Within the scope of action line MIA2 – Intelligent Monitoring of Agrodiversity in Agrosystems – ISOPlexis, the Center for Sustainable Agriculture and Food Technology carries out research aiming to monitor the conditions of agrodiversity in farmlands. The monitoring allows obtaining quantitative and qualitative information about the biophysical, biological, agronomic, and anthropogenic components, detecting variations in the agrosystem type and productivity.
The ultimate objective of this line is to assess the resilience of food production systems to the constraints caused in particular by climate change and to maximize the benefits through agrosystems in climate adaptation and sustainability of short food supply chains and local markets in a way optimized and targeted.
This line of action is part of Madeira's Regional Strategy for Intelligent Specialization (EREI) for the domains of Agriculture and Biosustainability and the cross-border strategy for the Macaronesia Area.
Within the scope of the MIA2 line, the Agro+ITec structuring project uses a methodology developed by the team to assess the influence of agroecological conditions on the condition and status of the agrosystems, using as references the Standardized Agrosystem Model (AMP) and the climate scenarios of Madeira-Climate Strategy. The information is generated through a process of sampling and monitoring the quality indicators of the agrosystems and agrodiversity, with the collection of Agrosystems Sustainability Indicators (ISA). The project also uses Remote Sensing techniques, that is, intelligent monitoring through drones, sensors, and satellite images, to model the conditions and behavior of agrosystems and crops by defining the climate adaptation measures or intelligent resource management in the agrosystems.
Additionally, climate and/or environmental impact mitigation techniques are tested and evaluated through the use of agroecology and biological agriculture management techniques and the use of residues and by-products from the activity.
This project is part of the "Farm to Fork" strategy of the Ecological Pact (Green Deal) and is in line to build resilient food production systems that promote the sustainability of supply chains.
The studies carried out by MIA2 are carried out in collaboration with regional partners, namely farmers, DRA and ARM services, the Universities of the Azores and La Laguna (Canary Islands), and the research centers CITAB (UTAD) and IPNA Spain).
The MIA2 line presents connections and synergies with other lines of investigation at ISOPlexis, in particular, the C2DA and 3B lines, as these studies have involved typical Madeira cultures and “endogenous” [regional] varieties and genetic resources, and different types of residues and by-products from farms. These studies are of enormous importance and timeliness, considering the ongoing climate changes.
The investigation of the MIA2 line and its Agro+ITec structuring project has been developed and financed by the operational programs Madeira 14-20, INTERREG B, PCT-MAC, and PRODERAM2020.
Agrosystem monitoring, includes a periodic collection of information on agroecological and climatic conditions, agrosystem structure, crops, and associated genetic resources, production and sustainability indicators, agricultural practices used, and production methods. The knowledge about the processes and dynamics that affect regional agrosystems, and the collection of data and information allow, in a "predictive" way, to assess the impact of global changes on agrodiversity, its structure, productivity, and quality.
Modeling, zoning, intelligent evaluation, and phenological monitoring of crops and cultures, using new tools in the analysis and evaluation of agrosystems. These are based on the use of precision sensors and equipment in the acquisition and analysis of information in loco, with the main objective of verifying the changes that occur in a determined agrosystem, depending on environmental variables. The use of these tools and methodologies in the analysis and evaluation of agrosystems is a trend that is being imposed in the rural environment. It is essential to assist in more sustainable management of agrosystems and their crops or simulation new scenarios in the face of climate change.
Monitoring the quality of agrosystems, using quality indicators, including physical-chemical, soil microbiological, floristic, and faunistic indicators. Understanding the dynamics of these indicators allows us to evaluate the ecological services of agrosystems, the influence of the terroir on the quality of agricultural production, and the sustainability and resilience of agrosystems to global change and are used in the development of evaluation models. These activities are developed alone or in coordination with the Biological Resources lines.
Development of multifunctional, sustainable, inclusive, and resilient food production systems that promote ecological and provisioning services through the conversion of conventional agricultural systems to more sustainable models. Using techniques and principles of Agroecology, Organic Farming, Permaculture, Syntropic Agriculture, and local Agrodiversity, using subtropical crops and local varieties, as these have as their main foundation the sustainability of the agrosystems. Until the end of the XXI century, agriculture in the Autonomous Region of Madeira will suffer extreme events, such as extreme temperatures, heatwaves, drought, and high radiations and will have to adapt to these changes, ensuring the productivity and resistance of the agrosystems, the maintenance of the territory and food security, being sustainability a major factor for reducing the impacts of climate change.