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This research assessed how ecosystem services (ES) are taken into account in the decision-making process of stakeholders involved in the management of agroecosystems, in particular agroforestry systems, and how an Role-Playing Game (RPG) can serve as a tool to allow them to discuss the issues concerned. The study was conducted in two municipalities (Paragominas and Irituia) located in the Brazilian Amazon. The game was developed in 2018 using a co-construction process that mainly included farmers, students and researchers. Data was collected during two sessions of the game held in 2019, with participation by heterogeneous participants from different local institutions. Our results demonstrated that game sessions showed how the provision of ES, as well as other factors (e.g. values, availability of factors), is taken into account in planning the spatio-temporal configuration of the agroecosystem and associated agricultural practices. They also revealed some trade-offs involved in this decision-making process. We conclude that the RPG allowed stakeholders to synthesize and discuss different types of knowledge about this process. Bringing these elements to the discussion can contribute to an improved shared understanding of the challenges and possibilities of the ecological management of agroecosystems and can indicate solutions that are in line with local expectations.

International audience; AbstractThe Companion Modeling approach aims to stimulate learning and sharing of perceptions among several actors through the co-construction and use of a model, while the Integrated Assessment of Agricultural Systems aims to assess a large set of performances of current and alternative systems. Our research question was: to what extent does the joint use of these two methods foster sustainability thinking? We show how the co-design of evolving agriculture scenarios and the use of Integrated Assessment of Agricultural Systems methods guided the implementation of a Companion Modeling process applied to the Valensole Plateau, southeastern France. An initial phase, based on a preliminary diagnosis, aimed to collectively formulate the issues to be addressed, and to engage the actors in a collective dynamic. The second phase consisted of leading actors in the co-construction of a simulation model to represent the agricultural system to be evaluated using economic, social, and environmental indicators at different scales. In the final phase, the current situation and the co-designed scenario were collectively analyzed. The scenario was conceived as a “worst case”, embedded with drivers such as input costs and climate change. Opposing adaptation strategies were envisioned by farmers and other actors. Results show how debates between participants adaptively shaped the model. Scenario simulations highlighted better environmental performance at the expense of economic performance. The differences between farms led to discussions on technical management. Overall, the process stimulated collective reflection among the actors and created a learning experience with the sharing of perceptions and knowledge about the agricultural system. The model was considered relevant by the participants, who expressed interest in continuing its exploration. Our approach, which used a unique combination of Integrated Assessment of Agricultural Systems and scenario development with Companion Modeling, could be adapted to other areas and issues, although tool transfer remains an open question.

Theoretical trends in agent-based modeling (ABM) draw sharp lines that usually limjt the expressiveness of models to fit their methodological box: KISS puts emphasis on parsimonious and tractable model for systematic simulation analysis, KIDS focuses on the use of data for model specification and simulation validation, while KILT highlights the involvement of stakeholders to build representative model and turn simu lation into a learning tool. In this proposal, we stress the benefit to break the lines and reinstate the various agent-based model purposes, focuses and supports in the particular context of designing transformative ABM. The proposed perspective to burst methodological boxes is based on the creation of models to mix social actors and issues based on sub-models supporting a variety of theoretical approaches. To back this methodological claim, we detailed a I O years-long modeling effort to represent and support community based management of renewable resources in the wetlands of the lower Amazon, in the Para state of Brazil.

International audience; Biodiversity-based agriculture is the main form of agriculture practiced by smallholder farmers, who produce half the world's food, especially in the Global South. This form of agriculture relies on planned biodiversity intentionally managed by farmers and on the associated biodiversity that spontaneously colonizes the agroecosystem. In recent decades, there have been increasing calls from researchers and society to support biodiversity-based agriculture as an alternative paradigm to today's industrial agriculture. Building adapted governance and management systems for enhancing farmers' access to agrobiodiversity is a key challenge for the development of biodiversity-based agriculture. To achieve this, a better understanding of how farmer's access agrobiodiversity is needed, and in particular, how this access is affected by interactions between farmers and with institutions, i.e., social networks. In this article, we first review the literature on the role of social networks in farmers' access to agrobiodiversity, in the form of crop diversity and associated biodiversity, and the related knowledge to manage this diversity. This review points at a major knowledge gap concerning how the composition and structure of these networks affect farmers' access to agrobiodiversity. Then, we review literature on social-ecological networks to identify how this framework developed for environmental management could contribute in getting a better understanding of the role of social networks' structure and composition in farmers' access to agrobiodiversity. Based on this review, we propose a social-ecological network framework dedicated to crop diversity. Finally, we present potential applications of this framework to develop new participatory approaches for agrobiodiversity management and governance, adapted to biodiversity-based agriculture.

