Very excited this piece with @adamcalo.bsky.social @philiploring.com and Olivia Oldham-Dorrington is finally out! #sparesharethread
Has the theory land sparing seeped out of ecological journals and into the mainstream?
New: The legend of land sparing in Agriculture and Human Values
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
New: The legend of land sparing in Agriculture and Human Values
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
The legend of land sparing - Agriculture and Human Values
As institutions mobilize ambitious land-use transition agendas, dominant policy narratives risk constraining their transformative potential. The land sparing–land sharing (SpSh) framework, introduced ...
link.springer.com
September 30, 2026 at 7:07 PM
Very excited this piece with @adamcalo.bsky.social @philiploring.com and Olivia Oldham-Dorrington is finally out! #sparesharethread
In this paper, we trace a new untroubled assertion that agricultural intensification equates with sustainability. We break down how the argument is constructed and the implications for the future of food.
#openaccess
#foodstudies
🧪
#academicsky
#openaccess
#foodstudies
🧪
#academicsky
September 30, 2026 at 7:08 PM
Written with @mjahi.bsky.social, @philiploring.com and Olivia Oldham-Dorrington.
We relied on their long history engaging with this topic to ask why the land sparing vision endures.
We relied on their long history engaging with this topic to ask why the land sparing vision endures.
September 30, 2026 at 7:08 PM
1/Feel like this #thread is useful enough to lift from replies to Grunwald and re-post for all those curious about #landsparing / #landsharing aka the “do we need to grow more food to save biodiversity & fight climate change” debate. Turns out it’s neither necessary nor sufficient. #sparesharethread
A leftist academic wrote an essay titled "Useful Idiot" about...me! So I did his podcast, and it's kind of interesting. I like how he introduces me by explaining that usually his guests are insightful, but he decided to make an exception. landscapes.libsyn.com/more-is-less...
Landscapes: More is Less? - Michael Grunwald
Michael Grunwald is an environmental journalist who sees maximizing efficient production as the most important sustianbility strategy. His book, "We Are Eating the Earth," brings fresh attention to an...
landscapes.libsyn.com
March 15, 2026 at 11:54 PM
1/Feel like this #thread is useful enough to lift from replies to Grunwald and re-post for all those curious about #landsparing / #landsharing aka the “do we need to grow more food to save biodiversity & fight climate change” debate. Turns out it’s neither necessary nor sufficient. #sparesharethread
Worth following to think about agriculture and hunger.
Mostly following because I was a TA for GD Stone (who Jahi cites) and most of the points that Jahi makes seem obvious.
Follow the #sparesharethread for more.
@mjahi.bsky.social , I'd love to see a summary.
Mostly following because I was a TA for GD Stone (who Jahi cites) and most of the points that Jahi makes seem obvious.
Follow the #sparesharethread for more.
@mjahi.bsky.social , I'd love to see a summary.
1/Feel like this #thread is useful enough to lift from replies to Grunwald and re-post for all those curious about #landsparing / #landsharing aka the “do we need to grow more food to save biodiversity & fight climate change” debate. Turns out it’s neither necessary nor sufficient. #sparesharethread
A leftist academic wrote an essay titled "Useful Idiot" about...me! So I did his podcast, and it's kind of interesting. I like how he introduces me by explaining that usually his guests are insightful, but he decided to make an exception. landscapes.libsyn.com/more-is-less...
August 14, 2026 at 11:51 AM
Worth following to think about agriculture and hunger.
Mostly following because I was a TA for GD Stone (who Jahi cites) and most of the points that Jahi makes seem obvious.
Follow the #sparesharethread for more.
@mjahi.bsky.social , I'd love to see a summary.
Mostly following because I was a TA for GD Stone (who Jahi cites) and most of the points that Jahi makes seem obvious.
Follow the #sparesharethread for more.
@mjahi.bsky.social , I'd love to see a summary.
18/ From Adam Calo more recently - another contribution to the #sparesharethread in the larger sense.
The authors found "when Europe’s human population crashed, plant biodiversity also plummeted"; and "As human populations recovered following the mortality shock, diversity also recovered."
