The browser you are using is not supported by this website. All versions of Internet Explorer are no longer supported, either by us or Microsoft (read more here: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/windows/end-of-ie-support).

Please use a modern browser to fully experience our website, such as the newest versions of Edge, Chrome, Firefox or Safari etc.

Sara Brogaard

Sara Brogaard

Researcher

Sara Brogaard

The Political Ecology of Land Degradation

Author

  • Elina Andersson
  • Sara Brogaard
  • Lennart Olsson

Summary, in English

Land degradation, as a threat to smallholders in the tropics, attracts less attention than other global challenges. In addition, gaps between scientific understandings of land degradation and international policy regimes are problematic. We identify the three most significant debates including their different policy implications: desertification in the Sahel, nutrient depletion in Africa, and rural reforms in China. Using a political ecology frame across disciplines, scales of inquiry, and regional experiences, we nuance the often polarized scientific debate while seeking to bridge the gap between science and policy. Three main findings emerge: State-led rural reforms in China represent an important approach to land degradation; a renewed focus on agriculture and sustainability in development discourses opens new ways for tackling nutrient depletion with combined sociotechnological reforms; and a policy void in Africa paves the way for market mechanisms, such as payment for environmental services, that are insufficiently understood and put fairness at risk.

Department/s

  • LUCSUS (Lund University Centre for Sustainability Studies)

Publishing year

2011

Language

English

Pages

295-319

Publication/Series

Annual Review of Environment and Resources

Volume

36

Document type

Journal article review

Publisher

Annual Reviews

Topic

  • Social Sciences Interdisciplinary

Keywords

  • China
  • Africa
  • desertification
  • nutrient depletion
  • policy

Status

Published

ISBN/ISSN/Other

  • ISSN: 1545-2050