Use of Agroforestry in Biodiversity Conservation.

Biodiversity or the sum of all genetic, species and ecosystem diversity that the life on Earth is consisted is a result of a very long period of evolution and is essential for the physical and mental health of all living organisms. Biodiversity provides countless ecosystem services, and short term and long term benefits, both to human beings and the environment. Despite of the immense importance, anthropogenic activities have changed and are changing this biodiversity from past few decades in a tremendous rate. Conserving biodiversity or the species richness by protected areas has a positive impact but it is very minute. The destruction of natural ecosystems due to urbanization and commercial agriculture is one reason, which is unavoidable with increasing population growth. More agricultural lands are required to achieve global food security needs but sustainable methods of cultivation must be practiced to ensure a safe future environment. Agroforestry is one solution in preserving, and sometimes enhancing biodiversity, while improving the world food security. In the tropical regions, agroforestry has been practiced as traditional home garden systems for a long time and in the recent past, other agroforestry practices getting popular in temperate regions as well. Several studies have investigated the potentials and impacts of agroforestry on biodiversity conservation and enhancement. This attempt is to bring those findings together and present the importance of agroforestry under present cultural, agricultural, environmental and global scenarios.

Key words: Biodiversity, Agroforestry, Food security