Editorial: Finding Your Way Between Farming and Caring for the Environment
V Basil Hans*
Research Professor, Srinivas University, Mangalore, India
*Corresponding Author: V Basil Hans, Research Professor, Srinivas University, Mangalore, India.
Published: July 23, 2025
Abstract
In the 21st century, farming isn't just about feeding the world; it's also about doing it in a way that is fair, sustainable, and in line with the planet's ecological limits. This issue of the Agriculture and Environmental Science Journal comes at a very important time. As the world's population grows, the climate changes more, and biodiversity declines, the link between agriculture and environmental science becomes more and more important to the world's most important research and policy agendas.
Anthropogenic climate change is having effects on agriculture all around the world, from lengthy periods of drought and erratic rainfall to changes in pest behaviour and soil fertility. At the same time, traditional farming methods are still one of the main causes of deforestation, greenhouse gas emissions, and the loss of fresh water. Because of these two positions, as both a victim and a contributor, research, policy, and practice need to be more nuanced and cross-disciplinary.
This issue has new research that directly addresses these problems. Contributions cover a wide range of subjects, such as regenerative agriculture, soil carbon sequestration, integrated pest control, precision farming, and agroecological methods. A number of papers look at the social and economic aspects of making agriculture more environmentally friendly. They remind us that science needs to also look at jobs, fairness, and local knowledge systems.
Resilience is a theme that runs through this issue. Our contributors talk about a lot of different things, like how microbes interact in degraded soils, how traditional knowledge can help people adapt to climate change, and how to set up low-input farming systems. They all agree that we need systems that are not only productive but also strong enough to handle shocks to the economy and the environment.
As an editorial team, we want to make it clear that we are still committed to publishing science that leads to real change—science that crosses academic boundaries and speaks to practitioners, policymakers, and communities. We also want contributors to question the status quo and come up with ideas for the future of agriculture that put the health of people and the earth first.
We appreciate that our reviewers, authors, and readers keep reading and writing for this publication. Your work and ideas are important for making the food systems of the future more sustainable.