Methods to assess farming sustainability in developing countries. A review
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors compare methods of assessment of sustainability impact for farming interventions and argue that sustainability impact assessment, respecting the interactive involvement of all stakeholder groups throughout the whole process, is a compulsory element in project planning for a sustainable agricultural development in developing countries.
Abstract: Sustainable agricultural development is fundamental to food security and poverty alleviation, notably in developing countries. Many development initiatives focus on the enhancement of smallholder production and productivity because the majority of poor people in developing countries live in rural areas where agriculture is the main source of livelihood. The consequences of these development initiatives need to be assessed before implementation to reduce the risk of possible negative impacts. This can be done by applying ex ante sustainability impact assessment. Here, we compare methods of assessment of sustainability impact for farming interventions. We review methodological approaches and verify whether the requirements of sustainability impact assessment theory are fulfilled. Our major points are the following: (1) main methodological approaches do not fulfill the requirements defined in the theoretical sustainability impact assessment discourse. (2) The active involvement of different stakeholder groups throughout the assessment process and the possibility of learning and exchange are fundamental to sustainability impact assessment. (3) The institutional dimension of sustainability is not yet sufficiently integrated. We therefore suggest institutional criteria and indicators to be also considered in the sustainability impact assessment framework. We argue that sustainability impact assessment, respecting the interactive involvement of all stakeholder groups throughout the whole process, is a compulsory element in project planning for a sustainable agricultural development in developing countries.
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01 Jan 2016TL;DR: In this paper, the authors compare TBL approaches and principles-based approaches to developing such sustainability criteria, concluding that the latter are more appropriate, since they avoid many of the inherent limitations of the triple-bottom-line as a conception of sustainability.
Abstract: Sustainability assessment is being increasingly viewed as an important tool to aid in the shift towards sustainability. However, this is a new and evolving concept and there remain very few examples of effective sustainability assessment processes implemented anywhere in the world. Sustainability assessment is often described as a process by which the implications of an initiative on sustainability are evaluated, where the initiative can be a proposed or existing policy, plan, programme, project, piece of legislation, or a current practice or activity. However, this generic definition covers a broad range of different processes, many of which have been described in the literature as 'sustainability assessment'. This article seeks to provide some clarification by reflecting on the different approaches described in the literature as being forms of sustainability assessment, and evaluating them in terms of their potential contributions to sustainability. Many of these are actually examples of 'integrated assessment', derived from environmental impact assessment (EIA) and strategic environmental assessment (SEA), but which have been extended to incorporate social and economic considerations as well as environmental ones, reflecting a 'triple bottom line' (TBL) approach to sustainability. These integrated assessment processes typically either seek to minimise 'unsustainability', or to achieve TBL objectives. Both aims may, or may not, result in sustainable practice. We present an alternative conception of sustainability assessment, with the more ambitious aim of seeking to determine whether or not an initiative is actually sustainable. We term such processes 'assessment for sustainability'. 'Assessment for sustainability' firstly requires that the concept of sustainability be well-defined. The article compares TBL approaches and principles-based approaches to developing such sustainability criteria, concluding that the latter are more appropriate, since they avoid many of the inherent limitations of the triple-bottom-line as a conception of sustainability.
859 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors compared indicator-based sustainability assessment tools to gain insight in practical requirements, procedures and complexity involved in applying sustainability assessment, and evaluated the relevance of the tools, as perceived by farmers.
187 citations
Additional excerpts
...Involving other stakeholders in the development of sustainability assessment tools is often suggested to enhance dialogue and understanding on sustainable development (Bell and Morse, 2008; Schindler et al., 2015; Triste et al., 2014)....
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TL;DR: The authors performed a qualitative content analysis of 87 farm-related sustainability assessment tools to examine how these tools defined and operationalized the social dimension of sustainability, and further analyzed a subset of tools on the used indicators.
Abstract: The number of sustainability assessment tools in agriculture has been increasing rapidly. However, a common understanding of what should be assessed as sustainability or as a sustainable state of agriculture is still lacking, in particular for the social dimension. We performed a qualitative content analysis of 87 farm-related sustainability assessment tools to examine how these tools defined and operationalized the social dimension of sustainability. We further analysed a subset of tools on the used indicators. The results clearly showed that as the backgrounds and objectives of the tools differed, so did their understanding of which contents should be integrated into the social dimension and how the topics of the social dimension should be operationalized. As the geographical ranges of application varied, so did the perceptions of which standard should be utilized to evaluate what social sustainability means on a farm. Production systems differ strongly over the globe. Tools therefore often neglect to define social sustainability and lack stringent operationalization. Two major inconsistencies could be seen in the scope that was covered by the tools and the sustainability standard: Whereas, for example, some tools base their sustainability assessments on human rights and working rights according to the United Nations and International Labour Organization conventions, others assess farmer perceptions of life quality. Although recurring topics such as labour conditions, life quality and societal impacts were identified, a need exists to take a step back and clearly frame social sustainability in agriculture from a conceptual perspective.
68 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors address the significance, challenges, framework, pathways and potential solutions for realizing AGD in China, and highlight the potential changes that will lead to a more sustainable agriculture in the future.
