Agri-system histories and trajectories: crops, landscapes, and heritage

农业系统的历史和轨迹：农作物、景观和遗产

• 批准号: AH/V000551/1
• 负责人: Philippa Ryan
• 金额: $ 21.24万
• 依托单位: Royal Botanic Gardens
• 依托单位国家: 英国
• 项目类别: Research Grant
• 财政年份: 2021
• 资助国家: 英国
• 起止时间: 2021 至 无数据
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=AH%2FV000551%2F1
• 关键词: Agri; system; histories; trajectories; crops

We aim to create a holistic framework to study traditional agri-systems within their local agroecological, cultural, and historical settings, focusing on Tigray in the northern Ethiopian Highlands. Globally, agrobiodiversity has declined markedly since the mid-twentieth century, partly prompted by a focus on developing a narrow range of high-yielding crop varieties, shifts to mechanisation, intensive irrigation and the use of agro-chemicals. Genetic diversity within crops is largely preserved in small holdings, making them important areas for in situ conservation of crop landraces (local varieties). Ethiopia is a key location to study agrobiodiversity and the ways it is created and maintained within cultural systems as the Ethiopian Highlands are one of the centres of crop diversity famously identified by Vavilov, and are characterised by both indigenous crops and secondary diversity in several others. This diversity has been preserved in enclaves of the highlands, alongside traditional food processing and non-mechanised farming. Local crop landraces together with associated traditional practices and knowledge are, however, increasingly endangered due to new agricultural methods, urbanisation, and land use change. Northern Ethiopia is important to study as it is more drought prone, and experiences higher levels of food insecurity than central and southern zones. Droughts are increasing in frequency, and the region is feared to be particularly vulnerable to climate change.It is not possible to fully understand local agricultural trajectories without studying soils and erosion histories, how land use (especially phases of terracing) influences soil variability over time, and documenting people's perceptions of landscape change. Crop diversification and soil preservation are essential for future resilience in the Tigray region. The project is urgently needed to capture knowledge from elderly farmers to determine any changes in crop/landrace roles and the ecological advantages or use properties of these crops. The relationship between land modification, soils and changing patterns of agrobiodiversity can be especially studied in Tigray due to detailed datasets available to the project on terrace development since the 1970s. These datasets will enable us to distinguish traditional and modern categories of land-use and erosion mitigation, and hence to study the legacy and efficacy of terraces over time. Also, by distinguishing local vs introduced terracing, we will contribute to studies of landscape as local heritage.The project will establish a new multidisciplinary, international and cross-sector research partnership to study agriculture, crops and food systems within different agro-climatic zones across Tigray. We will undertake fieldwork to design and pilot interdisciplinary research methods to study traditional agri-systems, and will assess and locate a range of suitable case-study areas (e.g. contrasting local environments, preservation of traditions, connecting with local NGOs, or local archaeological projects that provide useful contextual data on long-term environmental histories). Methods development and pilot research will investigate (i) relationships between local crop choices, environments and cultural influences together with the main reasons for change; (ii) the ways in which current farming strategies are influenced by local patterns of soil variation, landscape modification (especially terraces), and erosion histories; and (iii) the ongoing relationship between traditional agricultural systems and cultural heritage (such as items made from crop-processing by-products, material culture connected with food processing, agricultural landscapes, intangible heritage such as songs sung during threshing).

我们旨在创建一个整体框架，以在其当地的农业生态，文化和历史环境中研究传统的农业系统，重点是北埃塞俄比亚高地的Tigray。在全球范围内，自二十世纪中叶以来，农生多样性已明显下降，部分原因是专注于开发狭窄的高产农作物品种，转向机械化，密集灌溉和使用农业化学物质。农作物内的遗传多样性在很大程度上保存在小藏品中，使其成为原位保护作物地（当地品种）的重要领域。埃塞俄比亚是研究农业多样性及其在文化系统中的创造和维持方式的关键地点，因为埃塞俄比亚高地是瓦维洛夫（Vavilov）著名鉴定的农作物多样性中心之一，并以其他几种土著作物和二级多样性为特征。这种多样性保留在高地的飞地，以及传统的食品加工和非机械化的农业。然而，由于新的农业方法，城市化和土地利用变化，当地的农作物界与相关的传统实践和知识越来越濒临灭绝。北部埃塞俄比亚的研究很重要，因为它比中部和南部地区更容易干旱，而且粮食不安全水平更高。干旱的频率越来越高，并且担心该地区特别容易受到气候变化的影响。在不研究土壤和侵蚀历史的情况下，完全了解当地的农业轨迹，土地使用（尤其是露营层的阶段）如何影响土壤的变化，并记录人们对景观变化的看法。作物多样化和土壤保存对于蒂格莱地区的未来弹性至关重要。迫切需要该项目来捕获老年农民的知识，以确定作物/兰德斯角色的任何变化以及这些作物的生态优势或使用特性。由于该项目自1970年代以来，该项目可用的有关露台开发项目的详细数据集，因此可以在Tigray中特别研究土地修饰，土壤和不断变化的农业生物多样性模式之间的关系。这些数据集将使我们能够区分土地利用和侵蚀的传统和现代类别，从而研究露台随着时间的流逝的遗产和功效。同样，通过区分本地VS引入梯田，我们将为景观作为当地遗产做出贡献。该项目将建立一个新的多学科，国际和跨部门研究伙伴关系，以研究整个Tigray的不同农业气候区域内的农业，农作物和食品系统。我们将进行现场工作，以设计和试验跨学科的研究方法来研究传统的农业系统，并评估和定位一系列合适的案例研究领域（例如，与当地环境的维护，与当地的非政府组织或本地考古项目相关联，与长期环境历史上的有用背景数据相结合）。方法开发和试点研究将调查（i）当地作物选择，环境和文化影响之间的关系，以及改变的主要原因； （ii）当前农业策略受土壤变化，景观修改（尤其是露台）和侵蚀历史的局部耕作方式的影响； （iii）传统农业系统与文化遗产之间的持续关系（例如由作物加工副产品制成的物品，与食品加工，农业景观相关的物质文化，无形的遗产，例如在脱节期间唱歌的歌曲）。

项目成果

Landrace diversity and heritage of the indigenous millet crop fonio ( Digitaria exilis ): Socio-cultural and climatic drivers of change in the Fouta Djallon region of Guinea

本土小米作物 fonio（马唐）的地方品种多样性和遗产：几内亚 Fouta Djallon 地区变化的社会文化和气候驱动因素

• DOI: 10.1002/ppp3.10490
• 发表时间: 2024
• 期刊: PLANTS, PEOPLE, PLANET
• 作者: Burton G