Context: In the face of dual challenges of sustainable food production and biodiversity conservation, the knowledge gaps of farmers about biodiversity, pests, and their natural enemies can become a crucial barrier to adopting sustainable land management practices. Objective: The study aimed to assess farmers ' knowledge and understanding of crop pest and natural enemy diversity and their impacts, and whether the adoption Climate -Smart or Conservation Agriculture (CSA here onwards) was associated with this knowledge. Methods: We conducted questionnaire -based interviews and showed biodiversity images, including crop pests and beneficial insects, to understand farmers knowledge of biodiversity on their farms. A comparison was drawn between farmers practising CSA and non-CSA farmers to understand the role of CSA in enhancing biodiversity knowledge. Results and conclusions: Farmers facing greater yield losses were aware of pests, but they were less knowledgeable about their natural enemies, and they used fewer conservation management practices. CSA farmers, however, showed more biodiversity knowledge, especially of natural enemies, and they employed a wider range CS management practices. Farmers ' age, experience, education, and training were positively correlated with biodiversity knowledge, leading to better natural enemy conservation and pest management practices. Significance: The findings underscore the need for biodiversity-focused capacity building in sustainable agricultural programs, targeting less knowledgeable farming groups. It emphasises the crucial role of farmers ' knowledge in developing sustainable and biodiversity-friendly food production systems. Africa, East Usambara Mountains, Food security, Biodiversity conservation, Invertebrates, Crop pests, Climate -Smart Agriculture, Farmer education.

Improving nutrition security in sub-Saharan Africa under increasing climate risks and population growth requires a strong and contextualized evidence base. Yet, to date, few studies have assessed climate-smart agriculture and nutrition security simultaneously. Here we use an integrated assessment framework (iFEED) to explore stakeholder-driven scenarios of food system transformation towards climate-smart nutrition security in Malawi, South Africa, Tanzania and Zambia. iFEED translates climate-food-emissions modelling into policy-relevant information using model output implication statements. Results show that diversifying agricultural production towards more micronutrient-rich foods is necessary to achieve an adequate population-level nutrient supply by mid-century. Agricultural areas must expand unless unprecedented rapid yield improvements are achieved. While these transformations are challenging to accomplish and often associated with increased greenhouse gas emissions, the alternative for a nutrition-secure future is to rely increasingly on imports, which would outsource emissions and be economically and politically challenging given the large import increases required.

The challenges of climate change, food insecurity and land degradation have all led to a push for 'scaling' innovation for sustainable agriculture. For this purpose, international agricultural development projects often use farm trials or farmer field schools as a way for farmers to engage with technically-constructed knowledge and empirical evidence. However, the role of such trials in the socio-political construction of knowledge is often overlooked. This study conceptualises agricultural development interventions as taking place within an interaction space between researchers and farmers. Unpacking the processes and dynamics of the interaction space from four case studies across Malawi and mainland Tanzania, we present findings which evaluate: 1) how agricultural innovation takes place in the context of funded agricultural development projects, and 2) how space for technical and social knowledge construction can be opened up or closed down in these contexts. Results show that farm trials provide a basis for interaction, but that knowledge exchange in these contexts also require knowledge brokers for successful implementation and scaling. Both knowledge brokers, and the trials themselves shape social dynamics, often simultaneously facilitating social learning for some, but contributing to social exclusions for others. A strong connection was identified between the design of the interaction space and social dynamics evident within it, indicative of the close interconnection between the processes of socio-political and technical construction of knowledge. Key factors open or close the interaction space, such as the continuity of knowledge brokers and the complexity of technologies. Improving the effectiveness of innovation for sustainable agriculture, requires opening up the interaction space to enable more effective and sustained co-creation of technologies, social learning and the collaborative construction of shared knowledge.

