Sustainable Intensification of Agricultural Systems in Iran for Adaptation to Climate Change: Opportunities and Challenges

Attaining sustainable food security in Iran, as a country located in arid and semi-arid region requires overcoming many challenges including limited basic resources (water and arable land), improving food safety and health and increasing productivity of agroecosystems as well as reconstructing market and affordability to food. Climate change has further threatened country’s capabilities for sustainability of agricultural systems. Reconsideration for intensive farming due to diminished quality and quantity of water, soil, and biodiversity resources which are caused by long time conventional practices is a necessity for providing sustainability of agroecosystems in Iran. Food security, however, should not be declined in the process; so, we need a new paradigm of “sustainable intensification” which integrates food security and meanwhile ecological sustainability of these systems. Sustainable intensification is a prerequisite of adaptation to climate change in Iran, as adaptation needs to reduce water consumption and increase water use efficiency (WUE), optimize soil tillage and management and maximize productivity of whole production chain. This would be done in triple steps of 1- reducing input consumption, 2- replacing conventional inputs and practices by integrated and sustainable ones and 3- recreating and redesigning climate- resilient agroecosystems. Opportunities and challenges of the duty is reviewed in the text.