The authors found "when Europe’s human population crashed, plant biodiversity also plummeted"; and "As human populations recovered following the mortality shock, diversity also recovered."
“Modern, intensive farming practices have caused substantial biodiversity losses across the globe. Yet, our Black Death findings, in combination with numerous other examples, show us that humans and nature do not always have to be kept separate to conserve and promote biodiversity.”
The Black Death’s counterintuitive effect: as human numbers fell, so did plant diversity
New study finds that plant biodiversity collapsed in landscapes where arable production was abandoned during and after the Black Death era.
theconversation.com
March 16, 2026 at 6:58 PM
18/ From Adam Calo more recently - another contribution to the #sparesharethread in the larger sense.
The authors found "when Europe’s human population crashed, plant biodiversity also plummeted"; and "As human populations recovered following the mortality shock, diversity also recovered."
The authors found "when Europe’s human population crashed, plant biodiversity also plummeted"; and "As human populations recovered following the mortality shock, diversity also recovered."
21/ The straightforward implication is often ignored/denied: "if increasing production is your goal, breaking up large farms and giving the land to small producers would be the best short term solution” (p. 205: backend.production.deepblue-documents.lib.umich.edu/server/api/c...) #sparesharethread
backend.production.deepblue-documents.lib.umich.edu
July 2, 2026 at 10:56 AM
21/ The straightforward implication is often ignored/denied: "if increasing production is your goal, breaking up large farms and giving the land to small producers would be the best short term solution” (p. 205: backend.production.deepblue-documents.lib.umich.edu/server/api/c...) #sparesharethread
2/Use the #sparesharethread tag to follow as I’m going to Quote-post all the entries rather than copy them anew - so it’s maybe more of a metathread than a megathread? If that turns out totally unworkable I’ll take another pass another day with copying and pasting.
March 15, 2026 at 11:54 PM
2/Use the #sparesharethread tag to follow as I’m going to Quote-post all the entries rather than copy them anew - so it’s maybe more of a metathread than a megathread? If that turns out totally unworkable I’ll take another pass another day with copying and pasting.
23.3/ It still seems to me that farms relying on complex ecological processes to improve production with fewer synthetic inputs (see e.g. www.routledge.com/Ecological-C...) will have diseconomies of scale -
#sparesharethread
#sparesharethread
Ecological Complexity and Agroecology
This text reflects the immense current growth in interest in agroecology and changing approaches to it. While it is acknowledged that the science of ecology should be the basis of agroecological plann...
www.routledge.com
July 2, 2026 at 10:56 AM
23.3/ It still seems to me that farms relying on complex ecological processes to improve production with fewer synthetic inputs (see e.g. www.routledge.com/Ecological-C...) will have diseconomies of scale -
#sparesharethread
#sparesharethread
20/ Another piece finding, essentially, support for the inverse relationship between farm size and productivity: www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
That is, smaller farms appear to be more productive per unit area, despite common rhetoric on supposed efficiency of large-scale ag #sparesharethread
That is, smaller farms appear to be more productive per unit area, despite common rhetoric on supposed efficiency of large-scale ag #sparesharethread
Scale-dependent effects of area and spatial heterogeneity on crop diversity and nutrient productivity in Latin America
Latin America is a global hotspot for food production and agricultural expansion, but the influence of field and farm level spatial configuration on c…
www.sciencedirect.com
July 2, 2026 at 10:56 AM
20/ Another piece finding, essentially, support for the inverse relationship between farm size and productivity: www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
That is, smaller farms appear to be more productive per unit area, despite common rhetoric on supposed efficiency of large-scale ag #sparesharethread
That is, smaller farms appear to be more productive per unit area, despite common rhetoric on supposed efficiency of large-scale ag #sparesharethread
23.4/That is, larger & usually less diverse farms will be less able to take advantage of low-gain contributions from "natural" systems.
A very technical, relevant, under-cited piece by Allen et al. is
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1...
About which I will say more another time!
#sparesharethread
A very technical, relevant, under-cited piece by Allen et al. is
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1...
About which I will say more another time!
#sparesharethread
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
July 2, 2026 at 10:56 AM
23.4/That is, larger & usually less diverse farms will be less able to take advantage of low-gain contributions from "natural" systems.
