UNHIDE Agroforestry - A Knowledge Exchange Latvia- Sweden 2023-25 - Report - Page 3
ather, the Linden
he Willow is my
m not alone”
folk song
Maja Lindström Kling, in dialogue with Anders,
to summarise some of what we learned, reflected
upon, and carried with us.
1. INTRODUCTION
MODERN EFFICIENCY
AND SIMPLIFICATION HAS
COME AT THE COST OF
ROBUSTNESS
Uniform landscapes with vast monocultures,
fundamentally altering the intricate tapestry of
species interactions and energy flows that underpin ecosystems and biodiversity, have become a
recognised concern. Without a rich variety of life,
ecosystems become fragile and vulnerable, compromising their ability to provide essential services such as nutrient cycling, pollination, climate
regulation, and mitigation of extreme weather
events.
MIMICKING THE
EFFICIENCY OF NATURE
Agroforestry is a collective term for food production systems that have existed for millennia, characterised by a symbiosis of human activity and
nature management.
Today, an increasing number of agroforestry
practices, implemented at different scales across
Europe, show that merging nature restoration with
agriculture and forestry — in landscapes with
more blurred boundaries — contributes to longterm resilience, biodiversity, and productivity.
For example, hedgerows, small woodlands, and
even individual (especially veteran) trees can significantly increase butterfly populations in farmed
landscapes. In agroforestry systems across Europe, insects that attract breeding birds — a form of
