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While the importance of permanent grasslands (PG) for the conservation of high nature value habitats is often acknowledged, their role in most of the main sustainable food system scenarios published in the last few years is less explicit. In the best case, the place of permanent grassland in scenarios and policy agendas is their conservation; in the worst one, they are simply replaced by afforested land or cropland, considered as a better option when the focus is on GHG emissions only. In this paper, we defend the idea that several misinterpretations of the positive and negative impacts of ruminants, the 'natural' users of PG, explain why ruminants are poorly addressed by most scenarios. Based on the findings of an agroecological scenario for Europe—TYFA, standing for Ten Years For Agroecology—in which extensive permanent grassland and ruminants together play a prominent role for biodiversity conservation, nitrogen cycling and climate change mitigation and adaptation, we call for a research agenda that would better inform the specific role of PG in the provision of ecosystem services—and in particular those that depend on nitrogen management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As the earth's climate changes, the ability of breeders to select for traits within forage species that impart adaptability to these changes will be critical for the maintenance of grassland agricultural systems. Temperate ‐ tropical climate transition zones (between 27 and 31° N and S latitude) have proven to be ideal zones for breeding species with variable climate adaptation. Programs located in these regions have the advantage of exposure to alternating extreme warm and cold temperatures, drought and flood conditions, and a multitude of biotic pests including fungi, viruses, insects and nematodes. In this paper we will present examples of how forage breeding programs in north‐central Florida have capitalized on these distinct advantages for selection of cultivars with resiliency to changing climate variables. Breeding programs in red clover (Trifolium pratense L.) and annual ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum Lam.) will be discussed as examples for moving cool season species into warmer climates. Species attributes that contribute to climate resiliency will be identified and described. The ability to identify small changes in genetic photoperiod responses in these regions, are illustrated as an advantage when the objective is development of earlier or later maturity. Transition zones also provide suitable environments for biotic stresses, from both tropical and temperate areas, including fungal diseases, nematodes, and insects, offering desirable field environments for screening and genetic improvement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]