Abstract
The phrase ‘sustainable agriculture’ has acquired a diversity of meanings. To the agriculturalist, it means maintaining the momentum of the Green Revolution. To the ecologist it is a way of providing sufficient food without degrading natural resources. To the economist it represents an efficient long term use of resources, and to the sociologist and anthropologist it embodies an agriculture that preserves traditional values. Almost anything that is perceived as ‘good’ from the writer’s perspective can fall under the umbrella of sustainable agriculture - organic farming, the small family farm, indigenous technical knowledge, biodiversity, integrated pest management, self-sufficiency, recycling and so on (Conway and Barbier, 1990).
This chapter is based on Conway, G.R. (in press) The sustainability of agricultural development: trade-offs with productivity, stability and equitability. Journal of Farming Systems Research and Extension.
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Conway, G.R. (1993). Sustainable agriculture: the trade-offs with productivity, stability and equitability. In: Barbier, E.B. (eds) Economics and Ecology. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-1518-6_4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-1518-6_4
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