IntroductionSoybean farming in Zambia is promoted to increase farm productivity and diversification away from maize, and improve cash income and livelihoods for farmers. However, the impact of soybean farming on women's dietary intake is not clear. This study compares the dietary diversity of women from soybean (S) and non-soybean (NS) farming households as a pathway to understanding policy efficacy.MethodsA cross-sectional survey involving 268 women of reproductive age from 401 rural households was conducted in two soybean-producing districts of Central Province, Zambia. Data from a qualitative 7-day food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) was used to calculate dietary diversity scores (DDS), women's dietary diversity scores (WDDS-10) and assess dietary patterns. Information on household sociodemographic and agricultural characteristics was used to explore determinants of dietary diversity.ResultsResults show there were no significant differences in the mean DDS (S: 10.3 ± 2.4; NS:10.3 ± 2.6) and WDDS-10 (S:6.27 ± 1.55; NS:6.27 ± 1.57) of women from soybean and non-soybean farming households. Both cohorts had similar dietary patterns, plant-based food groups with additional fats and oils. Agricultural diversity was not associated with dietary diversity. Household wealth status was the most important determinant of dietary diversity, as women from wealthier households were more likely to have higher DDS (β = 0.262, 95% CI = 0.26 to 0.70, P < 0.001) and WDDS-10 (β = 0.222, 95% CI = 0.08 to 0.37, P < 0.003) compared to those from poorer households. Women from households that spent more on food had a higher DDS (β = 0.182, 95% CI = 0.002 to 0.07), but not WDDS-10 (β = 0.120, 95% CI = −0.01 to 0.03); for every additional dollar spent on food in the past 7 days, the DDS increased by 0.18. Meanwhile, soyabean farming was not statistically associated with higher wealth.ConclusionsPolicymakers and promoters of agricultural diversification and nutrition-sensitive agriculture need to consider how women can benefit directly or indirectly from soybean farming or other interventions aimed at smallholder farmers.

Climate change will put millions more people in Africa at risk of food and nutrition insecurity by 2050. Integrated assessments of food systems tend to be limited by either heavy reliance on models or a lack of information on food and nutrition security. Accordingly, we developed a novel integrated assessment framework that combines models with in-country knowledge and expert academic judgement to explore climate-smart and nutrition-secure food system futures: the integrated Future Estimator for Emissions and Diets (iFEED). Here, we describe iFEED and present its application in Malawi, South Africa, Tanzania and Zambia. The iFEED process begins with a participatory scenario workshop. In-country stakeholders identify two key drivers of food system change, and from these, four possible scenarios are defined. These scenarios provide the underlying narratives of change to the food system. Integrated modeling of climate change, food production and greenhouse gas emissions is then used to explore nutrition security and climate-smart agriculture outcomes for each scenario. Model results are summarized using calibrated statements—quantitative statements of model outcomes and our confidence in them. These include statements about the way in which different trade futures interact with climate change and domestic production in determining nutrition security at the national level. To understand what the model results mean for food systems, the calibrated statements are expanded upon using implication statements. The implications rely on input from a wide range of academic experts—including agro-ecologists and social scientists. A series of workshops are used to incorporate in-country expertise, identifying any gaps in knowledge and summarizing information for country-level recommendations. iFEED stakeholder champions help throughout by providing in-country expertise and disseminating knowledge to policy makers. iFEED has numerous novel aspects that can be used and developed in future work. It provides information to support evidence-based decisions for a climate-smart and nutrition-secure future. In particular, iFEED: (i) employs novel and inclusive reporting of model results and associated in-country food system activities, with comprehensive reporting of uncertainty; (ii) includes climate change mitigation alongside adaptation measures; and (iii) quantifies future population-level nutrition security, as opposed to simply assessing future production and food security implications.

