Ms. Shraddha Vekhande will present her APS as per the details below:
Date: 23rd September 2024, Monday
Time: 1815 - 1930 hrs.
Venue: CTARA Conference Room No.1
Topic: Understanding Soil health in Agriculture through the Lens of Ecosystem Services & Systems Ecology
Guide: Prof. Bakul Rao
RPC Members: Prof. Parmeshwar Udmale, Prof. Shireesh Kedare, Prof. Upendra Bhandarkar,
Abstract:
Soils are vital for sustaining life on Earth, providing both the resources human society depends on and essential services for maintaining the biosphere. However, global estimates suggest that 40% of agricultural soils are degraded, and in India, 70% of agricultural soils are on a path that may soon render them unfit for farming. This research uses the Ecosystem Service Approach and systems thinking to investigate the link between soil health and agriculture. To address the research gap in the ES literature, a subset of soil-related ecosystems was developed to recognize the multifunctionality of within agriculture. In this APS, an updated list of services based on CICES V5.2 is presented. To address the complexity of soil ecological processes, a Causal Loop Diagram (CLD) was constructed to identify interactions that either support or inhibit plant growth. The CLD was simplified using the endogenization-encapsulation-order oriented reduction method, and feedback loops representing soil ecosystem services were identified. A matrix was created to display the overlap of feedback loops among ecosystem services, illustrating the interconnections within these services. Additionally, a frequency chart showing the occurrence of elements in feedback loops for each ecosystem service provides insights into soil health indicators and ecosystem services. Since agricultural practices directly and indirectly affect various soil processes, a case study of rice nursery cultivation, representing human intervention in soil ecological processes, was conducted. The CLD of the soil ecosystem was modified to reflect the context of the case study, and used for drawing insights into the effect of human interventions on ecosystem services.