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Background This cross-sectional study evaluates occupational health hazards among farmers’ exposure to pesticides in Chikkaballapura, Karnataka, India, focusing on health complaints, demographic factors, occupational history and pesticide-handling practices. Methods A total of 226 participants were recruited, comprising 109 exposed farmers and 117 unexposed controls matched by age and gender. Structured questionnaires addressing demographics,and lifestyle characteristics, pesticide application practices, management procedures, and health complaints were used to gather data. Results Significant demographic disparities emerged, with a higher prevalence of younger individuals (≤ 30 years) in the exposed group (32%) than in the unexposed (18%, p  = 0.002). Education levels also differed: 12% of exposed farmers had postgraduate education compared to 3% of the unexposed group ( p  = 0.009). Dietary practices and lifestyle characteristics like chewing tobacco, drinking alcohol, and smoking did not significantly differ between groups. Occupational practices revealed critical safety gaps. The use of personal protective equipment (PPE) was limited, with only 27% of exposed farmers reporting the use of masks, 20% wearing goggles, and 15% using gloves. Many exposed farmers engaged in high-risk tasks, including pesticide mixing (62%) and weekly pesticide applications (52%), often without the use of PPE. Health complaints were significantly more common in the exposed group: 35% reported fatigue (compared to 20% in controls, χ² = 5.51, p = < 0.05). In contrast, respiratory problems were absent in the control group and evident in 9% of the exposed group. Musculoskeletal issues, including backache (32%), and neck pain (36%), were notably higher among exposed farmers. Dermatological symptoms like burns (21%, χ² = 12.9, p = < 0.05), blisters (15%, χ² = 4.85, p  < 0.05), and eye issues, including irritation (11%, χ² = 5.60, p  < 0.05) and blurred vision (8%, χ² = 4.55, p  < 0.05), were also significantly elevated among exposed farmers. These findings underscore the urgent need for comprehensive interventions, including regulatory policies to improve access to PPE, safety training, and targeted educational programs for younger and less-educated farmers. Conclusion This study contributes essential data for developing targeted, context-specific preventive strategies to safeguard health in rural farming communities. In order to evaluate the long-term health effects of pesticide exposures, future research should look into pesticide residue monioring in enviornmental and biological samples, demographic, socioeconomic, and occupational factors that shape exposure risk, thereby informing policies to protect agricultural workers.

The aim of this paper is to contribute towards emergent debates on the 'quality' of multifunctional trajectories in rural development. The focus will be placed on the local rural community level, as it is at this level that multifunctionality is most often implemented. There has been an identified need for a new concept of multifunctionality that is conceptually and theoretically better anchored in current debates on agricultural/rural change, and for a globally applicable model that draws on existing holistic debates. The paper will suggest a conceptual framework for understanding rural community trajectories based on economic, social and environmental resilience and vulnerability of rural areas. The notion of multifunctional quality will emerge not only as a conceptual model for understanding rural pathways of change, but also as an explanatory tool and as a normative ideal for rural development. The paper builds on debates on multifunctionality extensively shaped by human geographers with the aim to extend the conceptual boundaries of the notion of multifunctionality, to further refine existing understandings of multifunctional transitions in rural communities, and to critically interrogate the components for strong multifunctionality. The paper concludes with a discussion of the complex policy implications associated with a transition from weak to strong multifunctionality.

The realization of the contribution of peasant agriculture to food security in the midst of scenarios of climate change, economic and energy crisis, led to the concepts of food sovereignty and agroecologically based production systems to gain much attention in the developing world in the last two decades. New approaches and technologies involving application of blended modern agricultural science and indigenous knowledge systems and spearheaded by thousands of farmers, NGOs, and some government and academic institutions are proving to enhance food security while conserving agrobiodiversity soil and water resources conservation throughout hundreds of rural communities in the developing world. Case studies from Cuba, Brazil, Philippines, and Africa are presented to demonstrate how the agroecological development paradigm based on the revitalization of small farms which emphasizes diversity, synergy, recycling and integration, and social processes that value community participation and empowerment, proves to be perhaps one of the only viable options to meet present and future food needs. Given the present and predicted near future climate, energy and economic scenarios, agroecology has emerged as one of the most robust pathways towards designing biodiverse, productive, and resilient agroecosystems available today.