An adequate supply of energy, micronutrients and macronutrients is essential to achieve food and nutrition security to prevent malnutrition. Socio-economic, political, and climatic events, however, can affect the supply of food and nutrients. We assessed country-level supply trends of food and nutrients and their sources within the context of policy changes and political, socio-economic and climatic events from 1961 to 2013 in Zambia. Due to the lack of national food consumption data, food supply data from the FAO food balance sheets, matched to food composition tables, were used to estimate the energy, macronutrient and micronutrient content of 264 food items available to Zambia. We calculated historical nutrient supplies based on demographic characteristics and population-level dietary requirements. Results showed that Zambia was nutrition insecure from 1961 to 2013 for key micronutrients vitamin A, folate, riboflavin, vitamin B12, calcium, zinc, iron, and energy-deficient from the late-1980s. The diet has not substantially changed over time, with maize being the dominant food source. However, refined energy-dense food has steadily increased in the diet coupled with a reduction in fibre. These nutrient supply and dietary pattern trends coincide with specific socio-economic, policy, political, and climatic events from the 1970s to the early-mid 2000s, such as population growth, maize subsidy and crop diversification policies, regime change and drought. This study shows how policy, political and climatic events have been central features shaping nutrient supplies and the consequences for nutrition security. The study provides a context to inform future food policies to improve food and nutrition security.

Biophysical evaluations of climate-smart agriculture (CSA) often overlook the potential interactions with and implications for biodiversity and ecosystem services, which are important determinants of food system resilience and sustainability. Drawing on a case study in the East Usambara Mountains, Tanzania, we compare the impacts of CSA with other agricultural management practices on invertebrate pest and natural enemy diversity, and the associated effects on crop damage and crop yield. We found that the most common CSA practices in the region, terracing and trenching with live and compost mulches, provided the best outcomes for crop production, pest suppression and agricultural income. However, greater diversity of pests was observed when neighboring fields planted improved crop varieties, suggesting that the use of improved varieties by farmers creates increased vulnerability to pest damage among neighboring farmers that used local varieties. Also, greater natural enemy diversity was found when neighboring fields were either intercropped or left fallow highlighting spatial flows of ecosystem services between fields. Landcover heterogeneity was positively correlated with pest diversity, whilst landcover richness was positively associated with higher pest volume, highlighting the importance of landscape characteristics in pest and natural enemy dynamics. Finally, we found that crop damage was most severe when pest communities had low species richness, suggesting that a small number of key crop pests contribute to most yield losses. Our findings illustrate that those varied combinations of agricultural management practices lead to heterogeneous biodiversity outcomes and trade-offs, and highlight the importance of local management, neighborhood effects and landscape characteristics. CSA evaluations must therefore look beyond productivity as a measure for success, as trade-offs with invertebrate biodiversity, food production, and environmental sustainability often interact and feedback in complex and unexpected ways.

Soil health is key to building resilience into agricultural and food systems in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), where climate change presents a major challenge and unsustainable land management practices have exacerbated land degradation. A suite of interventions labelled climate-smart agriculture (CSA) such as conservation agriculture (cover cropping, mulching, crop rotation, intercropping, minimum/zero tillage, crop residue management), soil and water conservation (contour planting, terraces and bunds, planting pits, and irrigation) and agroforestry are promoted in SSA to improve soil health but adoption among smallholder farmers remains low. A strong evidence base on the impacts of CSA interventions on soil health in different agro-ecosystems in SSA is lacking. This contributes to weak policies and institutional support as well as conflicting messages that farmers receive about CSA impacts, which limit their adoption and lead to disadoption. Farmers’ knowledge of their soils influences their land management decisions and is an important factor in the uptake of CSA interventions. Using a multi-method approach that combines conventional soil testing and farmers’ visual techniques, we examined the impacts of soil and water conservation techniques on soil health indicators in the East Usambara Mountains of Tanzania. The link between farmers’ soil knowledge and their land management decisions was also explored in a wider review of lessons from the African Highlands. Farmers’ observed changes in selected soil health indicators, which influenced their land management decisions did not always match results of conventional soil testing, highlighting the need for integrating farmers’ observational techniques and conventional soil testing for a more targeted and comprehensive assessment of soil health. A hybrid approach to soil assessment is outlined that could foster greater uptake of sustainable land management practices including CSA by farmers in SSA and should be proactively pursued by soil scientists to ensure that their efforts translate to actions by land managers.

