Reconciling agriculture and wild biodiversity conservation: Policy and research challenges of 'ecoagriculture'

Farming is commonly believed to be incompatible with wildlife conservation, resulting in wildlife conservation policies that rely on land use segregation. Establishing protected areas from which agriculture is officially excluded is based on the perception that farmers are problems. This paper argues, however, that enhancing the contribution of farming systems is an essential part of any biodiversity conservation strategy. And this strategy requires new technical research, support for local farmer innovation and adoption of new agricultural and environmental policies at local, national and international levels.