There is a growing effort to use access to remote sensing data (RS) in conjunction with crop model simulation capability to improve the accuracy of crop growth and yield estimates. This is critical for sustainable agricultural management and food security, especially in farming communities with limited resources and data. Therefore, the objective of this study was to provide a systematic review of research on data assimilation and summarize how its application varies by country, crop, and farming systems. In addition, we highlight the implications of using process-based crop models (PBCMs) and data assimilation in small-scale farming systems. Using a strict search term, we searched the Scopus and Web of Science databases and found 497 potential publications. After screening for relevance using predefined inclusion and exclusion criteria, 123 publications were included in the final review. Our results show increasing global interest in RS data assimilation approaches; however, 81% of the studies were from countries with relatively high levels of agricultural production, technology, and innovation. There is increasing development of crop models, availability of RS data sources, and characterization of crop parameters assimilated into PBCMs. Most studies used recalibration or updating methods to mainly incorporate remotely sensed leaf area index from MODIS or Landsat into the WOrld FOod STudies (WOFOST) model to improve yield estimates for staple crops in large-scale and irrigated farming systems. However, these methods cannot compensate for the uncertainties in RS data and crop models. We concluded that further research on data assimilation using newly available high-resolution RS datasets, such as Sentinel-2, should be conducted to significantly improve simulations of rare crops and small-scale rainfed farming systems. This is critical for informing local crop management decisions to improve policy and food security assessments.

Rapid urbanization in China has been accompanied by increasingly serious environmental problems in rural areas, and government initiatives to control pollutions have not been successful, particularly with livestock farming pollution. One of the main causes is misunderstanding the changing influence of local Guanxi networks. Based on a case study in Southeast China, it is argued that the traditional Guanxi between villagers have fractured; the old, relatively unitary community has been replaced by different interest groups mainly formed around pig farming, with the pig farming household having stronger and more diverse Guanxi than others. The traditional mutual-help networks no longer have the ability to regulate disreputable behaviors, but exist in a way that tends to support and legitimates newer self-interested and financially-oriented networks, meaning that the ordinary villagers are increasingly caught up in condoning the poor environmental practices of the wealthy pig farmers. The paper concludes by arguing that, like their gifting and social capital counterparts in other countries, successful Guanxi are based on levels of mutuality that are increasingly rare, even in remote rural communities. This means that rather than providing a regulatory check on poor behaviors and practices, traditional Guanxi relationships have the potential to underpin and exacerbate them.

