Use the Farmland Ecosystem Assessment Tool to plan habitat creation and more...
The FRAMEwork project’s platform for those at the frontiers of farming and biodiversity, Recodo.io, has a new key resource available - the Farmland Ecosystem Assessment Support Tool. This innovative prototype software supports more sustainable land management by helping users evaluate the relationship between land use, agrobiodiversity and ecosystem services.
What is FEAST?
In sustainable agricultural systems, understanding and using agroecological information is critical to implementing practices that support productivity while enhancing or preserving environmental health.
The Farmland Ecosystem Assessment Support Tool is a free resource for assessing and modeling the health of farmland ecosystems and the decisions which impact them. FEAST provides a hands-on way to evaluate agroecosystems, offering insights into how practices like crop rotation, reduced tillage, habitat creation and integrated pest management can benefit both farm buisnesses and their surrounding environments. Through visualisations, the tool gamifies the modeling of complex ecological data, helping stakeholders asses how diverse land-use practices impact both environmental and economic outcomes.
The tool assists pioneer farmers, researchers and environmental planners in making informed land management decisions - by focusing on ecosystem aspects like habitats, soil health, water management, functional biodiversity and species of concern. This allows users to prioritise ecological integrity and long-term sustainability in their productive landscapes. For example, by facilitating landscape scale management supporting the lifecycle of a specific species, or the implementation and assessment of agri-environmental schemes.
Key Features of the Farmland Ecosystem Assessment Support Tool
Species distribution and habitat mapping
Economic and ecology data parameters
Quick access biodiversity info
Best-practice materials
Find out more on Recodo:
How Does FEAST Work?
Users can input real, or hypothetical, environmental and economic data to model different land use outcomes. Case studies, ecological requirements and historic agrobiodiversity datasets are also available, with further expansions planned.
FEAST is currently a Windows application for Windows 10 or higher. The tool integrates a range of metrics from several EU projects, including H2020 FRAMEwork. Our Farmer Cluster Network learnings and consortium feedback has helped facilitate the development of new datasets and functionalities.
Why Engage with FEAST?
Tools like FEAST are desperately needed. Europe's agritech market and research tools currently underserve landscape stakeholders looking to asses and manage their region's agroecology. By connecting agricultural management practices with measurable ecosystem outcomes, we're seeking to empower people to make informed decisions that contribute to the resilience of their landscapes.
Are you looking to benefit the resilience of farming systems or plan out actions towards conservation and sustainability goals in your area? Are you comfortable using agritech or research tools? Consider trying FEAST!
Feedback and engagement is welcomed by the development team. Your input will help FEAST evolve and expand what's available within the application.
How Can I Access FEAST?
Access to the beta application is available on request from the Agriculture and Environment Research Unit at the University of Hertfordshire. Please visit the tool's Recodo landing page for more information or email: aeru@herts.ac.uk.
In Summary
Bringing sustainable land management tools to people is an important part of informing Europe's transition to greener agricultural systems. FEAST can help generate essential insights into local environments, supporting more informed land management decisions that help enhance farmlands ecological health and resilience within specific business and policy contexts.
Through the addition of FEAST to Recodo, the project's pleased to provide those at the frontiers of managing agrobiodiversity with access to this unique resource. FEAST is a tool that's both ahead of it's time and very much needed today.
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