Ayyanadar Arunachalam – författare

It is well known that the impacts of climate change are tangible and hence there can be no debate about the need for appropriate adaptation measures, on a priority basis. However, it is equally important to recognize the fact that adaptation measures actually represent a dynamic synthesis of interventions pertaining to multiple systems. These are particularly of water, soil characteristics, genotypic and phenotypic variations and their expressions, age-correlated biochemical changes aligned with planting schedules and favorable weather/climate conditions. Nutrients, occurrence and distribution of associated vegetation including crop mixes also influence productivity. The overarching aspect of farming practice wields significant influence on the outcome and hence it is important to be clear about the particular focus of the investigations being carried out and reported in a suitable manner. It is essential to recognize that scientific research in agriculture in India has always produced valuable results of direct relevance to her people. Importantly, preparedness to tackle disasters due to inclement weather system has prominently featured on the agenda. The recent focus on climate change and impacts has provided the necessary impetus to reorganize the framework of investigation to capture the specifics of such impacts. In this context, the importance of micro climate variations too viz-a-viz the larger scales of impacts cannot be overemphasized. It will be useful to also help characterize natural variations versus artificially induced variations, helping us understand the complexities of individual and synergistic impacts too. Obviously, the limits and limitations of models could determine the spread and depth of the outcomes of investigations. Empirical evidences to reinforce assumptions have to also be documented with utmost care; guided by an understanding of the limits of tolerance, limiting factors, and the precautionary principle especially in the public policy interface. The present volume therefore, showcases these strands with the fond hope that they will stimulate further thinking and enable appropriate action.

This book articulates the traditional Japanese concept of conservation, called Satoyama, for effective management of nature’s goods and services at a community–ecosystem interface in the climate milieu. The term Satoyama refers to socio-ecological production landscapes and seascapes, which are mosaics of diverse land uses and ecosystems that have long been shaped through sustainable human interactions with nature. This multilevel study of conservation science, therefore, serves an interdisciplinary academia, consistent with conventions on climate change, biodiversity and sustainable development, to establish links between conservation priorities and development objectives. In this book, the Satoyama is introduced as a rights-based neo-economic conservation paradigm for production-linked sustainable development, supplemented with case studies from Asia. The International Partnership for the Satoyama Initiative was established at the 10th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity in 2010 to protect and revitalise Satoyama. However, even after a decade, this panacea for sustainability remains unfulfilled for practitioners and policy planners in the global south. Satoyama have been disappearing as a result of irresponsible consumption of natural resources and drastically changing agro-farming practices, threatening wildlife inhabiting those areas as well as the life and livelihood of marginal communities in the vicinity. In consideration of the global pandemic crisis, the present monograph aims for introspection within a traditional sustainable practice of Asia to augment community resilience and preparedness.