Agroecology without Ecology

Theoretical Ecology Meets Agroecology: towards an Ecological Approach to Agroecosystems

Prospects from agroecology and industrial ecology for animal production in the 21st century

Agroecology and industrial ecology can be viewed as complementary means for reducing the environmental footprint of animal farming systems: agroecology mainly by stimulating natural processes to reduce inputs, and industrial ecology by closing system loops, thereby reducing demand for raw materials, lowering pollution and saving on waste treatment. Surprisingly, animal farming systems have so f...

The “Biodiversity–Ecosystem function debate”: An interdisciplinary dialogue between Ecology, Agricultural Science, and Agroecology

The “biodiversity–ecosystem function debate” is considered one of the most heated recent scientific issues within the discipline of Ecology. However, it can be better understood as an interdisciplinary dialogue between Ecology, Agricultural Science, and Agroecology. In this article, I review the interplay of these disciplines on the conflict, the resolution, and the implications of this debate....

Theoretical microbial ecology without species.

Ecosystems are commonly conceptualized as networks of interacting species. However, partitioning natural diversity of organisms into discrete units is notoriously problematic and mounting experimental evidence raises the intriguing question whether this perspective is appropriate for the microbial world. Here an alternative formalism is proposed that does not require postulating the existence o...

ECOL 8440: Agroecology/Agroforestry

Industrial or “Green Revolution” agriculture depends upon petroleum to manufacture and spread fertilizers, pesticides and herbicides and to power irrigation systems that act upon crops selected to increase agricultural yield. It has been criticized on the grounds that it has favored mainly rich farmers and caused serious environmental pollution. Now a second “Green Revolution” is being proposed...