Emerging information on the interactions between the COVID-19 pandemic and global food systems have highlighted how the pandemic is accentuating food crises across Africa. Less clear, however, are how the impacts differ between farming systems. Drawing on 50 key informant interviews with farmers, village leaders and extension officers in South Africa and Tanzania, we identify the effects of COVID-19 and associated measures to curb the spread of the disease on farming production systems, the coping mechanisms adopted by farmers, and explore their longer-term plans for adaptation. We focus on a diverse range of production systems, from small-scale mixed farming systems in Tanzania to large-scale corporate farms in South Africa. Our findings highlight how COVID-19 restrictions have interrupted the supply chains of agricultural inputs and commodities, increasing the storage time for produce, decreasing income and purchasing power, and reducing labour availability. Farmers’ responses were heterogeneous, with highly diverse small-scale farming systems and those less engaged with international markets least affected by the associated COVID-19 measures. Large-scale farmers were most able to access capital to buffer short-term impacts, whereas smaller-scale farms shared labour, diversified to subsistence produce and sold assets. However, compounded shocks, such as recent extreme climate events, limited the available coping options, particularly for smaller-scale and emerging farmers. The study highlights the need to understand the characteristics of farm systems to better equip and support farmers, particularly in contexts of uncertainty. We propose that policy actions should focus on (i) providing temporary relief and social support and protection to financially vulnerable stakeholders, (ii) job assurance for farmworkers and engaging an alternative workforce in farming, (iii) investing in farming infrastructure, such as storage facilities, digital communication tools and extension services, and (iv) supporting diversified agroecological farming systems.

Global interest and investment in food system transformation should be accompanied by critical analysis of its justice implications. Multiple forms of injustice, and the potential role that research might play in exacerbating these, are key considerations for those engaging with food system transformation and justice.

Improving soil health is necessary for increasing agricultural productivity and providing multiple ecosystem services. In the African Highlands (AH) where conversion of forests to cultivation on steep slopes is leading to soil degradation, sustainable land management practices are vital. Farmers' awareness of soil health indicators (SHI) influences their choice of land management and needs to be better understood to improve communication between land managers and other stakeholders in agricultural systems. This study aims to collate and evaluate case study analyses of farmers' awareness and use of soil health indicators in African Highlands. This is achieved by using a multi-method approach that combines a meta-summary analysis of AH's SHI data from 24 published studies together with farmer interviews in the East Usambara Mountain region of Tanzania (EUM). Our findings show that farmers across the AH use observable attributes of the landscape as SHI. Out of 16 SHI reported by the farmers, vegetation performance/crop yield and soil colour were most frequently used across the AH. These were also the only two SHI that influenced farmers' land management decisions in the EUM, where organic manure addition was the only land management option resulting from observed changes in SHI. Farmers' use of only one or two SHI in land management decisions, as is the case in the EUM, seems to limit their choice and/or adoption of sustainable land management options, highlighting the need to increase awareness and use of more relevant SHI. This could be achieved by sharing SHI knowledge through learning alliances and agricultural extension service. Integration of farmers' observation techniques and conventional soil testing in a hybrid approach is recommended for a more targeted assessment of soil health to inform appropriate and sustainable land management practices.

There is significant international investment and effort in the development, piloting and upscaling of climate smart agriculture (CSA), with particular emphasis on delivering benefits to smallholder farmers through programmes of CSA interventions. However, there is poor understanding of how smallholder farmers access beneficial outcomes from changes in agricultural practices, beyond narrow and simplistic metrics, such as adoption rates and yield increases. Furthermore, binary notions of adopters and non-adopters provides a poor basis for understanding innovation within complex farming systems. By integrating an innovation systems perspective with the theory of affordances, we explore how agricultural innovation happens in the context of two CSA interventions in the Tanga Region of Tanzania, to examine who has access to, and is able to benefit from interventions, who does not, and why. Drawing on ethnographic and interview data involving over 200 participants, we demonstrate how innovation processes in this context are diverse and non-linear, and discuss how potential outcomes derived from programmes are shaped by farmers' affordances. We argue that common programme reporting metrics fail to account for the dynamic and nonlinearity of innovation processes and risk overlooking unintended outcomes of interventions. We propose that interventions should be conceived with an appreciation of context and affordances from the outset, to support how they engage with the least capable from the very beginning.

