Agro-ecology research: CIRAD and INRA showcase their joint position

06/12/2016 - Article

Agro-ecology is a scientific priority for both CIRAD and INRA. In both North and South, the agro-ecological approach is key to the development of sustainable, versatile farming systems. It has established a new paradigm for designing sustainable food systems. With this in mind, CIRAD and INRA have identified five lines of research: biodiversity; the main bio-geochemical cycles; landscapes and territories; production systems; and innovation systems.

CIRAD and INRA have released a guidance paper that pinpoints agro-ecology as one of their main scientific priorities, in line with:

  • societal expectations;
  • sustainable development issues in the light of global change;
  • public policy in France (agro-ecology project) and various southern countries, in favour of agro-ecology;
  • international initiatives such as those of the UN (Sustainable Development Goals) and the FAO, to promote sustainable production.

A way of switching to sustainable agriculture in both North and South

The two research organizations are convinced that agro-ecology is a way of switching to sustainable, versatile farming systems, in both northern and southern countries. In industrialized countries, high agricultural productivity has meant biodiversity losses, standardization, increasingly artificial landscapes, and pollution (soil, air, water). The aim is to strike a better compromise between agriculture and the environment in a context of modernization, homogenization and specialization, in which 2.5% of the population work in agriculture.

In the South, many countries are facing contrasting climates, a population explosion and a lack of investment. Rural employment and poverty are major development issues. The aim is to help small-scale family farmers adapt to climate change without reproducing some of the deadlocks resulting from productivist models.

Five common lines of research

Within this framework, CIRAD and INRA have identified five lines of research in support of the agro-ecological transition:

  • promoting biodiversity and biological regulation;
  • optimizing the main bio-geochemical cycles;
  • managing landscapes and territories;
  • assessing and redesigning production systems;
  • rethinking innovation systems and supporting transitions.

A rapidly developing research topic

As a scientific discipline, agro-ecology is often seen as a cross between ecology and agronomy, with a view to designing and managing sustainable agro-ecosystems. It also calls upon the economic and social sciences in order to come up with versatile systems and foster their deployment through appropriate public policy and support.

For both organizations, agro-ecology is a rapidly developing research topic, with almost 450 articles referenced in 2014.