Intensifying agriculture does not save forests, but Indigenous land stewardships does
Higher land-use efficiency does not slow down deforestation in the world’s tropical dry forests, according to a new study led by researchers from Humboldt University in Berlin, and involving ICTA-UAB researcher Álvaro Fernández Llamazares. In contrast, higher yields have even accelerated deforestation in this biome over the past 20 years.
”This is a surprising finding, because agricultural intensification is often assumed to lead to a phenomenon called ‘land sparing’, meaning that intensification allows to produce more on existing agricultural land, and this should then lead to less agricultural expansion into forests” explains Marie Pratzer, lead author of the study. “Yet, we find little evidence for this. Instead, what we find is that intensification seems to accelerate deforestation.” This effect was particularly strong in countries where agriculture mainly produces commodities for export markets, such as coffee, palm oil or soy, rather than food for local populations.
According to the researchers, this can be explained by agribusinesses responding to financial incentives and reinvesting profits into expanding agricultural areas further into forests. “This is a very important finding”, Marie Pratzer summarizes. “It shows that policies to intensify agriculture will by themselves not magically protect forests. Land-use zoning or nature reserves are needed to make sure forests and their biodiversity are adequately protected.”
Tropical dry forests: globally threatened
The team from HU Berlin and researchers from universities in Belgium, Spain and Australia used detailed maps of forest loss between 2000 and 2020 and agricultural production statistics in an advanced statistical model to analyze the relationship of intensification and deforestation. “We focused specifically on tropical dry forests, because these forests are so important for global biodiversity, as carbon storages and for the livelihoods of hundreds of millions of people.” Tobias Kuemmerle, co-author of the study and professor at the Geography Department at HU Berlin explains “But these forests are very poorly protected, and they are disappearing in many places”. The researchers urge better protection of tropical dry forests, as industrialized agribusiness agriculture expands especially rapidly into these forests, such as in the Cerrado and Chaco regions in South America or the Indochina dry forests in Southeast Asia.
Less deforestation of forests under Indigenous land stewardship
A remarkable insight from the study was that higher yields were associated with less deforestation in areas where much land was inhabited or managed by Indigenous Peoples. “This is extremely important and represents a huge opportunity”, highlights Marie Pratzer.
Although Indigenous Peoples steward at least 28% of the world’s terrestrial surface, their views and roles are often marginalized or neglected in policy and planning dialogues. Marie Pratzer further explains that Indigenous land stewardship is often compatible with, or even actively supports, forest conservation. “Our work shows that empowering Indigenous People can create co-benefits in terms of maintaining nature and striving for justice in the distribution of land.”
The researchers highlight that the UN Biodiversity Conference (COP15) recently agreed on protecting 30% of the planet’s land and oceans by 2030. “Ensuring the participation of Indigenous Peoples in how such a goal will be translated to action on the ground, as well as recognizing their inherent rights on their traditional territories is critically important”, Álvaro Fernández-Llamazares a researcher at the ICTA-UAB, a co-author of the study explains.
"These findings provide strong support for the importance of Indigenous Peoples' stewardship for the persistence of life on Earth. I sincerely hope that the evidence collected is used to inform and support current policy debates around the role of Indigenous Peoples in global biodiversity maintenance", says Fernández-Llamazares.
The researchers furthermore highlight overgeneralization is dangerous “Scientific debates and policy making too often tries to find universal solutions, but reality is more complex”, says Patrick Meyfroidt, Professor at Université Catholique de Louvain and co-authors of the study. “We really need to consider this complexity and seek for forest protection strategies that consider the local context, such as whether or not forests are inhabited by Indigenous People or whether crops are produced for export or local consumption.”
Article
Pratzer, M., Fernández-Llamazares, Á., Meyfroidt, P. et al. Agricultural intensification, Indigenous stewardship and land sparing in tropical dry forests. Nat Sustain (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-023-01073-0