African woodland ecosystems function as important reservoirs for soil organic carbon (SOC) and total nitrogen (TN). However, these ecosystem functions are particularly sensitive to social-ecological factors, the impacts of which remain understudied. Here, we examine how SOC and TN and other soil properties vary across woodland types and how charcoal production, the main source of woodland disturbance in the study area, changes these factors in dry woodlands of southern Africa, focusing on three woodland ecosystems that represent the main types in southern Mozambique: Androstachys forest, Combretum woodland and Mopane woodlands. Drawing on data from soil surveys at 0-5 cm and 0-30 cm depth in different vegetation types as well as both distant from and proximate to sites of active charcoal production, we estimate that these woodlands in Mabalane District store on average 19 +/- 10 ( +/- SE) Mg ha(-1) of SOC, and 2.2 +/- 0.9 Mg ha(-1) of TN at 0-30 cm, significantly lower than values reported for other woodlands in the region such as Miombo. Our analysis shows that the woodland types do not differ in terms of the amount of SOC and TN stored in soil, and that soil in the charcoal kilns had twice the amount of SOC (30.0 +/- 1.8 Mg ha(-1)) and TN (4.5 +/- 0.5 Mg ha(-1)) compared with non-charcoal soils. This study adds to our understanding of the impact of charcoal production on soil SOC and TN in dry woodlands of southern Africa, and demonstrates some localised impacts of charcoal production. We discuss the implications of our findings in the light of emerging carbon-based payments for ecosystem services programmes in the region.

Intensifying land use is often seen as a corollary of improving rural livelihoods in developing countries. However, land use intensification (LUI) frequently has unintended impacts on ecosystem services (ES), which may undermine the livelihoods of the same people who could benefit from intensification. Poorer households are disproportionately dependent on ES, so inequalities may also rise. A disaggregated analysis of LUI is thus fundamental to better understand how LUI can progress in an equitable manner. Using a suite of multi-scale, multidisciplinary social-ecological methods and operationalising multidimensional concepts of land use intensity and wellbeing, we examine three case studies in rural Mozambique. Drawing on interviews, focus group discussions, 1576 household surveys and geospatial data from 27 Mozambican villages, we assess how wellbeing and inequality change with three common LUI pathways: transitions to smallholder commercial crop production, charcoal production, and subsistence expansion. Wellbeing improved with intensification of smallholder commercial and subsistence agriculture, inequality did not change. Unsustainable intensification of charcoal production showed no overall effect on either wellbeing or inequality. Improvements in wellbeing amongst the poorest households were only found with intensification of commercial crop production, where villages had better access to markets. Our findings suggest that socioeconomic benefits from agricultural intensification and expansion may overcome localised environmental trade-offs, at least in the short term. However, unsustainable charcoal resource management and limited productive investment opportunities for rural households resulted in both reduced market access and limited wellbeing improvements. Sustainable and inclusive markets are therefore crucial developments alongside LUI to sustain wellbeing improvements for all households, to ensure that no one is left behind.

In a context of both long-term climatic changes and short-term climatic shocks, temporal dynamics profoundly influence ecosystems and societies. In low income contexts in the Tropics, where both exposure and vulnerability to climatic fluctuations is high, the frequency, duration, and trends in these fluctuations are important determinants of socio-ecological resilience. In this paper, the dynamics of six diverse socio-ecological systems (SES) across the Tropics - ranging from agricultural and horticultural systems in Africa and Oceania to managed forests in South East Asia and coastal systems in South America - are examined in relation to the 2015-16 El Nino, and the longer context of climatic variability in which this short-term 'event' occurred. In each case, details of the socio-ecological characteristics of the systems and the climate phenomena experienced during the El Nino event are described and reflections on the observed impacts of, and responses to it are presented. Drawing on these cases, we argue that SES resilience (or lack of) is, in part, a product of both long-term historical trends, as well as short-term shocks within this history. Political and economic lock-ins and dependencies, and the memory and social learning that originates from past experience, all contribute to contemporary system resilience. We propose that the experiences of climate shocks can provide a window of insight into future ecosystem responses and, when combined with historical perspectives and learning from multiple contexts and cases, can be an important foundation for efforts to build appropriate long-term resilience strategies to mediate impacts of changing and uncertain climates.

