Worldwide, agricultural production needs to increase in order to sustain a growing global population and changes in use patterns of agricultural produce, while respecting the planetary boundaries (Springmann et al. 2018*).This means productivity increases need to be obtained on the currently available land, while protecting our living environment and conserving natural and agricultural biodiversity (The Royal Society 2009*). Sustainable agricultural intensification strategies should provide the means to achieve that, but this will require a thorough, global redesign of agricultural systems (Pretty et al. 2018*).

The ambition for sustainable agricultural intensification (SAI) is highlighted in the Sustainable Development Goals; SDG 15, Life on Land, which aims to sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, halt and review land degradation and halt biodiversity loss; and SDG2 Zero hunger which seeks to ensure sustainable food production systems and implement resilient agricultural practices that increase productivity and production, help maintain ecosystems, strengthen capacity for adaptation to climate change, extreme weather, drought, flooding and other disasters and that progressively improve land and soil quality and maintain genetic diversity. The demands on agricultural production do not just concern food crops but also non-food commodities (e.g. coffee, tea, rubber, oil palm) and fibre crops (e.g. cotton) grown in smallholder production systems or commercial plantations. The increasing demands for biofuels have sparked expansion of crops such as oil palm, sugar cane and maize.

If this ambition is to be realised, the efficiency with which existing resources are used will have to be enhanced to ensure ecosystems services are maintained. Sustainability also requires ensuring social equity in the productive and environmental benefits from SAI, otherwise the poorer sections of the farming population and women farmers risk being left behind by the promotion of intensification.

The SAI programme, part of NRI’s new Food and Nutrition Security Initiative (FaNSI), is generating knowledge on ways to support SAI, increasing understanding and harnessing knowledge of ecological processes to increase agricultural production, and on to ensure SAI improves local and regional food systems, rural livelihoods and equity.

* see

• Pretty, J., T. G. Benton, Z. P. Bharucha, L. V. Dicks, C. B. Flora, H. C. J. Godfray, D. Goulson, S. Hartley, N. Lampkin, C. Morris, G. Pierzynski, P. V. V. Prasad, J. Reganold, J. Rockstrom, P. Smith, P. Thorne, and S. Wratten. 2018. 'Global assessment of agricultural system redesign for sustainable intensification'. Nature Sustainability 1 (8):441-6. doi: 10.1038/s41893-018-0114-0;
• Society, The Royal. 'Reaping the benefits: Science and the sustainable intensification of global agriculture';
• Springmann, M., M. Clark, D. Mason-D'Croz, K. Wiebe, B. L. Bodirsky, L. Lassaletta, W. de Vries, S. J. Vermeulen, M. Herrero, K. M. Carlson, M. Jonell, M. Troell, F. DeClerck, L. J. Gordon, R. Zurayk, P. Scarborough, M. Rayner, B. Loken, J. Fanzo, H. C. J. Godfray, D. Tilman, J. Rockstrom, and W. Willett. 2018. 'Options for keeping the food system within environmental limits'. Nature 562 (7728):519-+ doi: 10.1038/s41586-018-0594- 0

The Sustainable Agricultural Intensification Programme objectives are to enable farmers to solve problems of rural productivity and intensify agricultural production in a sustainable and efficient manner, through knowledge enhancement, capacity development and training. To this end we have three activity themes as outlined below:

• Farming systems that use resources more efficiently whilst increasing production and environmental resilience and reducing crop losses and negative environmental impacts.
• Enhanced ecosystem functionality of farms and their surrounding environments, regarding pollination, pest control, biodiversity conservation and resilience to climatic change.
• Enhanced understanding of the perspectives, incentives, benefits and barriers relating to SAI, for different farmer and stakeholder categories.

The programme uses evidence-based agricultural science, including crop ecology, farming systems research and ecosystem service evaluation integrating socioeconomic and value chain analysis to improve the lives of rural producers, and societal well-being. Our current work is focused mainly on rural smallholder communities in sub-Saharan Africa who produce for local, national and export markets, including Europe.

Our approach combines applied and farmer-participatory research to develop sustainable and productive agricultural systems addressing specific issues, like soil and water conservation, soil fertility enhancement, pest management and pollination services. The envisioned novel farm and cropping system designs resulting from this research are diverse (e.g. in terms of crop and animal species, resource use patterns) and adapted to local conditions. Assessment of the social and environmental sustainability and trade-offs associated with the intensification of productivity are used to inform policy and practices in agricultural development.