International audience; This paper investigates the perceptions of a diversity of stakeholders supporting smallholders in the eastern Brazilian Amazon about ecosystem services and agricultural practices. Our results come from 30 semi-structured interviews with key stakeholders in two contrasting municipalities in this region (Paragominas and Irituia). We identified 17 different ecosystem services and 15 agricultural practices. Using a multidimensional scaling (MDS), we differentiated the stakeholders’ perceptions of co-production of ecosystem services. The most mentioned ecosystem services are food supply, regulation of water cycles, soil fertility and erosion prevention. Overall, there is a positive perception that agricultural practices are providing ecosystem services. Biodiversity-based practices are associated with the provision of a broad range of ecosystem services whereas mechanical-chemical practices are mainly linked to food supply. Use of fire, deforestation and use of chemical pesticides are perceived as having most negative effects on the provision of ecosystem services. The type of activity performed by the stakeholders and their municipality are the main factors influencing their perception of ecosystem services co-production. In conclusion, the concept of co-production of ecosystem services related to agroecosystems is relevant as local actors recognize a diversity of effects of agricultural practices on service provision.; Cette étude analyse les perceptions relatives aux services écosystémiques et aux pratiques agricoles, de différents acteurs venant en appui aux agriculteurs familiaux en Amazonie brésilienne orientale. Nos résultats se fondent sur 30 entretiens semi-directifs avec des acteurs clés de deux municipalités contrastées de cette région (Paragominas et Irituia). Dix-sept services écosystémiques différents et 15 pratiques agricoles ont été identifiés. Un positionnement multidimensionnel (MDS) a permis de différencier la perception des acteurs sur la coproduction de services écosystémiques. La production de nourriture, la régulation des cycles de l’eau, la fertilité des sols et la prévention de l’érosion, sont les services écosystémiques les plus mentionnés. Globalement, les pratiques agricoles sont perçues de manière positive en termes de fourniture de services écosystémiques. Les pratiques basées sur la biodiversité (principalement l’introduction de différentes plantes) sont associées à une grande diversité de services, tandis que les pratiques basées sur les intrants chimiques et l’énergie mécanique sont principalement associées à la production de nourriture. L’utilisation du feu, la déforestation et l’utilisation des pesticides chimiques sont considérées comme ayant principalement des effets négatifs sur la fourniture de services écosystémiques. Le type d’activité exercée par les acteurs et la municipalité sont les principaux facteurs influençant leur perception de la co-production de services écosystémiques. En conclusion, le concept de co-production lié aux agroécosystèmes est pertinent, car les acteurs locaux reconnaissent une diversité d’effets des pratiques agricoles sur la fourniture de services.

Depuis une dizaine d’années en France, de nouvelles formes d’installations collectives émergent et semblent motivées par la réalisation d’un projet de vie associé à l’exercice du métier d’agriculteur. Encore peu documentées, ces formes d’exploitations collectives pourraient cependant favoriser la conduite de systèmes plus diversifiés, dont la gestion plus complexe serait permise par la diversité des acteurs impliqués dans le processus de production. Pour appréhender les interactions entre l’organisation collective et la combinaison d’activités caractérisant l’exploitation agricole, nous proposons un cadre générique permettant d’analyser et de comparer différentes stratégies organisationnelles. Considérant une combinaison de données récoltées sur treize fermes collectives, nous proposons un cadre conceptuel générique basé sur le formalisme AGR (Agent-Groupe-Rôle) issu du domaine de la recherche en informatique. Sa déclinaison en un cadre d’analyse appliqué à trois cas d’étude contrastés illustre la diversité des formes d’organisation de collectifs et des différents enjeux qu’ils portent, ainsi que les façons dont le partage des ressources structure les groupes.

