Agroforestry: a key land use system for sustainable food production and public health

Agroforestry is a climate resilient agricultural land use system that includes trees and woody shrubs. The environmental benefits of agroforestry systems are well known, but their broader contributions to global public health have been understudied. This article presents the potential contributions...

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Main Authors: Micaela K. Roy, Meredith P. Fort, Rebecca Kanter, Florencia Montagnini
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2025-06-01
Series:Trees, Forests and People
Subjects:
Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666719325000743
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author Micaela K. Roy
Meredith P. Fort
Rebecca Kanter
Florencia Montagnini
author_facet Micaela K. Roy
Meredith P. Fort
Rebecca Kanter
Florencia Montagnini
author_sort Micaela K. Roy
collection DOAJ
description Agroforestry is a climate resilient agricultural land use system that includes trees and woody shrubs. The environmental benefits of agroforestry systems are well known, but their broader contributions to global public health have been understudied. This article presents the potential contributions of agroforestry systems to public health, discusses considerations for implementation, and recommends ways to support uptake through research and practice. Agroforestry systems may contribute to public health through improved food and nutritional access, enhanced food sovereignty and community well-being, increased environmental quality and health, and impacts on communicable and non-communicable disease. Despite the many ways that agroforestry systems may contribute to public health and planetary health, it is not well described in the health literature and has not gained traction as a public health practice. Increased agroforestry research and support from the public health community may benefit short- and long-term human and ecosystem health in our changing environment.
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spelling doaj-art-9bed0d1421e64e75adea910ea02bd9c22025-08-20T02:16:50ZengElsevierTrees, Forests and People2666-71932025-06-012010084810.1016/j.tfp.2025.100848Agroforestry: a key land use system for sustainable food production and public healthMicaela K. Roy0Meredith P. Fort1Rebecca Kanter2Florencia Montagnini3University of Colorado School of Medicine, Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO, USAColorado School of Public Health, Aurora, CO, USA; Corresponding author.Department of Nutrition, Faculty of Medicine, University of Chile, Santiago, ChileSchool of the Environment, The Forest School, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USAAgroforestry is a climate resilient agricultural land use system that includes trees and woody shrubs. The environmental benefits of agroforestry systems are well known, but their broader contributions to global public health have been understudied. This article presents the potential contributions of agroforestry systems to public health, discusses considerations for implementation, and recommends ways to support uptake through research and practice. Agroforestry systems may contribute to public health through improved food and nutritional access, enhanced food sovereignty and community well-being, increased environmental quality and health, and impacts on communicable and non-communicable disease. Despite the many ways that agroforestry systems may contribute to public health and planetary health, it is not well described in the health literature and has not gained traction as a public health practice. Increased agroforestry research and support from the public health community may benefit short- and long-term human and ecosystem health in our changing environment.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666719325000743AgroforestryAgroecologyPublic health
spellingShingle Micaela K. Roy
Meredith P. Fort
Rebecca Kanter
Florencia Montagnini
Agroforestry: a key land use system for sustainable food production and public health
Trees, Forests and People
Agroforestry
Agroecology
Public health
title Agroforestry: a key land use system for sustainable food production and public health
title_full Agroforestry: a key land use system for sustainable food production and public health
title_fullStr Agroforestry: a key land use system for sustainable food production and public health
title_full_unstemmed Agroforestry: a key land use system for sustainable food production and public health
title_short Agroforestry: a key land use system for sustainable food production and public health
title_sort agroforestry a key land use system for sustainable food production and public health
topic Agroforestry
Agroecology
Public health
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666719325000743
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