Capacity development is provided through training and knowledge exchange with farmers, extension and research services, as well as with the private sector and NGOs. This includes both formal and ad hoc training, farmer field schools, training of trainers, customised technical training courses and MSc and PhD research programmes. We also provide agricultural consultancy and R&D services to private sector companies and organisations involved in agricultural intensification.

Enhancing value added products and nutritional benefits from agroforestry systems, The British Academy – 2020-2021

Agroforestry has potential to slow tropical deforestation and contribute to local and global diets. Despite its promise, agroforestry currently occupies a relatively small area compared to more extensive land uses. This project integrates natural and social sciences with local knowledge to co-develop strategies and technologies to add value to primary products from agroforestry crops grown by indigenous communities in tropical rainforests. Building on a longer-standing Newton Fund collaboration, the project works with communities in the Peruvian Amazon to demonstrate the value of an interdisciplinary approach to generate value-added agroforestry products to improve livelihoods and nutrition in indigenous communities and curb deforestation.

Partners: CIRAD (https://www.cirad.fr/en), Instituto de Investigacion Nutricional (http://www.iin.sld.pe/);

NRI contact: Pamela Katic

Striga smart sorghum solutions for smallholders in East Africa, The Royal Society/GCRF – 2019-2022

This project aims to overcome two important constraints to smallholder sorghum production in sub-Saharan Africa: poor soil fertility and weed infestation. The most common and problematic weed for sorghum is the parasitic weed Striga, which causes more damage than ordinary weeds. Striga infection can be reduced by cultivating resistant varieties, or by using fertilisers, which also directly improves productivity on poor soils. No solution alone however provides complete control. We thus aim to improve and combine both solutions to help farmers obtaining complete Striga control and high sorghum yields. We will validate genes responsible for different resistance mechanisms as these can, in the near future, be transferred and combined in farmer-preferred varieties. Exciting innovations in molecular biology make this possible. Alongside this, we will ask farmers to evaluate previously identified resistant sorghum varieties to select the best ones. Next, we will test and develop low-cost fertiliser technologies that increase Striga resistance and yield of these sorghum varieties. We will disseminate these technologies through extension workshops and videos, enabling millions of farmers to become food secure and generate income from selling their surpluses.

Partners: Kenyatta University (http://www.ku.ac.ke);

NRI Contact: Jonne Rodenburg

Landscape scale genomic-environment diversity data to model existing and novel agri-systems under climate change to enhance food security in Ethiopia, BBSRC/GCRF - 2019-2021

This project aims at performing a high-resolution multi-functional genomic and environmental characterization of Ethiopian highland agri-systems, focusing on Enset and ten regionally and globally important crops that together comprise a range of complementary agri-systems in the Southern Ethiopian highlands, seeking to enhance their role in future resource provision, and generating clear economic and social impact on the livelihoods they support. NRI role in this project is to characterise the ecosystem services, and in particular soil fertility, provided by these different agri-systems. https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=BB%2FS014896%2F1

Partners: Royal Botanic Gardens Kew, Queen Mary University London, Addis Ababa University and Hawassa University;

NRI contact: Lucie Büchi

Sustainability-Intensification Trade-Offs in Coffee Agroforestry in Central America, BBSRC/GCRF - 2019-2021

The project is led by NRI and implemented with partners the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, UK, the Tropical Agricultural Research and Higher Education Centre (CATIE) in Costa Rica and the Universidad del Valle in Guatemala. The aim of the project is to identify the production practices that maintain profitability, without damaging the environment and negatively affecting future yields. This project will generate evidence as to how to achieve the best balance between profitability and sustainability under conditions of climatic variation, plant disease outbreaks and fluctuations in market prices that affect productivity and economic returns. Research will study ecosystem services generated by different kinds of coffee agroforestry or ‘shaded coffee’ and how they contribute to the economic and climatic resilience of these agri-systems. The results of this project aim to contribute to the national climate mitigation and adaptation strategies of the coffee sector by identifying the production strategies that enable profitable coffee production, without depleting the ecosystem services that contribute to the resilience of coffee production.