Abstract: Realizing sustainable development has become a global priority. This holds, in particular, for agriculture. Recently, the United Nations launched the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and the Nineteenth National People's Congress has delivered a national strategy for sustainable development in China-realizing green development. The overall objective of Agriculture Green Development (AGD) is to coordinate "green" with "development" to realize the transformation of current agriculture with high resource consumption and high environmental costs into a green agriculture and countryside with high productivity, high resource use efficiency and low environmental impact. This is a formidable task, requiring joint efforts of government, farmers, industry, educators and researchers. The innovative concept for AGD will focus on reconstructing the whole crop-animal production and food production-consumption system, with the emphasis on high thresholds for environmental standards and food quality as well as enhanced human well-being. This paper addresses the significance, challenges, framework, pathways and potential solutions for realizing AGD in China, and highlights the potential changes that will lead to a more sustainable agriculture in the future. Proposals include interdisciplinary innovations, whole food chain improvement and regional solutions. The implementation of AGD in China will provide important implications for the countries in developmental transition, and contribute to global sustainable development.
61 citations
Cites background from "Methods to assess farming sustainab..."
...Such analyses and innovations will support both agricultural production and the provision of other ecosystem services([17])....
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TL;DR: The theory of affordances is employed to unravel what tools may furnish users, and how those affordances contribute to a tool's usefulness in co-design and co-innovation processes.
46 citations
References
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01 Jan 2011
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors highlight the differential impacts that the world food crisis of 2006-2008 had on different countries, with the poorest being most affected, and present policy options to reduce volatility in a cost-effective manner and to manage it when it cannot be avoided.
Abstract: This report highlights the differential impacts that the world food crisis of 2006-2008 had on different countries, with the poorest being most affected.
This year’s report focuses on the costs of food price volatility, as well as the dangers and opportunities presented by high food prices. Climate change and an increased frequency of weather shocks, increased linkages between energy and agricultural markets due to growing demand for biofuels, and increased financialization of food and agricultural commodities all suggest that price volatility is here to stay. The report describes the effects of price volatility on food security and presents policy options to reduce volatility in a cost-effective manner and to manage it when it cannot be avoided.
3,644 citations
TL;DR: Sustainability indicators and composite index are increasingly recognized as a useful tool for policy making and public communication in conveying information on countries and corporate performance in fields such as environment, economy, society, or technological improvement as mentioned in this paper.
2,181 citations
"Methods to assess farming sustainab..." refers background in this paper
...…the three pillars of sustainable development (economy, environment, and social dimensions) equally while also analyzing the interrelations between the three pillars (Pope et al. 2004; Ness et al. 2007; Hacking and Guthrie 2008; Bond and Morrison-Saunders 2011; Bond et al. 2012; Singh et al. 2012)....
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...Bebbington et al. (2007), Maredia (2009) and Singh et al. (2012) mention that indicators of sustainable development should be selected, revisited, and refined upon based on the appropriate communities of interest....
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...They simplify, quantify, analyze, and therefore facilitate the communication of complex and complicated information (Singh et al. 2012)....
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...Spohn (2004 cited Singh et al. (2012)) distinguishes between a “top-down” and a “bottom-up” approach in the assessment procedure....
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...It is simply defined as the process that steers decision-making towards sustainability, as well as ensuring net sustainability gains in the present and the future (Ness et al. 2007; Hacking and Guthrie 2008; Bond and Morrison-Saunders 2011; Bond et al. 2012; Singh et al. 2012)....
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TL;DR: In this paper, the authors provide a cohesive categorisation of the most common sustainability assessment tools within the broader objective of lifting the understanding of tools from the environmentally-focused realm to that of the wider concept of sustainability.
1,306 citations
"Methods to assess farming sustainab..." refers background in this paper
...In relevant literature, the potential and limitations of quantitative versus qualitative research have been discussed, as have reductionist versus holistic approaches for sustainability impact assessment (Ness et al. 2007; Gasparatos et al. 2008; Bond et al. 2012; Bond and Morrison-Saunders 2013b)....
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...It is simply defined as the process that steers decision-making towards sustainability, as well as ensuring net sustainability gains in the present and the future (Ness et al. 2007; Hacking and Guthrie 2008; Bond and Morrison-Saunders 2011; Bond et al. 2012; Singh et al. 2012)....
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...…the three pillars of sustainable development (economy, environment, and social dimensions) equally while also analyzing the interrelations between the three pillars (Pope et al. 2004; Ness et al. 2007; Hacking and Guthrie 2008; Bond and Morrison-Saunders 2011; Bond et al. 2012; Singh et al. 2012)....
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01 Jan 2015
TL;DR: This year´s annual State of Food Insecurity in the World report takes stock of progress made towards achieving the internationally established hunger targets, and reflects on what needs to be done, as we transition to the new post-2015 Sustainable Development Agenda as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: This year´s annual State of Food Insecurity in the World report takes stock of progress made towards achieving the internationally established hunger targets, and reflects on what needs to be done, as we transition to the new post-2015 Sustainable Development Agenda.
1,298 citations
TL;DR: The UN’s most recent annual State of Food Insecurity in the World report takes stock of the progress made toward achieving these slightly different yet equally ambitious and fundamental goals related to greatly reducing world hunger.
1,112 citations