Economic and ecological trade-offs of agricultural specialization at different spatial scales

Abstract: Specialization in agricultural systems can lead to trade-offs between economic gains and ecosystem functions. We suggest and explore a conceptual framework in which economic gains can be maximized when production activities are specialized at increasingly broader scales (from the household to the village, region or above), particularly when markets for outputs and inputs function well. Conversely, more specialization likely reduces biodiversity and significantly limits ecosystem functions. When agricultural specialization increases and moves to broader scales as a result of improved infrastructure and markets or other drivers, ecosystem functions can also be endangered at broader spatial scales. Policies to improve agricultural incomes may influence the level of specialization at different scales and thus affect the severity of the trade-offs. This paper takes Jambi province in Indonesia, a current hotspot of rubber and oil palm monoculture, as a case study to illustrate these issu

Object Details

• Location: Deutsche Nationalbibliothek Frankfurt am Main
• Extent: Online-Ressource
• Language: Englisch
• Notes: Veröffentlichungsversion ; begutachtet (peer reviewed) ; In: Ecological Economics ; 122 (2016) ; 111-120

Classification and Topics

• Classification: Wirtschaft

Contributors, Places and Time

• Event: Veröffentlichung
• (where): Mannheim
• (who): SSOAR, GESIS – Leibniz-Institut für Sozialwissenschaften e.V.
• (when): 2016
• Creator: Klasen, Stephan ; Meyer, Katrin M. ; Dislich, Claudia ; Euler, Michael ; Faust, Heiko ; Gatto, Marcel ; Hettig, Elisabeth ; Melati, Dian N. ; Jaya, I. Nengah Surati ; Otten, Fenna ; Pérez-Cruzado, César ; Steinebach, Stefanie ; Tarigan, Suria Darma ; Wiegand, Kerstin

Further information

• DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolecon.2016.01.001
• URN: urn:nbn:de:0168-ssoar-69147-6
• Rights: Open Access; Der Zugriff auf das Objekt ist unbeschränkt möglich.
• Last update: 15.08.2025, 7:37 AM CEST