Partners: Centre for Ecology and Hydrology www.ceh.ac.uk, Tropical Agricultural Research and Higher Education Centre (CATIE) in Costa Rica www.catie.ac.cr, Centre for Environmental and Biodiversity Studies, Universidad del Valle in Guatemala https://www.uvg.edu.gt/investigacion/ceab/;

NRI contact: Jeremy Haggar

Intercultural models to improve nutrition and health of indigenous populations through gender-sensitive agroforestry practices in Peru, Newton Fund – 2019-2022

Potential positive and negative effects of agroforestry on human nutrition and health have been described, but there has been little research to document these impacts. Beyond the products derived from trees, crops and livestock, agroforestry systems can also support wild biodiversity of plants and animals which contribute to food and nutrition security in various ways across seasons. There is a particular need to understand how women’s involvement in agroforestry affects their nutritional status, time use, care-giving behaviours and household diets. The goal of our research is to work with indigenous communities involved in coffee- and cocoa-based agroforestry, and with local public health, agriculture and forestry institutions, to identify options to improve nutrition and health in the Peruvian Amazon. Our approach focuses on strategies which are appropriate to local conditions and cultures, and which respond to the priorities and interests of women.

Partners: London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (https://www.lshtm.ac.uk/), Instituto de Investigacion Nutricional (http://www.iin.sld.pe/), Instituto de Investigaciones de la Amazonia Peruana (http://www.iiap.gob.pe/Inicio.aspx), Salud sin Limites Peru (http://www.saludsinlimitesperu.org.pe/);

NRI contact: Pamela Katic

Diverseafood: Evaluating the potential of multi-trophic aquaculture to improve nutrition and ecosystem sustainability in the UK, Global Food Security Programme – 2019-2021

This project addresses barriers to the diversification of aquaculture systems in the UK by evaluating the contribution of Integrated Multi-trophic Aquaculture (IMTA) to the nutritional value of aquaculture-produced seafood and to the environmental sustainability of the sector. We investigate the contribution of IMTA systems to the nutritional profile of seafood and to the reduction of negative environmental impacts, and address regulatory, consumer acceptance and business challenges to the diversification of UK aquaculture. Specifically, this project evaluates (i) the contribution of IMTA to total fatty acids budgets from aquaculture (ii) the socioeconomic value of ecosystem services associated with IMTA, (iii) existing regulatory barriers to the adoption of IMTA and policy interventions to diversify UK production, (iv) consumer acceptance of new seafood products within an increased sustainability context, and (v) existing and emerging business models that can disrupt the current business-as-usual situation, so as to unblock existing barriers to the development of the sector.

Partners: Scottish Association for Marine Science (https://www.sams.ac.uk/), Newcastle University (https://www.ncl.ac.uk/), The University of Manchester (https://www.manchester.ac.uk/);

NRI contact: Pamela Katic

Sustainable Agricultural Intensification Research and Learning in Africa (SAIRLA), FCDO 2015-2020

SAIRLA is a five-year programme that seeks to generate new evidence and design tools to enable governments, investors and other key actors to deliver more effective policies and investments in sustainable agricultural intensification (SAI) that strengthen the capacity of poorer farmers’, especially women and youth, to access and benefit from SAI.
SAIRLA’s research projects will generate new evidence and decision-making support tools to help governments, policy-makers, investors and other key actors create an enabling environment for women and poorer smallholder farmers engage in sustainable agricultural intensification. SAIRLA will facilitate the development of multi-stakeholder learning platforms – the SAIRLA Learning Alliance - in each of the target countries and between those countries and international stakeholders to co-generate, share and facilitate use of knowledge by decision makers.

NRI contact: Jeremy Haggar

Social and Environmental Trade-offs in African agriculture - SENTINEL

The SENTINEL project aims to understand the challenges, trade-offs and synergies inherent in increasing agricultural production in Africa while safeguarding vital ecosystem services and promoting social equality. NRI, together with four other UK Universities and African partners from Ghana, Zambia and Ethiopia and the Regional Universities Forum for Capacity Building in Agriculture (RUFORM) are collaborating to enhance the capacity of UK and African researchers for interdisciplinary research on impacts, risks and trade-offs of different agricultural development pathways. The project is led by the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) and funded by the UKRI Global Challenges Research Fund.