Agriculture is one of the main human activities with direct and indirect effects on the environment. The abandonment of many traditional agricultural practices, mainly for their inability to meet the current requirements of industrial agriculture, has brought to unsustainable agricultural systems characterized by high external energy inputs and by a high fragility to environmental and political shocks. Therefore, sustainable agriculture is nowadays crucial for preserving the environment. Agricultural heritage systems are receiving increasing attention at the international level, as testified by the establishment of the Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems (GIAHS) Programme by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). The aim of the GIAHS Programme is, in fact, to identify and safeguard agro-silvo-pastoral systems resulting from the co-existence between humans and nature, which survived using traditional techniques are still providing many ecosystem services, while maintaining magnificent landscapes, wild and agricultural biodiversity, ancestral knowledge, and strong cultural and social values. These systems, based on sustainable practices, are still able to provide food and livelihood security, resources and services to local communities, but are also examples of adaptation and mitigation to climate change and to different and often difficult environmental conditions, as well as models of resilience and sustainability. In 2018 the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS), together with the Department of Agriculture, Food, Environment and Forestry (DAGRI) of the University of Florence, developed a project called “GIAHS Building Capacity”, aimed at identifying agricultural heritage sites in different parts of the world. This Special Issue collects the results of investigations carried out in thirteen sites in Central and South America, Europe, Africa and Asia offering a wide an coherent perspective on agricultural heritage systems across the world. The papers included in the Special Issue proved that agricultural heritage systems, despite some vulnerabilities mainly due to socio-economic causes rather than to environmental ones, still provide different ecosystem services to local communities, including: food and byproducts supply, soil erosion protection, hydrogeological risk and deforestation defense, agrobiodiversity and biodiversity conservation, cultural landscape preservation, agro-tourism; at the same time they can be important for transmitting traditional knowledge to new generations and for the local identity. The GIAHS programme can play a key role in preserving traditional agricultural systems, and their related agrobiodiversity and ecosystem services, both in developing and developed countries. In fact, its aim is not limited to the conservation of these systems, but the whole Programme is based on the concept of dynamic conservation, as sustainable innovations are needed for the preservation of agricultural heritage systems and, therefore, for the future of rural areas and of rural communities. The research is part of the activities promoted by the UNESCO Chair on Agricultural Heritage Landscapes established at the University of Florence.

Diverse, severe, and location-specific impacts on agricultural production are anticipated with climate change. The last IPCC report indicates that the rise of CO₂ and associated “greenhouse” gases could lead to a 1.4 to 5.8 °C increase in global surface temperatures, with subsequent consequences on precipitation frequency and amounts. Temperature and water availability remain key factors in determining crop growth and productivity; predicted changes in these factors will lead to reduced crop yields. Climate-induced changes in insect pest, pathogen and weed population dynamics and invasiveness could compound such effects. Undoubtedly, climate- and weather-induced instability will affect levels of and access to food supply, altering social and economic stability and regional competiveness. Adaptation is considered a key factor that will shape the future severity of climate change impacts on food production. Changes that will not radically modify the monoculture nature of dominant agroecosystems may moderate negative impacts temporarily. The biggest and most durable benefits will likely result from more radical agroecological measures that will strengthen the resilience of farmers and rural communities, such as diversification of agroecosytems in the form of polycultures, agroforestry systems, and crop-livestock mixed systems accompanied by organic soil management, water conservation and harvesting, and general enhancement of agrobiodiversity. Traditional farming systems are repositories of a wealth of principles and measures that can help modern agricultural systems become more resilient to climatic extremes. Many of these agroecological strategies that reduce vulnerabilities to climate variability include crop diversification, maintaining local genetic diversity, animal integration, soil organic management, water conservation and harvesting, etc. Understanding the agroecological features that underlie the resilience of traditional agroecosystems is an urgent matter, as they can serve as the foundation for the design of adapted agricultural systems. Observations of agricultural performance after extreme climatic events (hurricanes and droughts) in the last two decades have revealed that resiliency to climate disasters is closely linked to farms with increased levels of biodiversity. Field surveys and results reported in the literature suggest that agroecosystems are more resilient when inserted in a complex landscape matrix, featuring adapted local germplasm deployed in diversified cropping systems managed with organic matter rich soils and water conservation-harvesting techniques. The identification of systems that have withstood climatic events recently or in the past and understanding the agroecological features of such systems that allowed them to resist and/or recover from extreme events is of increased urgency, as the derived resiliency principles and practices that underlie successful farms can be disseminated to thousands of farmers via Campesino a Campesino networks to scale up agroecological practices that enhance the resiliency of agroecosystems. The effective diffusion of agroecological technologies will largely determine how well and how fast farmers adapt to climate change.

