Farmers today face a complicated host of environmental, social and economic
pressures: protecting water and air resources, mitigating greenhouse gases,
conserving biodiversity and limiting soil erosion, all while trying to make
a living. These challenges are linked, yet most agricultural research of
the last 80 years has approached them from a reductionist standpoint. To
build truly sustainable farming systems, agricultural research must embrace
a multidimensional approach known as agricultural systems research.
*Systems Research for Agriculture* outlines both the theory and practice of
agricultural systems research, helping agricultural professionals to study,
understand and develop economically, socially and environmentally
sustainable production systems. This handbook begins with a brief
introduction to the theoretical basis for agricultural systems research. It
then delivers guidance on how to form effective interdisciplinary and
multi-stakeholder teams, which include farmers and ranchers, and how to
plan, implement and analyze systems experiments.