NRI contact: Adrienne Martin

Natural Pest Regulation on Orphan Crop Legumes in Africa BBSRC/GCRF 2018-2021

Pest damage of legumes is one of the major challenges to food and nutritional security in Africa and disproportionately affects poor farmers growing low-input orphan crop grain legumes such as beans, pigeon pea, cowpea and lablab. Non-crop habitats in field margins provide the environment required to support natural enemies of pests including hoverflies. Management or manipulation of this non-crop habitat can help to support natural pest regulation and can even be augmented and sustained in better managed natural or manipulated agro-ecosystems. The project will develop approaches that support and augment natural pest regulation through improved agroecosystems management with reduced pesticide use. The research will provide evidence for benefits of natural pest regulation and establish how this can be optimised through better landscape management or manipulation and how natural pest regulation can function alongside other management practises including natural pest resistance, botanical insecticides and intercropping

NRI contact: Phil Stevenson

Farmer research networks to evaluate sustainable agro-ecological crop protection using pesticidal plants. McKnight Foundation

The main objective is to create a Farmer Research Network (FRN) operating in the Kilimanjaro Region of Tanzania and the Central Region of Malawi by bringing together existing farmer groups and helping to create new groups of farmers who are willing to work together to help further optimise the use and development of pesticidal plants. The FRN will be helped to increase their own use of pesticidal plants for pest control so that farmers can observe differences, themselves, understand the limitations of plant extracts and identify aspects of use that can be further optimised through their own activities.

NRI contact: Phil Stevenson

Harnessing Agricultural Ecosystem Biodiversity for Bean Production and Food Security Darwin Initiative, 2016-2019

This project surveyed plant and invertebrate biodiversity in bean ecosystems in Tanzania and Malawi and evaluate their ecologies and identify plant species that (i) attract, nourish and provide habitat for natural enemies of pests; (ii) promote the activity of pollinator insects in crops and (iii) provide environmentally-benign ‘botanical insecticides’ as additional control for pests. This required a systematic analysis of roles and interactions of pest and biological control species/habitats, supporting development of management systems that increase productivity through strategic integration of biodiversity. Using this knowledge we developed interventions that maintain and optimise these ecosystem services.

NRI contact: Phil Stevenson

• Dr Jonne Rodenburg- Programme leader
• Professor Steve Belmain
• Dr Lucie Buchi
• Dr Stefania Cerretelli
• Dr Tim Chancellor
• Professor Hans Dobson
• Professor Jeremy Haggar 
• Professor Richard Hopkins
• Dr Pamela Katic
• Dr Baqir Lalani
• Richard Lamboll
• Professor Adrienne Martin
• Professor Valerie Nelson
• Dr Laxmi Pant
• Dr Marcos Paradelo Perez
• Dr June Po
• Professor Julian Quan
• Dr Apurba Shee
• Professor Phil Stevenson
• Dr Conor Walsh
• Dr Kate Wellard
• Dr Victoria Woolley
• Dr Judy Bettridge
• Dr Onoriode Coast
• Dr Truly Santika Rintanen
• Dr Steven Harte
• Dr Mofakkarul Islam
• Dr Andrew Armitage
• Dr Leonel D. Lara-Estrada

Affiliates

• Dr Sarah Arnold

Our programme relies on strong established links with international and national research organisations and universities in developed and developing countries. We also have direct links to other UK research organisations including Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, and East Malling Research.

• CABI www.cabi.org
• East Malling Research www.emr.ac.uk
• Egerton University, Kenya
• Fundación Defensores de la Naturaleza, Guatemala www.defensores.org.gt
• ICIPE International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology www.icipe.org
• International Institute for Environment and Development, IIED https://www.iied.org/
• International Institute of Tropical Agriculture, IITA www.iita.org
• Mzuzu University, Malawi
• Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew www.kew.org
• Sokoine University of Agriculture, Tanzania
• Universidad del Valle de Guatemala www.uvg.edu.gt
• University of Agricultural Sciences Bangalore www.uasbangalore.edu.in
• World Agroforestry Centre www.worldagroforestry.org

SAIRLA programme: Special Issue of the International Journal of Agricultural Sustainability

To conclude the UK Aid - DFID funded programme Sustainable Intensification Research and Learning in Africa (SAIRLA) a Special Issue of the International Journal of Agricultural Sustainability was published on "Enabling conditions for smallholder, women and youth participation in Sustainable Agricultural Intensification in Africa", guest-edited by Jonne Rodenburg and Jeremy Haggar of NRI.

