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In the agricultural sector, where factors like the type of agriculture, management techniques, and access to funding are critical, disadvantaged people face significant barriers to employment. This study investigated the effects of these factors, especially with regard to sustainability and social farming, on the employment of disadvantaged persons in the Czech Republic. We sent questionnaires to 2036 agricultural businesses within the Czech Republic, and the data we received were sorted and analyzed. There was a favorable relationship between farm size and employment chances. Disadvantaged people were more likely to be hired by large farms, especially those larger than 250 hectares. Furthermore, mixed-production farms were more capable of employing disadvantaged persons, unlike conventional farms, which reached their maximum employment levels at one, three, or six workers. Organic farming had a more even distribution, while biodynamic farming showed limited capacity to employ disadvantaged persons. Farms involved in fundraising had fewer farms but employed more disadvantaged persons (number of employees peaked at two, four, and six), while farms that did not engage in fundraising hired more disadvantaged individuals (peaked at one and three employees). The motivations for employing disadvantaged persons were primarily social concerns, as well as labor shortages and economic and innovative factors. These findings show the importance of agricultural enterprises using these factors to improve the social and economic well-being of disadvantaged persons. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to provide an overview of the approaches and methods used to assess the dynamics of soil organic matter (SOM). This included identifying relevant processes that describe and estimate SOM decomposition, lability, and humification for the purpose of sustainable management. Various existing techniques and models for the qualitative and quantitative assessment of SOM were evaluated to gain a better understanding of advances in organic matter transformation. This evaluation aimed to identify the strengths, limitations, and applications of these techniques and models, and to highlight new research directions in the field. Quantitative analysis of SOM can be performed using various parameters, including oxidation kinetics, lability, carbon management index, humification degree, humification index, and humification ratio. On the other hand, qualitative evaluation of SOM can involve techniques such as oxidizability, high-performance size-exclusion chromatography, electrospray ionization Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry, visual examination, smell, assessment of microorganism content, plant growth, cation exchange capacity, type of organic material, and decomposition. These techniques and parameters provide valuable insights into the characteristics and transformation of SOM, enabling a comprehensive understanding of its dynamics. Evaluating SOM dynamics is of utmost importance as it is a determining factor for soil health, fertility, organic matter stability, and sustainability. Therefore, developing SOM models and other assessment techniques based on soil properties, environmental factors, and management practices can serve as a tool for sustainable management. Long-term or extensive short-term experimental data should be used for modeling to obtain reliable results, especially for quantitative SOM transformation analysis, and changes in the quality and quantity of SOM should be considered when developing sustainable soil management strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]