Optimizing wheat production and reducing environmental impacts through scientist-farmer engagement: Lessons from the North China Plain.

ABSTRACT: Producing high economic benefits and high grain yields with limited environmental impacts is crucial for feeding the world's growing population. Yet it remains challenging to improve the performance of one objective without creating unintended consequences for other objectives. This is especially difficult for smallholders navigating a diverse array of environmental and personal demands. This study demonstrates how combining participatory research through the Science and Technology Backyards (STB) approach with Pareto-based ranking modeling can increase smallholder production while also reducing environmental impact. Through an intensive farmer survey in a 1 × 1 km grid in Quzhou County, we demonstrate that farmers engaged in STBs performed better according to multiple objectives (i.e., op

SUBMITTER: Jiang W 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7988609 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature