DDPA strategy

The DDPA helps the developing world gain the knowledge it needs to combat desertification, drought and poverty. This requires more productive use of the land so that agricultural incomes and quality of life improve for the poor; while at the same time, better care for the land to protect the environment against the threats posed by drought and desertification.

Why must these goals be sought simultaneously? First of all, the overriding concern of the poor is with survival and easing the grinding poverty and insecurity that confronts them day after day. They are not able to invest in caring for their lands when they cannot even be sure of their next meal.

But solutions to poverty will not be enough either, if environmental consequences are ignored. Agriculture depends on the environment: it needs the fertile soils, ample water, rich biodiversity and other "goods and services" that natural ecosystems create and replenish.

In short, we call this dual challenge the DDPA core question: How can we help the poor to simultaneously build their livelihoods, and save their drylands?

People are used to thinking of these two objectives as trade-offs. Too often, environmental quality was allowed to slip so that incomes could be enhanced.

But the DDPA partners think there may be ways to avoid this negative tradeoff. The DDPA is confident that by including environmental considerations in agricultural research, innovative win-win solutions can be found that benefit both people and the environment. This is called the 'integrated ecosystem approach', derived from the ecosystem approach pioneered by the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (UNCBD 2004).

The Table below (evolved from the concepts of White et. al. 2002) illustrates some ways in which this integrated ecosystem approach is distinguishable from conventional agricultural research approaches.

Conventional versus the integrated ecosystem approach

Aspect	Conventional Approach	Integrated Ecosystem Approach
Perspective	Natural ecosystems seen as input suppliers (land, fertility etc.) for current or future commodity production	Natural and managed ecosystems viewed as part of one interdependent whole, providing a wide range of goods and services
Products	A few commodities or products	A wide array of both managed and natural goods and services
Strategy	Maximize yield, production, and net present value by intensifying the use of land, labor, and capital	Optimize total ecosystem goods and services output over time
Methodology	Reductionist: high-resolution measurement of a small number of factors	System-oriented, including both quantitative and qualitative assessments with close attention to interactions, flows, asset balances, tradeoffs
Approach to diversity	Reduce diversity for more predictable results, more targeted interventions, and greater economies of scale	Take advantage of diversity to exploit niche potential, meet a wider range of needs, preserve future options, and reduce total system risk
Scales of work	Political and ownership boundaries	Ecosystem and landscape, societal plus biophysical
Role of science	Applied science focused on biophysical resources, geared towards simple one-size-fits-all technology solutions	Combine biophysical with social and policy analysis, create prototypes to be customized differently in different locations

From theory to practice: making the integrated ecosystem approach work for the poor

The DDPA partners held intensive discussions about how to apply the integrated ecosystem approach in practice. They identified six high-priority research Themes that reflect different facets of an integrated whole.

The purpose of DDPA goes beyond research, though. The DDPA seeks to change the lives of the poor, and the fate of the drylands. Visit this link to learn how the DDPA translates research into impact.

The DDPA's strategy approaches the complex, intertwined problems of desertification, drought, poverty and agriculture in a holistic, partnership-based, systems-oriented way. This is a fundamental break from the reductionist approaches of the past. These distinctions are explained in more detail here.

White, R., Tunstall, D. and Henninger, N. 2002. An Ecosystem Approach to Drylands: Building support for New Development Policies. World Resources Institute Information Policy Brief No. 1, February 2002.http://pubs.wri.org/pubs_description.cfm?PubID=3154