Wild bees are important pollinators in many ecosystems threatened by anthropogenic disturbance. Urban development can reduce and degrade natural habitat for bees and other pollinators. However, some researchers suggest that cities could also provide refuge for bees, given that agricultural intensification may pose a greater risk. In this study, we surveyed bee communities at 15 farms and gardens across an urban-rural gradient in southeastern Michigan, USA to evaluate the effect of urbanization on bees. We examined how floral resources, bee functional traits, temperature, farm size, and the spatial scale of analysis influence bee response to urbanization. We found that urbanization positively affected bee diversity and evenness but had no effect on total abundance or species richness. Additionally, urbanization altered bee community composition via differential effects on bee species and functional groups. More urbanized sites supported a greater number of exotic, above-ground nesting, and solitary bees, but fewer eusocial bees. Blooming plant species richness positively influenced bee species diversity and richness. Furthermore, the amount of available floral resources was positively associated with exotic and eusocial bee abundances. Across sites, nearly 70% of floral resources were provided by exotic plants, most of which are characterized as weedy but not invasive. Our study demonstrates that urbanization can benefit some bee species and negatively impact others. Notably, Bombus and Lasioglossum (Dialictus), were two important pollinator groups negatively affected by urbanization. Our study supports the idea that urban environments can provide valuable habitat for diverse bee communities, but demonstrates that some bees are vulnerable to urbanization. Finally, while our results indicate that increasing the abundance and richness of floral resources could partially compensate for negative effects of urbanization on bees, the effectiveness of such measures may be limited by other factors, such as urban warming.

Horse gram [Macrotyloma uniflorum (Lam.) Verdc] under the family Fabaceae, has been cultivated for food, folklore medicine and fodder mainly by rural and tribal communities since prehistoric times in Asian and African countries. This valuable ancient legume not only offers diversification and resilience to agro-ecosystems but it also possesses high adaptation in risk-prone traditional farming systems in marginal environments of semi-arid and arid regions. Being a nutrient dense legume with remedial health-promoting effects due to the presence of various bioactive compounds, it is suitable for the development of functional food as well as for addressing micronutrient deficiencies among poor rural communities. Despite its enormous potential and a growing awareness about the utility of this underutilized crop for future climate adaptation and human well-being, this legume continues to be seriously neglected and labelled as “food of the poors”. India is the major producer of horse gram and presently, cultivation of horse gram remains confined to small-scale farming systems as an inter-or mixed crop. This crop is alienated from mainstream agriculture and relegated to a status of “underutilized” due to its limited competitiveness as compared to other commercial crops. Besides a scanty basic research on this crop, no attention has been paid to the factors like improvement of plant type, yield improvement, processing, value addition to suit consumer needs and reduction of anti-nutritional factors, which restricted the diffusion of this crop outside its niche area. The present review therefore is an attempt to compile the meagre information available on crop history, evolution, genetic enhancement, nutritional and health benefits to make the crop competitive and revitalize horse gram cultivation.

It is important to quantify the emissions from livestock to adapt mitigation practices for the rural communities where the livestock populations lie. This study reviewed the existing empirical models and selected a simple model that requires only one input, i.e., the dry matter intake (DMI), to estimate methane emissions from livestock. This input can be easily recorded by the rural communities to quantify the emissions from their livestock. The data required to estimate the methane emissions is collected from selected rural communities in the northern part of India. It is observed from the pilot study that based on the quantity of feed, the emissions are highest for buffaloes (133.65–275.63 g/d/livestock) followed by cows (109.2–217.42 g/d/livestock) and sheep (41.81–58.93 g/d/livestock). The study also recommends the necessity to focus on quality feeds, feed additives such as coconut oil and seaweed, using improved forage varieties, technological innovations for breeding, manure management, and sustainable integrated livestock farming systems. Policies and schemes are also required to mainstream research on livestock and issues leading to emissions, such as scaling up the production of low-emission species like poultry, sheep, and pigs. Policies promoting mixed farming and advanced breeding research, improved feed quality and accessibility, and policies to support incentives that can drive behavioral changes among producers and consumers should also be analyzed and updated. Livestock are mainly in rural communities, and hence it is an important task for researchers and academicians to train the rural communities to quantify the emissions, and the adaptation and mitigation practices to overcome them. The outcome of the study can be used as resource material to empower rural communities.