Agriculture

In the European Union methods of farm production in accordance with the demands of environmental protection and conservation of landscape are regulated by the European Council. Several Polish regional and national programs are planned, regarding mainly the protection of biodiversity on farmlands, promotion of organic agriculture, soil erosion prevention and counteraction, as well as the depopulation of agricultural regions.

Agriculture is one of the most important influences on biological diversity. Conventional agriculture has heavily contributed to reducing the diversity of ecosystems, species and genes, but it has also created new diversity. The eighth Interactive Session of the 2nd World Conservation Congress dealt with a broad spectrum of agricultural issues from around the world and examined the linkages between biodiversity, economy and society.

Over 800 million human beings suffer from hunger and malnutrition. The future of global food security depends on the success of our efforts in the conservation and enhancement of agrobiodiversity, the biodiversity occurring in plants and animals. It is important that both intensification and diversification of agriculture, particularly in the developing countries, is based on sound ecological foundations essential for sustainable advances in crop and animal productivity.

The aim of this international seminar was to discuss tools for ecological planning in the context of preparing for implementation of the EU Natura 2000 network, and to explore the possibilities for integrating nature conservation objectives into sectoral policies such as agriculture. This publication presents the agreed recommendations of the seminar, the guest papers and brief national overviews.

The effects of household characteristics on crop diversity are examined using household-level data based on a stratified random sample of 180 households from two districts in Zimbabwe, Uzumba-Maramba-Pfungwe and Tsholotsho.