Integrated Systems Approach

Abstract

In the face of complexity, many research efforts address a component of the problem rather than attempting to deal with all its dimensions. Interventions based on such sectoral work tend to rely on narrow perspectives; unrealistic extrapolations, untested assumptions and misplaced narratives, and have often failed to provide lasting benefits to rural households. An integrated approach to improving livelihoods and the agro-ecosystems upon which they depend can overcome many of these shortcomings and deliver interventions that are widely appropriate, applicable and adoptable across the world’s drylands.