Professor Julie Ingram is joined by Elisa Marraccini and Nicola Silvestri in editing a newly published Special Issue of the Italian Journal of Agronomy (IJA).
The IJA is the official journal of the Italian Society for Agronomy. It publishes quarterly original articles and reviews reporting experimental and theoretical contributions to agronomy and crop science, with main emphasis on original articles from Italy and countries having similar agricultural conditions. The journal deals with all aspects of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, the interactions between cropping systems and sustainable development.
In this Special Issue, eight papers have been collected illustrating a variety of methods and strategies used to support the transitions towards more sustainable cropping systems designed and assessed with stakeholders. On-farm research and participatory approaches have long been advocated to bridge the divide between research and practice by engaging farmers as partners in the research process and including the wide variation in contexts and farm practices.
These papers address the questions: How are researchers in agronomy implementing co-design with stakeholders? Which methods and tools are they using, and for what purpose? Who are they collaborating with?
Articles in the Special Issue include:
- How to intensify collaboration in a participatory modelling process to collectively design and evaluate new farming systems
- On-farm experimentation in agronomic research: an Italian perspective
- Stakeholders analysis and engagement to address Water-Ecosystem-Food Nexus challenges in Mediterranean environments: a case study in Italy
- A participatory approach to involve winegrowers in pesticide use reduction in viticulture in the south-western region of France
- A three-stage approach for co-designing diversified cropping systems with farmers: the case study of lentil-wheat intercropping
- Valorization of wheat production in marginal areas: farmer-centric experimentation for variety choice and evolutionary population development
- Co-designing a method to assess agroecological transitions: results of a case study in Senegal
These articles and Julie’s editorial to the IJA Special Issue can be accessed online.