A very technical, relevant, under-cited piece by Allen et al. is
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1...
About which I will say more another time!
#sparesharethread
A very technical, relevant, under-cited piece by Allen et al. is
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1...
About which I will say more another time!
#sparesharethread
23.2/ ...in testing the relationship between yield and farm size (marcfbellemare.com/wordpress/wp...)
Unclear to me, at a quick read, if this would equally apply to findings of higher biodiversity on smaller farms (www.nature.com/articles/s41...)
#sparesharethread
Unclear to me, at a quick read, if this would equally apply to findings of higher biodiversity on smaller farms (www.nature.com/articles/s41...)
#sparesharethread
marcfbellemare.com
July 2, 2026 at 10:56 AM
23.2/ ...in testing the relationship between yield and farm size (marcfbellemare.com/wordpress/wp...)
Unclear to me, at a quick read, if this would equally apply to findings of higher biodiversity on smaller farms (www.nature.com/articles/s41...)
#sparesharethread
Unclear to me, at a quick read, if this would equally apply to findings of higher biodiversity on smaller farms (www.nature.com/articles/s41...)
#sparesharethread
23.1/ I don't believe Lipton's reasoning relied entirely on the notion that small farms are more productive-which is just as well: Yao & Bellamare argue that the relationship is often an artifact of the methods & inherent challenges...
#sparesharethread
#sparesharethread
marcfbellemare.com
July 2, 2026 at 10:56 AM
23.1/ I don't believe Lipton's reasoning relied entirely on the notion that small farms are more productive-which is just as well: Yao & Bellamare argue that the relationship is often an artifact of the methods & inherent challenges...
#sparesharethread
#sparesharethread
22/ The late, noted economist Michael Lipton also argued that land redistribution had significant likely benefits for decreasing poverty & increasing production (beginningtoendhunger.com/2017/07/07/l...).
#sparesharethread
#sparesharethread
Michael Lipton - Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org
July 2, 2026 at 10:56 AM
22/ The late, noted economist Michael Lipton also argued that land redistribution had significant likely benefits for decreasing poverty & increasing production (beginningtoendhunger.com/2017/07/07/l...).
#sparesharethread
#sparesharethread
19.1/ So the Intermediate Disturbance Hypothesis is really and truly a side discussion - but here are two pieces - one academic, one blog - from Fox on its "zombie" status:
"The intermediate disturbance hypothesis should be abandoned" - www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
#sparesharethread
"The intermediate disturbance hypothesis should be abandoned" - www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
#sparesharethread
The intermediate disturbance hypothesis should be abandoned
A leading idea about how disturbances and other environmental fluctuations affect species diversity is the intermediate disturbance hypothesis (IDH). …
www.sciencedirect.com
March 16, 2026 at 6:58 PM
19.1/ So the Intermediate Disturbance Hypothesis is really and truly a side discussion - but here are two pieces - one academic, one blog - from Fox on its "zombie" status:
"The intermediate disturbance hypothesis should be abandoned" - www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
#sparesharethread
"The intermediate disturbance hypothesis should be abandoned" - www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
#sparesharethread
19/ The authors' peer reviewed article is here: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Though I do have to say, it is concerning to see their reference the "intermediate disturbance hypothesis." I'm fairly convinced by Jeremy Fox's argument that it's a "zombie" idea...
#sparesharethread
Though I do have to say, it is concerning to see their reference the "intermediate disturbance hypothesis." I'm fairly convinced by Jeremy Fox's argument that it's a "zombie" idea...
#sparesharethread
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
March 16, 2026 at 6:58 PM
19/ The authors' peer reviewed article is here: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Though I do have to say, it is concerning to see their reference the "intermediate disturbance hypothesis." I'm fairly convinced by Jeremy Fox's argument that it's a "zombie" idea...
#sparesharethread
Though I do have to say, it is concerning to see their reference the "intermediate disturbance hypothesis." I'm fairly convinced by Jeremy Fox's argument that it's a "zombie" idea...
