TY  - JA
AU  - Erenstein,O.
AU  - Thorpe, W.
TI  - Livelihoods and agro-ecological gradients: a meso-level analysis in the Indo-Gangetic Plains, India
SN  - 0308-521X
PY  - 2011///
CY  - United Kingdom
PB  - Elsevier
KW  - Livelihoods
KW  - AGROVOC
KW  - Cropping systems
KW  - Integrated crop-livestock systems
KW  - Surveys
KW  - South Asia
N1  - Peer review; Peer-review: Yes - Open Access: Yes|http://science.thomsonreuters.com/cgi-bin/jrnlst/jlresults.cgi?PC=MASTER&ISSN=0308-521X; WC; FP1
N2  - Rice-wheat systems in the Indo-Gangetic Plains (IGP) have long exemplified South Asia's agricultural transformation through the Green Revolution. The same systems now also typify the post-Green Revolution stagnation and equity challenges, despite receiving considerable attention from the research and development (R&D) community. The apparent homogeneity of vast irrigated plains masks significant diversity in assets, livelihood strategies and livelihood outcomes. The paper analyzes the rural livelihoods and underlying agro-ecological gradients in the IGP drawing on village surveys and secondary data as characterization tools. The contribution of the paper is twofold: (i) new knowledge of the socio-economic circumstances in farming communities across the Indian IGP to enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of R&D interventions and particularly poverty alleviation; and (ii) an illustration of a novel approach to operationalize livelihood analysis at the meso-level so as to address spatial scale issues and link microlevel contextual realities across a vast geographical area. The agricultural R&D community needs to incorporate this socio-economic diversity more proactively into its R&D agenda if it is to succeed in sustaining productivity gains, improving rural livelihoods equitably, and securing environmental sustainability in this important eco-region
UR  - https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12665/1039
T2  - Agricultural Systems
DO  - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agsy.2010.09.004
ER  -