The Special Issue contains 17 Open Access papers from project participants, divided over three sub-themes: equity, trade-offs and services. Contributions from NRI include:

• Haggar et al. : Understanding and informing decisions on Sustainable Agricultural Intensification in Sub-Saharan Africa
• Rodenburg et al. : Adoption by adaptation: moving from Conservation Agriculture to conservation practices
• Lamboll et al. Strengthening decision-making on sustainable agricultural intensification through multi-stakeholder social learning in sub-Saharan Africa
• Haggar & Rodenburg: Lessons on enabling African smallholder farmers, especially women and youth, to benefit from sustainable agricultural intensification

Recent Publications

• Amoabeng, B. W., P. C. Stevenson, B. M. Mochiah, K. P. Asare and G. M. Gurr 2020. Scope for non-crop plants to promote conservation biological control of crop pests and serve as sources of botanical insecticides. Scientific Reports 10: 6951. doi: 10.1038/s41598-020-63709-x
• Arnold, S. E. J., P. Bridgemohan, G. B. Perry, G. R. Spinelli, B. Pierre, F. Murray, C. Haughton, O. Dockery, L. Grey, S. T. Murphy, S. R. Belmain, and P. C. Stevenson. 2018. The significance of climate in the pollinator dynamics of a tropical agroforestry system.  Agriculture Ecosystems & Environment 254:1-9. doi: 10.1016/j.agee.2017.11.013.
• Banerjee, S., F. Walder, L. Büchi, M. Meyer, A. Y. Held, A. Gattinger, T. Keller, R. Charles, and M. G. A. van der Heijden. 2019. Agricultural intensification reduces microbial network complexity and the abundance of keystone taxa in roots.  Isme Journal 13 (7):1722-36. doi: 10.1038/s41396-019-0383-2.
• Bettridge, J. M., A. Psifidi, Z. G. Terfa, T. T. Desta, M. Lozano-Jaramillo, T. Dessie, P. Kaiser, P. Wigley, O. Hanotte, and R. M. Christley. 2018. The role of local adaptation in sustainable production of village chickens.  Nature Sustainability 1 (10):574-82. doi: 10.1038/s41893-018-0150–9.
• Borrell, J. S., S. Dodsworth, F. Forest, O. A. Perez-Escobar, M. A. Lee, E. Mattana, P. C. Stevenson, M. J. R. Howes, H. W. Pritchard, D. Ballesteros, B. Kusumoto, I. Ondo, J. Moat, W. Milliken, P. Ryan, T. Ulian, and S. Pironon. 2020. The climatic challenge: Which plants will people use in the next century?  Environmental and Experimental Botany 170. doi: 10.1016/j.envexpbot.2019.103872.
• Büchi, L., M. Wendling, C. Amosse, M. Necpalova, and R. Charles. 2018. Importance of cover crops in alleviating negative effects of reduced soil tillage and promoting soil fertility in a winter wheat cropping system.  Agriculture Ecosystems & Environment 256:92-104. doi: 10.1016/j.agee.2018.01.005.
• Cerretelli, S., L. Poggio, A. Gimona, G. Yakob, S. Boke, M. Habte, M. Coull, A. Peressotti, and H. Black. 2018. Spatial assessment of land degradation through key ecosystem services: The role of globally available data.  Science of the Total Environment 628-629:539-55. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.02.085.
• Coast, O., S. Harden, W. C. Conaty, R. Brodrick, and E. J. Edwards. 2020. Canopy temperature of high-nitrogen water-stressed cotton.  Crop Science 60 (3):1513-29. doi: 10.1002/csc2.20127.
• Constant, N. L., L. H. Swanepoel, S. T. Williams, V. Soarimalala, S. M. Goodman, A. T. Massawe, L. S. Mulungu, R. H. Makundi, M. E. Mdangi, P. J. Taylor, and S. R. Belmain. Comparative assessment on rodent impacts and cultural perceptions of ecologically based rodent management in 3 Afro-Malagasy farming regions.  Integrative Zoology n/a (n/a). doi: 10.1111/1749-4877.12447.
• Elisante, F., P. A. Ndakidemi, S. E. J. Arnold, S. R. Belmain, G. M. Gurr, I. Darbyshire, G. Xie, J. Tumbo, and P. C. Stevenson. 2019. Enhancing knowledge among smallholders on pollinators and supporting field margins for sustainable food security.  Journal of Rural Studies 70:75-86. doi: 10.1016/j.jrurstud.2019.07.004.