#sparesharethread
17/ I respond to his response, pointing to my book and two others
#sparesharethread
Et fini (for now; I’ll likely add more entries in future)
#sparesharethread
Et fini (for now; I’ll likely add more entries in future)
Thank you. In the same vein, my book lays out much of my analysis in greater detail: www.ucpress.edu/books/beginn... . Bill Moseley’s more recent book is also instructive (cup.columbia.edu/book/decolon...) as is Glenn Davis Stone’s (www.routledge.com/The-Agricult...).
Beginning to End Hunger by M. Jahi Chappell - Paper
Scholarship is a powerful tool for changing how people think, plan, and govern. By giving voice to bright minds and bold ideas, we seek to foster understanding and drive progressive change.
www.ucpress.edu
March 16, 2026 at 12:54 AM
17/ I respond to his response, pointing to my book and two others
#sparesharethread
Et fini (for now; I’ll likely add more entries in future)
#sparesharethread
Et fini (for now; I’ll likely add more entries in future)
16/ Grunwald responds, pointing to his book as a longer reply (and suggesting a future conversation, which we’ve not reconnected about as yet)
#sparesharethread
#sparesharethread
OK that’s not hand-waving, and deserves a longer response when I have more time. We should talk. Also if you haven’t seen this it’s a much longer response: www.simonandschuster.com/books/We-Are...
We Are Eating the Earth
From the author of New York Times bestseller The New New Deal, a groundbreaking piece of reportage from the trenches of the next climate war: the f...
www.simonandschuster.com
March 16, 2026 at 12:52 AM
16/ Grunwald responds, pointing to his book as a longer reply (and suggesting a future conversation, which we’ve not reconnected about as yet)
#sparesharethread
#sparesharethread
March 16, 2026 at 12:50 AM
But worth noting as well that Ellis et al found that "With rare exceptions, current biodiversity losses are caused not by human conversion or degradation of untouched ecosystems, but rather by the appropriation, colonization, and intensification of use in lands inhabited and used by prior societies"
March 16, 2026 at 12:50 AM
13/ #sparesharethread
(Restating Hertel et al.’s point: land sparing occurred in the past, but given lag and global trade connections, radically increased yield in Africa could likely lead to expansion, not contraction, of global ag land. Cuz of those other factors Erb, Lambin and others assess.)
(Restating Hertel et al.’s point: land sparing occurred in the past, but given lag and global trade connections, radically increased yield in Africa could likely lead to expansion, not contraction, of global ag land. Cuz of those other factors Erb, Lambin and others assess.)
Hertel et al did find evidence for historical land-sparing (contra more recent research, including mine), but also found "a future Green Revolution in Africa could lead to global cropland expansion in the context of a more fully integrated global agricultural economy." (www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...)
PNAS
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), a peer reviewed journal of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) - an authoritative source of high-impact, original research that broadly spans...
www.pnas.org
March 16, 2026 at 12:50 AM
13/ #sparesharethread
(Restating Hertel et al.’s point: land sparing occurred in the past, but given lag and global trade connections, radically increased yield in Africa could likely lead to expansion, not contraction, of global ag land. Cuz of those other factors Erb, Lambin and others assess.)
(Restating Hertel et al.’s point: land sparing occurred in the past, but given lag and global trade connections, radically increased yield in Africa could likely lead to expansion, not contraction, of global ag land. Cuz of those other factors Erb, Lambin and others assess.)
Empirically disconfirms a consistent yield-deforestation cxn: iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1...
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iopscience.iop.org
March 16, 2026 at 12:45 AM
Work by Glenn Davis Stone and Tim Wise & Marci Baranski offer similar insights; most hunger reduction in the past 60
years didn’t come from yield increases (rgs-ibg.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1... ; www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...); & more recent research also…
years didn’t come from yield increases (rgs-ibg.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1... ; www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...); & more recent research also…
rgs-ibg.onlinelibrary.wiley.com
March 16, 2026 at 12:45 AM
Such equations “are useful in providing a consistent accounting framework, but are also potentially dangerous to use as predictive models and for policy analysis if they do not factor in how a yield change impacts the other factors through behavioral and market changes.”
March 16, 2026 at 12:44 AM