Agricultural land-use change in Kerala, India : perspectives from above and below the canopy

Abstract onlyAgroforests are undergoing rapid land-use change not discernible using remote sensing. This research highlights the value of using mixed methods for characterizing land-use and land-cover histories in tropical regions. According to farmers, the primary drivers of this shift are declining profitability of agriculture in Kerala, labour shortages, unreliable weather, unfamiliar pests and diseases, and government policy. Despite the undeniable move away from agricultural activity in home gardens, the paper concludes that these ecologically and culturally important systems are not disappearing, but rather evolving to meet the needs of a less agricultural Kerala