Summary
This paper addresses the recognised shortfall in progress towards the UN SDGs by proposing a farmer-centred, bottom-up approach through agricultural living labs. Rather than imposing top-down regulations, the authors advocate selecting proportional SDGs and defining clear, measurable ecosystem service indicators and thresholds that, when met, establish 'lighthouse' farms serving as regional exemplars. The framework leverages innovative soil sensing techniques to generate field data rapidly and recommends that policy shift from prescriptive measures to threshold-based outcomes.
Regional applicability
The paper's framework for farmer engagement and threshold-based ecosystem management is potentially applicable to United Kingdom agricultural policy and practice, particularly given current Government emphasis on environmental land management schemes and farm sustainability standards. However, the abstract does not specify the geographic origin of the research or UK-specific case studies, limiting direct applicability assessment without access to the full paper.
Key measures
Ecosystem service indicators and thresholds for income generation, healthy food production, water protection, energy preservation, climate mitigation, and soil health; measurable and achievable within reasonable costs
Outcomes reported
The paper proposes a framework for converting agricultural living labs into 'lighthouses'—demonstration sites that meet measurable thresholds across seven key SDGs related to income, food production, water quality, energy, climate mitigation, and soil health. The framework emphasises farmer involvement, clear ecosystem service indicators, and sensor-based monitoring rather than prescriptive top-down management.
Topic tags
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