Publication Abstracts

DeFries and Rosenzweig 2010

DeFries, R., and C. Rosenzweig, 2010: Toward a whole-landscape approach for sustainable land use in the tropics. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci., 107, 19627-19632, doi:10.1073/pnas.1011163107.

Increasing food production and mitigating climate change are two primary but seemingly contradictory objectives for tropical landscapes. This special feature examines synergies and trade-offs among these objectives. Four themes emerge from the papers: the important roles of both forest and agriculture sectors for climate mitigation in tropical countries; the minor contribution from deforestation-related agricultural expansion to overall food production at global and continental scales; the opportunities for synergies between improved food production and reductions in greenhouse gas emissions through diversion of agricultural expansion to already-cleared lands, improved soil, crop, and livestock management, and agroforestry; and the need for targeted policy and management interventions to make these synergistic opportunities a reality. We conclude that agricultural intensification is a key factor to meet dual objectives of food production and climate mitigation, but there is no single panacea for balancing these objectives in all tropical landscapes. Place-specific strategies for sustainable land use emerge from assessments of current land use, demographics, and other biophysical and socioeconomic characteristics, using a whole-landscape, multisector perspective.

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BibTeX Citation

@article{de01500p,
  author={DeFries, R. and Rosenzweig, C.},
  title={Toward a whole-landscape approach for sustainable land use in the tropics},
  year={2010},
  journal={Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences},
  volume={107},
  pages={19627--19632},
  doi={10.1073/pnas.1011163107},
}

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RIS Citation

TY  - JOUR
ID  - de01500p
AU  - DeFries, R.
AU  - Rosenzweig, C.
PY  - 2010
TI  - Toward a whole-landscape approach for sustainable land use in the tropics
JA  - Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci.
JO  - Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
VL  - 107
SP  - 19627
EP  - 19632
DO  - 10.1073/pnas.1011163107
ER  -

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