Document Type
Article
Publication Date
11-6-2013
Publisher
F1000Research
Abstract
Strong feedback between global biodiversity loss and persistent, extreme rural poverty are major challenges in the face of concurrent food, energy, and environmental crises. This paper examines the role of industrial agricultural intensification and market integration as exogenous socio-ecological drivers of biodiversity loss and poverty traps in Latin America. We then analyze the potential of a food sovereignty framework, based on protecting the viability of a diverse agroecological matrix while supporting rural livelihoods and global food production. We review several successful examples of this approach, including ecological land reform in Brazil, agroforestry, milpa, and the uses of wild varieties in smallholder systems in Mexico and Central America. We highlight emergent research directions that will be necessary to assess the potential of the food sovereignty model to promote both biodiversity conservation and poverty reduction.
Recommended Citation
Chappell M.J., H. Wittman, C.M. Bacon, B.G. Ferguson, L. García-Barrios, R. García-Barrios, D. Jaffee, J. Lima, V.E. Méndez, H. Morales, L. Soto-Pinto, J. Vandermeer & I. Perfecto (2013) Food sovereignty: an alternative paradigm for poverty reduction and biodiversity conservation in Latin America [v1; ref status: indexed, http://f1000r.es/23s] F1000Research 2013, 2:235.
Comments
Copyright © 2013 by the author(s). Originally published by F1000Research. http://dx.doi.org/10.12688/f1000research.2-235.v1