• Grafton, R. Q., L. Doyen, C. Bene, E. Borgomeo, K. Brooks, L. Chu, G. S. Cumming, J. Dixon, S. Dovers, D. Garrick, A. Helfgott, Q. Jiang, P. Katic, T. Kompas, L. R. Little, N. Matthews, C. Ringler, D. Squires, S. I. Steinshamn, S. Villasante, S. Wheeler, J. Williams, and P. R. Wyrwoll. 2019. Realizing resilience for decision-making.  Nature Sustainability 2 (10):907-13. doi: 10.1038/s41893-019-0376-1.
• Haggar, J., R. Lamboll, V. Nelson, and J. Rodenburg. 2020. Understanding different perspectives on Sustainable Agricultural Intensification and how it can be achieved.  International Journal of Agricultural Sustainability (Special Issue on Enabling conditions for smallholder, women and youth participation in Sustainable Agricultural Intensification in Africa).
• Haggar, J., D. Pons, L. Saenz, and M. Vides. 2019. Contribution of agroforestry systems to sustaining biodiversity in fragmented forest landscapes.  Agriculture Ecosystems & Environment 283. doi: 10.1016/j.agee.2019.06.006.
• Haggar, J., G. Soto, F. Casanoves, and E. D. Virginio. 2017. Environmental-economic benefits and trade-offs on sustainably certified coffee farms.  Ecological Indicators 79:330-7. doi: 10.1016/j.ecolind.2017.04.023.
• Herath, Hmli, P. Moldrup, L. W. de Jonge, M. Nicolaisen, T. Norgaard, E. Arthur, and M. Paradelo. 2017. Clay-to-Carbon Ratio Controls the Effect of Herbicide Application on Soil Bacterial Richness and Diversity in a Loamy Field.  Water Air and Soil Pollution 228 (1). doi: 10.1007/s11270-016-3175-6.
• Ifeanyi-Obi, C. C., A. O. Togun, R. Lamboll, and S. Arokoyu. 2017. Socio-Economic Determinants of Cocoyam Farmer's Strategies for Climate Change Adaptation in Southeast Nigeria.  Journal of Agricultural Extension 21 (2):91-104. doi: 10.4314/jae.v21i2.8.
• Kamara, L. I., P. Dorward, B. Lalani, and E. Wauters. 2019. Unpacking the drivers behind the use of the Agricultural Innovation Systems (AIS) approach: The case of rice research and extension professionals in Sierra Leone.  Agricultural Systems 176. doi: 10.1016/j.agsy.2019.102673.
• Kumari, Kgid, P. Moldrup, M. Paradelo, L. Elsgaard, and L. W. de Jonge. 2017. Effects of Biochar on Dispersibility of Colloids in Agricultural Soils.  Journal of Environmental Quality 46 (1):143-52. doi: 10.2134/jeq2016.08.0290.
• Lalani, B., P. Dorward, and G. Holloway. 2017. Farm-level Economic Analysis - Is Conservation Agriculture Helping the Poor?  Ecological Economics 141:144-53. doi: 10.1016/j.ecolecon.2017.05.033.
• Lara-Estrada, L., L. Rasche, L. E. Sucar, and U. A. Schneider. 2018. Inferring Missing Climate Data for Agricultural Planning Using Bayesian Networks.  Land 7 (1). doi: 10.3390/land7010004.
• Mahon, N., I. Crute, M. Di Bonito, E. A. Simmons, and M. M. Islam. 2018. Towards a broad-based and holistic framework of Sustainable Intensification indicators.  Land Use Policy 77:576-97. doi: 10.1016/j.landusepol.2018.06.009.
• Mahon, N., I. Crute, E. Simmons, and M. M. Islam. 2017. Sustainable intensification – “oxymoron” or “third-way”? A systematic review. Ecological Indicators 74:73-97. doi: 10.1016/j.ecolind.2016.11.001.
• Manalil, S., O. Coast, J. Werth, and B. S. Chauhan. 2017. Weed management in cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) through weed-crop competition: A review.  Crop Protection 95:53-9. doi: 10.1016/j.cropro.2016.08.008.
• Mkenda, P. A., P. A. Ndakidemi, P. C. Stevenson, S. E. J. Arnold, I. Darbyshire, S. R. Belmain, J. Priebe, A. C. Johnson, J. Tumbo, and G. M. Gurr. 2020. Knowledge gaps among smallholder farmers hinder adoption of conservation biological control.  Biocontrol Science and Technology 30 (3):256-77. doi: 10.1080/09583157.2019.1707169.
