The Contribution of Agroforestry to Sustainable Development Goal 2: End Hunger, Achieve Food Security and Improved Nutrition, and Promote Sustainable Agriculture

Abstract

Worldwide there are about 1000 million hectares of agroforestry systems (AFS); the most frequent being shaded annual and perennial crops , silvopastoral systems , live fences, and windbreaks . AFS such as homegardens provide households with food and fuelwood as well as with high value products that generate cash. Many indigenous communities still practice AFS today using techniques that include residue management and ash deposition, enhancing nutrient recycling and conservation, and maintaining high species diversity which all promote agroecosystem sustainability . However, these communities often remain marginalized, and poverty and resource degradation prevail. Many international entities, projects and programs, non-profit organizations and others are conducting research for development with AFS geared towards decreasing rural poverty and hunger while maintaining landscape integrity and ecosystem services. They are all trying to resolve similar issues: how to integrate the traditional knowledge of smallholders with scientific knowledge on environmental and agricultural strategies to promote the most suitable systems for each situation; what types of AFS products and markets are most appropriate, and what interventions are most cost effective to achieve these outcomes; how can smallholders access markets for trees and other AFS products, allowing them to capture more of their value, especially for people who are socially or economically marginalized; how can AFS scale out of particular situations and be disseminated at larger scales regionally and internationally. This chapter focuses on these questions by presenting case studies to illustrate practical solutions and remaining challenges.