Sub-Saharan Africa's charcoal sector is rarely considered a mechanism for rural development or poverty alleviation; instead, current regulations often marginalise rural producers. The development of a sustainable sector, that does not further marginalise rural populations, is restricted by limited understanding of these stakeholders. We assess the heterogeneity of rural producers supplying two differentially sized urban charcoal markets in Mozambique. Drawing on data from 767 household surveys, our findings suggest that the size of the urban market affects the type of rural producer and their scales of production. Overall household income of producers supplying the larger urban market were proportionally more dependent on charcoal for income generation; small-scale producers in particular relied most on charcoal income, contributing >95% of household incomes. In contrast, producers supplying the smaller market had more diversified incomes, and were thus less dependent on charcoal income. Larger-scale producers were generally wealthier; their absolute incomes were higher and they were proportionally the least dependent on charcoal income. Further findings suggest that rural charcoal production was not necessarily the domain of the poorest of the poor and the existence of producers trapped in small-scale production may be a consequence of larger urban markets, rather than an intrinsic characteristic of the sector. Predicted growth of smaller urban areas and associated higher demand for charcoal will provide substantial opportunities for rural income generation, most likely leading to shifts in producers and production scales. Rather than transferring existing formal approaches, which marginalise rural stakeholders, small urban areas provide opportunities to develop equitable production systems, with potential to deliver sustainable energy and rural development. The heterogeneity of rural producers calls for better-targeted interventions that incorporate the importance of charcoal production for rural livelihoods. (C) 2018 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Growing urban populations in Sub-Saharan Africa are increasing demand for charcoal. This paper presents a detailed case study of three communities supplying charcoal to Zomba, a medium-sized city in Southern Malawi. Using the Sustainable Livelihoods Framework to structure our analysis, we examine individuals' motivations for producing charcoal, assess the seasonality of charcoal production, how livelihood outcomes vary between men and women, and identify sources of vulnerability for charcoal producer livelihoods. Drawing on data from four focus group exercises in each community and a total of 42 semi-structured interviews, we identify direct (e.g. financial) and indirect (e.g. strengthening of social networks, improved access to goods and services, opportunities for livelihood diversification) benefits that contribute to reducing producers' vulnerability to financial insecurity and improve their livelihoods. Irrespective of the benefits obtained and the actions (e.g. prioritising charcoal production over farming) of producers, participants did not perceive charcoal production as a desirable activity because the work was illegal, stigmatised hard and dangerous. Producers' primary motivations for engaging in production were to provide income to meet one-off purchases of expensive items, respond to an income shock, or to meet recurrent seasonal needs. Under certain conditions women were more dependent on income from charcoal production than men, as they had fewer alternative income generating options available to them. There was no reported management of charcoal resources in the study area, therefore the environmental sustainability of charcoal production and its associated benefits are uncertain. Malawi's current de facto charcoal ban leads to enforcement activities that exacerbate livelihood risks and increase producers' vulnerability to income insecurity.

Harriet Elizabeth Smithab, Felix Eigenbrodbc, Dalitso Kafumbatad, Malcolm D. Hudsonab* & Kate Schreckenbergaba Centre for Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Engineering and the Environment, University of Southampton, Southampton SO17 1BJ, UKb Institute for Life Sciences, University of Southampton, Southampton SO17 1BJ, UKc Centre for Biological Sciences, Faculty of Natural and Environmental Sciences, University of Southampton, Southampton, SO17 1BJ, UKd Chancellor College, University of Malawi, P.O Box 280, Zomba, Malawi