The impact of swidden decline on livelihoods and ecosystem services in Southeast Asia: A review of the evidence from 1990 to 2015

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cg.contributor.affiliationWorld Agroforestry Centreen
cg.contributor.crpForests, Trees and Agroforestry
cg.coverage.countryThailand
cg.coverage.countryVietnam
cg.coverage.countryMalaysia
cg.coverage.countryIndonesia
cg.coverage.countryPhilippines
cg.coverage.countryPapua New Guinea
cg.coverage.countryMyanmar
cg.coverage.countryLaos
cg.coverage.iso3166-alpha2TH
cg.coverage.iso3166-alpha2VN
cg.coverage.iso3166-alpha2MY
cg.coverage.iso3166-alpha2ID
cg.coverage.iso3166-alpha2PH
cg.coverage.iso3166-alpha2PG
cg.coverage.iso3166-alpha2MM
cg.coverage.iso3166-alpha2LA
cg.coverage.regionSouth-eastern AsiaMelanesia
cg.identifier.doihttps://doi.org/10.1007/s13280-016-0836-zen
cg.issn0044-7447en
cg.issn1654-7209en
cg.issue3en
cg.journalAmbioen
cg.subject.ciforLIVELIHOODSen
cg.subject.ciforPAYMENT FOR ECOSYSTEM SERVICESen
cg.subject.ciforEVIDENCE BASED FORESTRYen
cg.volume46en
dc.contributor.authorDressler, W.H.en
dc.contributor.authorWilson, D.en
dc.contributor.authorClendenning, J.en
dc.contributor.authorCramb, R.en
dc.contributor.authorKeenan, R.J.en
dc.contributor.authorMahanty, S.en
dc.contributor.authorBruun, T.B.en
dc.contributor.authorMertz, O.en
dc.contributor.authorLasco, R.D.en
dc.date.accessioned2018-07-03T10:57:02Zen
dc.date.available2018-07-03T10:57:02Zen
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10568/94148
dc.titleThe impact of swidden decline on livelihoods and ecosystem services in Southeast Asia: A review of the evidence from 1990 to 2015en
dcterms.abstractGlobal economic change and policy interventions are driving transitions from long-fallow swidden (LFS) systems to alternative land uses in Southeast Asia's uplands. This study presents a systematic review of how these transitions impact upon livelihoods and ecosystem services in the region. Over 17 000 studies published between 1950 and 2015 were narrowed, based on relevance and quality, to 93 studies for further analysis. Our analysis of land-use transitions from swidden to intensified cropping systems showed several outcomes: more households had increased overall income, but these benefits came at significant cost such as reductions of customary practice, socio-economic wellbeing, livelihood options, and staple yields. Examining the effects of transitions on soil properties revealed negative impacts on soil organic carbon, cation-exchange capacity, and aboveground carbon. Taken together, the proximate and underlying drivers of the transitions from LFS to alternative land uses, especially intensified perennial and annual cash cropping, led to significant declines in pre-existing livelihood security and the ecosystem services supporting this security. Our results suggest that policies imposing land-use transitions on upland farmers so as to improve livelihoods and environments have been misguided; in the context of varied land uses, swidden agriculture can support livelihoods and ecosystem services that will help buffer the impacts of climate change in Southeast Asia.en
dcterms.accessRightsOpen Access
dcterms.available2016-11-16
dcterms.bibliographicCitationDressler, W.H., Wilson, D., Clendenning, J., Cramb, R., Keenan, R.J., Mahanty, S., Bruun, T.B., Mertz, O., Lasco, R.D.. 2017. The impact of swidden decline on livelihoods and ecosystem services in Southeast Asia : A review of the evidence from 1990 to 2015. Ambio, 46 (3) : 291-310. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13280-016-0836-zen
dcterms.extentpp. 291-310en
dcterms.issued2017-04
dcterms.languageen
dcterms.licenseCC-BY-4.0
dcterms.publisherSpringeren
dcterms.subjectland useen
dcterms.subjectecosystem servicesen
dcterms.subjectlivelihoodsen
dcterms.subjectshifting cultivationen
dcterms.subjectswidden agricultureen
dcterms.typeJournal Article

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