How one builds, checks, validates and interprets a model depends on its ‘purpose’. This is true even if the same model code is used for different purposes. This means that a model built for one purpose but then used for another needs to be re-justified for the new purpose and this will probably mean it also has to be re-checked, re-validated and maybe even re-built in a different way. Here we review some of the different purposes for a simulation model of complex social phenomena, focusing on seven in particular: prediction, explanation, description, theoretical exploration, illustration, analogy, and social interaction. The paper looks at some of the implications in terms of the ways in which the intended purpose might fail. This analysis motivates some of the ways in which these ‘dangers’ might be avoided or mitigated. It also looks at the ways that a confusion of modelling purposes can fatally weaken modelling projects, whilst giving a false sense of their quality. These distinctions clarify some previous debates as to the best modelling strategy (e.g. KISS and KIDS). The paper ends with a plea for modellers to be clear concerning which purpose they are justifying their model against.

Agent-based modelling (ABM) simulates Social-Ecological-Systems (SESs) based on the decision-making and actions of individual actors or actor groups, their interactions with each other, and with ecosystems. Many ABM studies have focused at the scale of villages, rural landscapes, towns or cities. When considering a geographical, spatially-explicit domain, current ABM architecture is generally not easily translatable to a regional or global context, nor does it acknowledge SESs interactions across scales sufficiently; the model extent is usually determined by pragmatic considerations, which may well cut across dynamical boundaries. With a few exceptions, the internal structure of governments is not included when representing them as agents. This is partly due to the lack of theory about how to represent such as actors, and because they are not static over the time-scales typical for social changes to have significant effects. Moreover, the relevant scale of analysis is often not known a priori, being dynamically determined, and may itself vary with time and circumstances. There is a need for ABM to cross the gap between micro-scale actors and larger-scale environmental, infrastructural and political systems in a way that allows realistic spatial and temporal phenomena to emerge; this is vital for models to be useful for policy analysis in an era when global crises can be triggered by small numbers of micro-level actors. We aim with this thought-piece to suggest conceptual avenues for implementing ABM to simulate SESs across scales, and for using big data from social surveys, remote sensing or other sources for this purpose.

Agent-based models are popular in common-pool resource management to represent complex systems and stimulate collective action and management, where they are used to evaluate scenarios of stakeholders’ choice in participatory simulations. We developed the “CoComForest” (COllaborative COMmunity FOREST management) model to support community forest management (CFM) and non-timber forest product (NTFP) harvesting in Nan Province, northern Thailand. The model was used as a computer-based role-playing game to support sharing of perceptions and knowledge among stakeholders, and in participatory simulations to explore future CFM scenarios. The Unified Modelling Language was used to build the conceptual model, subsequently implemented under the CORMAS (COmmon-pool Resource and Multi-Agent System) simulation platform. Several tests were conducted in the laboratory for verification and calibration before using this tool with 21 diverse stakeholders during a field workshop. Three different participatory gaming and simulation sessions were organized. The first one focused on the co-validation of the model with participants. They accepted most of the model functionalities and the scheduling of the rounds of play. The model was used in the subsequent two sessions to simulate the scenarios of firebreak establishment and introduction of outsiders intensively harvesting NTFPs, respectively. The results showed that the intensive harvesting practices of outsiders accelerated the depletion of resources, whereas the prevention of wildfire by establishing firebreaks could increase the resource availability in the landscape. The debriefing session at the end of the workshop focused on the analysis of simulation results and the relationships between the players’ decision-making and their actual circumstances. Individual in-depth interviews conducted after the workshop helped to evaluate the use of this model with local stakeholders. Most participants considered the model as a useful common representation of the system they manage collectively. Its use in participatory simulations facilitated communication among the stakeholders searching for an adapted and acceptable collective action plan to improve CFM at the sub-district level in order to prevent the overharvesting of NTFPs by outsiders.