainability of agroecosystems. The use of simple and practical indicators is necessary to provide technicians, agricultures, and politicians, reliable and understandable information on the impacts and costs of technology adoption. The scope and limitations of this proposal are discussed.

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Evaluación de la sustentabilidad en agroecosistemas: Una propuesta metodológica

The concept of sustainability implies a long-term relationship between human been and nature. Sustainable production systems are those systems capable of remaining in the time since they promote the conservation of natural resources, social capital and generate enough economic rents to support themselves. Growing vine and wine activities in Mendoza (Argentina) provide numerous benefits to the agricultural sector which is responsible for the use and pollution of natural resources. There are several indicators that show information of the viticulture sector, but most of them focus on physical and economic aspects. This work consists in the selection of indicators based on the theoretical concept of sustainability that request to integrate the three system's dimensions: economic, social and environmental. This was applied to the viticulture sector in Mendoza, therefore indicators were designed which are able to characterize it following the concept of sustainability. The selected indicators resulted appropriate to describe the grade of sustainability in every dimension (social, economic and environmental) aspects and were easy to obtain and to understand.

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Propuesta de indicadores de sustentabilidad para la producción de vid en Mendoza, Argentina

The purpose of this paper is to examine the initiatives of value enhancement and the promotion of local agri-food products in Argentina and Spain to address some of their limitations and contradictions.,Based on processes of participatory action research, data and knowledge were produced dialectically with the actors, linking the research process to rural development processes.,Value enhancement and promotion of local agri-food products is a complex system where values, preferences and availability of resources converge, allowing to consume products of higher quality, “heritage” products or products differentiated by the production mode. This consumption is not only aimed at tourists who are willing to pay something more for a “certified” local product, but also for the estrategic allies who appreciate the taste of the food of their territory: local consumers. These processes develop strategies such as the “fairs” of each product, or the classic “quality seals.” In the comparison between experiences of both countries, the controversies raise with the high prices of the products as a synonym of value enhancement instead of the right to quality food and the seeking of food sovereignty.,Problematizing the recovery and valorization of local products reveals the necessity, awareness and inclusion of consumers as actors in the innovation processes and not simply as buyers of luxury products. The originality is also based on specific intervention experiences with territorial actors (social, economic, scientific and political) that shape new forms of intervention, based on strategies that link patrimonialization, knowledge systems and territorial development.

We recovered food heritage, and then? Value enhancement and promotion of local agri-food products in Argentina and Spain

El norte del Estado de Morelos forma parte del Eje Volcanico Transversal de Mexico donde se localiza el Area Natural Protegida Corredor Biologico Chichinautzin cuya cubierta vegetal se encuentra en proceso defragmentacion por el crecimiento urbano. Los pueblos originarios que lo habitan conservan saberes sobre el manejo de los recursos naturales como base material de sus actividades productivas que aplican en mitigar la profunda escasez de agua que padecen. Particularmente en el pueblo de Coajomulco practican la agricultura de temporal y ganaderia extensiva pero sobresalen los huertos de traspatio como ejemplo de agroecosistemas con produccion sostenida. Con base en lo anterior, de planteo la pregunta ?son la riqueza de especies, tanto de lasestructuras vertical y horizontal de un Huerto Fruticola Tradicional (HFT) atipico en Coajomulco, indicadores de sostenibilidad? Con el supuesto que dichos atributos agroecologicos son resultado del manejo tradicional. Para contrastarlo se utilizaron tecnicas de ecologia de comunidades y etnobotanica con el proposito de describir el manejo de dichas variables y su referente con los costos de insumos y mano de obra. Los resultados en los valores de importancia (IVI) demuestran que el manejo de la riqueza de especies prioriza las plantas con valor de cambio con destino al mercado, sin embargo, conservan los vegetales con importancia cultural destinados al autoabasto que son toleradas ampliamente. El manejo define que en la estructura horizontal se traslapen las coberturas mientras que en la vertical se conformen los estratos. Finalmente otros indicadores de sostenibilidad entendida como la produccion de bienes durante todo el ano, son los intercambios de materias primas entre las subunidades del huerto porque optimizan el aprovechamiento del espacio, resuelven la no disponibilidad de agua y reducen los costos de produccion.

https://dialnet.unirioja.es/descarga/articulo/5294478.pdf

El Manejo Tradicional y Agroecológico en un Huerto Familiar de México, Como Ejemplo de Sostenibilidad.

In recent years, high prices and increased demand from the domestic and international markets have led to an increase in the quinoa-growing area and the introduction of technologies with external inputs that increased yields and resulted in changes in the cropping system. The objective of this study was to evaluate the levels of economic, environmental and social sustainability of the quinoa production Systems. Surveys were applied to 92 quinoa producers, standardizing the responses by transforming them to a scale of 1 to 5, with 5 being the highest sustainability value and 1 being the lowest. Four production Systems were identified, with the Systems having sustainability being the organic, mixed and conventional ones, with a sustainability Index equal to or greater than the average value of the scale. The traditional production system did not reach the minimum threshold of 3 in the economic dimension, so it was categorized as non-sustainable by the multidimensional analysis. In order to determine internal consistency, the Multiple Correspondence Analysis (MCA) factorial method was used, with Cronbach’s alpha values of 0.814 and 0.797 that confer reliability to the analysis.

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Sostenibilidad de sistemas de producción de quinua (Chenopodium quinoa Willd.)

The evaluation of agroecosystems sustainability requires to transform complex aspects in another more simple, objectives and generals that allow to detect tendencies at a system level, called indicators. The aim of this paper was to develop a set of indicators to evaluate the sustainability of traditional agroecosystems in Misiones, Argentina. Five farms, dedicates to self-production were analysed. A set of indicators was constructed to evaluate the fulfi lled of Economics, Ecological and Socio-cultural objectives. The indicators were standardized and weighted according to its importance. The use of indicators allowed to detect clear tendencies in general sustainability index and in the ecological, economical and sociocultural dimensions. The ecological sustainability of these agroecosystems was associated to economical and sociocultural aspects. The system were ecologically sound, based on low external inputs, compatible with farmer conscience and provide an adequate diet for the family. This system fulfi lled ecological and sociocultural objectives, but only partially the economical ones. Then, farmers have to produce tobacco crop that responds to a technological model based on high inputs use to obtain economical benefi ts. It is concluded that the development of indicators is adequate to detect critical point to sustainability, to understand its causes and to propose solutions on a long time.

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Eliana Negrete

Papers

Evaluación de la sustentabilidad de sistemas agrícolas de fincas en misiones, argentina, mediante el uso de indicadores