In the face of mounting evidence on climate change’s impacts, agriculture — one of humanity’s oldest and most essential practices — emerges as both a challenge and an opportunity for climate change mitigation.
Agroecology, an ecological approach to farming that prioritises sustainability and harmony with natural ecosystems, has proven its potential for carbon sequestration and emission reduction.
Integrating agroecological principles can make agriculture part of the climate solution, mitigating greenhouse gas emissions while enhancing soil health, biodiversity, and the resilience of farming systems.
This opinion piece examines how agroecology can play a critical role in mitigating climate change, specifically through carbon sequestration and emission reduction.
One of the most promising aspects of agroecology is its ability to sequester carbon. Soils are the planet’s second-largest carbon sink after oceans, storing more carbon than the atmosphere and vegetation combined.
The use of agroecological practices, such as crop diversification, cover cropping, agroforestry, and conservation tillage, can help increase the organic carbon stored in soils.
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These practices are inherently regenerative, focusing on building soil organic matter and enhancing soil structure, both of which contribute to higher carbon sequestration.
Agroecology promotes the use of cover crops plants grown primarily to protect and enrich the soil between cash crops.
These plants add organic matter, reduce soil erosion, and improve moisture retention, all of which help trap carbon in the soil. By increasing the carbon content in soils, cover crops create a long-term carbon sink. Moreover, agroecology emphasises reduced or zero tillage systems, which prevent the release of stored carbon by minimising soil disturbance. Tillage breaks up soil aggregates, releasing carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, but by reducing tillage, agroecological practices help retain soil carbon.
Agroforestry, a hallmark of agroecology, is another practice with significant potential for carbon sequestration. By integrating trees with crops and livestock, agroforestry systems not only increase biodiversity and soil fertility, but also capture large amounts of carbon.
Trees and perennial crops, with their long roots and extensive biomass, capture atmospheric CO2 and store it for long periods.
These systems create multi-layered, biodiverse ecosystems that mimic natural forests, which are highly efficient at capturing and storing carbon.
Agroforestry thus has the potential to enhance soil organic carbon while also providing shade, habitat, and food for a variety of species.
Furthermore, organic farming practices often associated with agroecology, such as composting and green manuring, add to soil organic matter, further sequestering carbon.
When organic materials decompose, they increase the organic carbon content of soils, making soils more resilient to erosion and degradation.
By enhancing the carbon-capturing potential of soils, agroecology offers a pathway to turning agricultural lands into substantial carbon sinks, which is particularly important as we seek to counterbalance emissions from other sectors.
In addition to sequestering carbon, agroecology can also reduce emissions by minimising the dependence on fossil fuels and synthetic inputs.
Conventional agriculture relies heavily on chemical fertilisers, pesticides, and intensive mechanisation, all of which are energy-intensive and contribute to greenhouse gas emissions.
Nitrogen-based fertilisers are a major source of nitrous oxide, a potent greenhouse gas with a global warming potential nearly 300 times that of carbon dioxide.
By contrast, agroecology emphasises nutrient cycling and biodiversity, reducing the need for synthetic fertilisers and pesticides.
One of the core tenets of agroecology is to build soil fertility naturally, using crop rotations, leguminous plants, and composting instead of chemical inputs.
Crop rotation and polycultures reduce pests and diseases, which decreases the reliance on pesticides. Nitrogen-fixing plants like legumes add nitrogen to the soil naturally, reducing the need for synthetic fertilisers.
These practices collectively reduce emissions from fertiliser production, transport, and application.
Agroecology also encourages low-input, diversified farming systems, which often rely on manual or small-scale mechanisation instead of large, fossil fuel-powered machinery.
By scaling down mechanisation, agroecological practices lower emissions associated with the production and operation of heavy machinery.
Furthermore, agroecological farms often adopt local, decentralized marketing channels, reducing emissions from the long-distance transport of goods.
These small-scale, locally focused farms not only strengthen local economies but also reduce the emissions associated with transporting food across continents.
In livestock management, agroecology promotes rotational grazing and integration with crop systems, which reduces methane emissions compared to conventional feedlot operations.
Through rotational grazing, livestock are managed to graze different paddocks in rotation, allowing pastures to recover and capture carbon.
Integrated crop-livestock systems minimize emissions associated with feed transport, while manure from livestock can be used to enrich soils, further reducing the need for synthetic fertilisers.
This integrated approach to farming exemplifies the holistic principles of agroecology and its potential to reduce emissions across multiple fronts.
Beyond carbon sequestration and emission reduction, agroecology offers numerous co-benefits that strengthen the resilience of farming systems and mitigate climate impacts.
For example, agroecological practices improve water retention in soils, reducing the risk of drought—a growing concern in the face of climate change.
Healthier, carbon-rich soils absorb and retain more water, providing a buffer against climate-induced variability in rainfall. This resilience is particularly critical for small-scale farmers who are often the most vulnerable to climate change.
Agroecology also fosters biodiversity, which is crucial for ecosystem resilience. By diversifying crops and creating habitat through agroforestry and mixed cropping, agroecological systems support a variety of organisms, from pollinators to natural pest predators.
Biodiverse systems are more resilient to climate shocks, as they can adapt to changes more readily than monocultures.
This resilience translates into stability for farming communities, reducing the risk of crop failures and improving food security. Another important co-benefit is agroecology’s ability to empower local communities.
Unlike conventional, industrial agriculture, agroecology is often practiced by smallholders and is rooted in traditional knowledge and local culture.
It relies on local resources rather than imported, costly inputs, making it more accessible and economically sustainable.
By empowering small-scale farmers and reducing their dependence on external inputs, agroecology creates more resilient food systems that are both environmenta While the benefits of agroecology for climate mitigation are clear, its widespread adoption faces challenges.
Agroecology often requires more labor and local knowledge, which can be a barrier in regions where industrial agriculture has taken root.
Additionally, financial and policy support for agroecology is often limited, with subsidies and incentives still largely directed toward conventional agriculture. For agroecology to reach its full potential as a climate solution, governments and institutions need to recognise its benefits and support farmers in making the transition.
Policy frameworks should prioritise incentives for carbon farming and support for practices that promote carbon sequestration and emission reductions, such as agroforestry, cover cropping, and conservation tillage.
Programs that reward farmers for enhancing soil health and biodiversity can accelerate the adoption of agroecological practices.
Training programs and technical assistance are also essential, as they can help farmers acquire the skills and knowledge needed to implement agroecological systems.
At the same time, global food systems must shift toward shorter supply chains and diversified, local food production.
Consumers can support agroecology by choosing locally produced, organic, and sustainably grown foods. As demand for agroecologically produced food grows, market opportunities for smallholders practicing agroecology will also expand, further incentivizing its adoption.
Agroecology presents a powerful, nature-based solution for climate change mitigation through its dual role in carbon sequestration and emission reduction.
By promoting practices that enhance soil carbon, reduce dependency on synthetic inputs, and build resilient farming systems, agroecology aligns agriculture with the principles of ecological sustainability.
In an era when agriculture is both a victim and driver of climate change, agroecology offers a hopeful path forward.
With adequate policy support, investment, and consumer awareness, agroecology could transform agriculture from a source of greenhouse gas emissions into a vital component of climate solutions, ensuring a more sustainable, resilient future for generations to come.
*Gary Gerald Mtombeni is a journalist based in Harare. He writes here in his own personal capacity. For feedback Email garymtombeni@gmail.com/ call- +263778861608