Table 1 Using ecological, socio-technical and socio-economic concepts for renewed and tested research frameworks (adapted from Caquet et al. 2020). The first column describes ecological objectives on which agroecology is based compared to conventional agriculture. The second column describes socio-technical and socio-economic consequences for innovation and scaling up of agroecology compared to conventional agriculture.
From: A research agenda for scaling up agroecology in European countries
Objectives | Consequences for agricultural development | ||
|---|---|---|---|
Conventional agriculture | |||
Individual-focused paradigm Obtaining the highest-performing individual in an optimal environment | Norms and references Producing and adapting norms and references in agronomy | ||
Agroecology | |||
Adapt and use ecological concepts in agroecosystems | Emergence of innovative socio-technical niches and conditions for scaling them up | ||
Reconsider living organisms ➔ interactions Stoichiometry Phenotypic plasticity, adaptation, evolution, etc. | Reconsider diversity ➔ integration at field, farm and landscape scales Trophic and mutualist networks, spatial ecology, etc. | Socio-technical conditions for the agroecological transition New cropping systems, decrease in nutrient and pesticide inputs, crop-animal integration, etc. | Socio-economic conditions for transitions of agri-food systems New agricultural products, new processing chains and markets, working time, etc. |
Design agroecosystems from field to landscape scales | Transitions and breaks with the status quo in territories and agri-food systems | ||
Exploration of resources (symbioses, mixtures, etc.), recycling | Functional integrity of the agri-food system and territories | ||
Paradigm of interaction and integration Obtaining the highest-performing combinations in heterogeneous and changing environments | Sharing of learning experiences Adaptation loops, new equipment | Values for system success Including ecosystem services, and social and economic dimensions | |