• Morgans, C. L., E. Meijaard, T. Santika, E. Law, S. Budiharta, M. Ancrenaz, and K. A. Wilson. 2018. Evaluating the effectiveness of palm oil certification in delivering multiple sustainability objectives. Environmental Research Letters 13 (6):064032. doi: 10.1088/1748-9326/aac6f4.
• Necpalova, M., J. Lee, C. Skinner, L. Büchi, R. Wittwer, A. Gattinger, M. van der Heijden, P. Mader, R. Charles, A. Berner, J. Mayer, and J. Six. 2018. Potentials to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions from Swiss agriculture.  Agriculture Ecosystems & Environment 265:84-102. doi: 10.1016/j.agee.2018.05.013.
• Nelson, V., and D. Phillips. 2018. Sector, Landscape or Rural Transformations? Exploring the Limits and Potential of Agricultural Sustainability Initiatives through a Cocoa Case Study.  Business Strategy and the Environment 27 (2):252-62. doi: 10.1002/bse.2014.
• Pant, L. P. 2019. Responsible innovation through conscious contestation at the interface of agricultural science, policy, and civil society.  Agriculture and Human Values 36 (2):183-97. doi: 10.1007/s10460-019-09909-2.
• Po, J. Y. T., and G. M. Hickey. 2018. Local institutions and smallholder women's access to land resources in semi-arid Kenya.  Land Use Policy 76:252-63. doi: 10.1016/j.landusepol.2018.03.055.
• Po, J. Y. T., A. S. Saint Ville, H. M. T. Rahman, and G. M. Hickey. 2019. On Institutional Diversity and Interplay in Natural Resource Governance.  Society & Natural Resources 32 (12):1333-43. doi: 10.1080/08941920.2019.1667463.
• Randrianjafizanaka, M. T., P. Autfray, A. P. Andrianaivo, I. R. Ramonta, and J. Rodenburg. 2018. Combined effects of cover crops, mulch, zero-tillage and resistant varieties on Striga asiatica (L.) Kuntze in rice-maize rotation systems.  Agriculture Ecosystems & Environment 256:23-33. doi: 10.1016/j.agee.2017.12.005.
• Rodenburg, J., L. Büchi, and J. Haggar. 2020. Adoption by Adaptation: Moving from Conservation Agriculture to Conservation Practices.  International Journal of Agricultural Sustainability (Special Issue on Enabling conditions for smallholder, women and youth participation in Sustainable Agricultural Intensification in Africa):17. doi: 10.1080/14735903.2020.1785734.
• Rodenburg, J., J.M. Johnson, I. Dieng, K. Senthilkumar, E. Vandamme, C. Akakpo, M.D. Allarangaye, I. Baggie, S.O. Bakare, R.K. Bam, I. Bassoro, B.B. Abera, M. Cisse, W. Dogbe, H. Gbakatchetche, F. Jaiteh, G.J. Kajiru, A. Kalisa, N. Kamissoko, S. Keita, A. Kokou, D. Mapiemfu-Lamare, F.M. Lunze, J. Mghase, I.M. Maïga, D. Nanfumba, A. Niang, R. Rabeson, Z. Segda, F.S. Sillo, A. Tanaka, and K. Saito. 2019. Status quo of chemical weed control in rice in sub-Saharan Africa.  Food Security 11 (1):69-92. doi: 10.1007/s12571-018-0878-0.
• Rodenburg, J., M. T. Randrianjafizanaka, L. Büchi, I. Dieng, A. P. Andrianaivo, L.H. Raveloson Ravaomanarivo, and P. Autfray. 2020. Mixed outcomes from conservation practices on soils and Striga-affected yields of a low input, rice-maize system in Madagascar.  Agronomy for Sustainable Development 40 (8). doi: 10.1007/s13593-020-0612-0.
• Santika, T., K. A. Wilson, S. Budiharta, E. A. Law, T. M. Poh, M. Ancrenaz, M. J. Struebig, and E. Meijaard. 2019. Does oil palm agriculture help alleviate poverty? A multidimensional counterfactual assessment of oil palm development in Indonesia.  World Development 120:105-17. doi: 10.1016/j.worlddev.2019.04.012.
• Santika, T., K. A. Wilson, E. Meijaard, S. Budiharta, E. E. Law, M. Sabri, M. Struebig, M. Ancrenaz, and T.-M. Poh. 2019. Changing landscapes, livelihoods and village welfare in the context of oil palm development.  Land Use Policy 87:104073. doi: 10.1016/j.landusepol.2019.104073.
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