Astier, M., L. García-Barrios, Y. Galván-Miyoshi, C. E. González-Esquivel, and O. R. Masera. 2012. Assessing the sustainability of small farmer natural resource management systems. A critical analysis of the MESMIS program (1995-2010). Ecology and Society 17(3): 25. https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-04910-170325

In view of the urgent need to improve agroecosystem sustainability, several efforts have been made to evaluate the effect of alternative strategies on key environmental and socioeconomic variables at the farm, community and regional levels. Most peasant farmers manage complex and diverse agroecosystems, and constantly adapt management strategies with multiple aims. A sustainability evaluation framework for peasant systems has been applied in over 40 case studies in Latin America, from which 15 were analysed, focusing on the choice of indicators, the effect of alternative strategies on agroecosystem sustainability and the trade-offs involved. Common indicators include yields, income, agrodiversity and external input dependence. Alternative strategies include crop/product diversification and soil conservation practices. Yields, income and agrodiversity improved in most cases, but in some cases the establishment costs increased external input use. Trade-offs observed include improved performance of a subsystem (i.e. crops) vs. decreased one in others (livestock, forestry) and increases in productivity vs. decreases in stability, resilience and reliability. The difficulty of assessing systems in transition towards alternative management was acknowledged by some evaluation teams. Applying the framework to such a variety of cases allowed making the sustainability concept operational, promoted alternative strategies and generated knowledge on agroecosystem processes among stakeholders.

The chinampas (raised beds) of Xochimilco, Mexico City, are highly productive, traditional wetland agricultural systems, which were able to feed most of the population in pre-hispanic times. There is a strong trend to substitute chinampas with plastic greenhouses for flower production, which creates negative impacts in the landscape, environment and culture. This study compares the environmental and socio-economic sustainability of chinampas and greenhouses, at both the farm and regional levels, using the MESMIS framework. Even though the results show that greenhouses are more profitable, the contribution of chinampas to ecosystem services cannot be substituted by greenhouses, as tree cover is lost, canals are filled and food is not provided. Greenhouses had a higher diversity, but also a higher agrochemical use and are heavily dependent on external inputs and subsidies. Chinampas have shifted from staple crops to commercial horticulture in order to remain a technically viable and economically feasible option for local farmers. However, compensation mechanisms for the provision of ecosystem services are urgently needed if this ancient system is to be maintained. The framework allowed the integration of indicators at both farm and regional scales, combining on-farm surveys with GIS techniques, which could assist in ecosystem service valuation.

En México y en el mundo, la incorporación de la comunidad científica (entre ellos los ecólogos) a la generación de conocimientos que coadyuven a solucionar los graves problemas ambientales, y avanzar hacia la sustentabilidad, requiere de una visión diferente en la investigación. Más aún, se requiere de herramientas novedosas para acoplar el trabajo de la comunidad científica con el resto de la sociedad. Los ecólogos tienen el reto de volverse innovadores y creadores de nuevos modelos, procesos de colaboración, métodos y herramientas de investigación, básica y aplicada, en temas como la agricultura, la forestería, la ganadería y el uso de los recursos naturales. Para enfrentar este reto, los ecólogos en México necesitan amalgamar su quehacer con el de otros actores académicos y no académicos para impulsar en conjunto procesos de mejoramiento ambiental con beneficios sociales. En esta contribución se revisan retos y perspectivas que se tienen en México en el campo de innovación ecotecnológica. Se propone fomentar el trabajo de investigación en laboratorios sin muros, en los cuales grupos flexibles de actores diseñen, prueben y evalúen innovaciones tecnológicas que respondan a problemáticas ambientales y socioecológicas locales y regionales específicas.

González-Esquivel, C. E., M. E. Gavito, M. Astier, M. Cadena-Salgado, E. del-Val, L. Villamil-Echeverri, Y. Merlín-Uribe, and P. Balvanera. 2015. Ecosystem service trade-offs, perceived drivers, and sustainability in contrasting agroecosystems in central Mexico. Ecology and Society 20(1): 38. https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-06875-200138