FRAMEWORK: Farmers clusters for realising agrobiodiversity management across ecosystems

This is the First Stage of a H2020 Two-Stage submission bid in which UH is a partner. No costing is required at this stage. If we are invited to proceed to the Second Stage, a full proposal along with a detailed costing will be required.

Agricultural biodiversity is understood to comprise all components of biological diversity that (i) are of relevance for food and agriculture and all components of biological diversity that (ii) constitute agro-ecosystems. It is the result of highly dynamic
interactions between the environment, genetic resources, agricultural practices and historical land management. The various dimensions of agricultural biodiversity play a significant role in conferring stability, resilience and adaptability to farming systems.
The way farmers manage their land has immediate effects on domesticated and native biodiversity. Specialised, intensive agriculture has generally resulted in higher productivity at the expense of decreasing levels of biodiversity, partly due to a lack of incentives for farmers to safeguard biodiversity. This is a H2020 research topic that includes activities to tackle biodiversity decline from various angles ranging from its supporting functions in agro-ecosystems (e.g. through activities of plant and soil biota), the integration of
diversity into farming practices and incentives for wider biodiversity management including native biodiversity.