Management along a gradient: Southeast Sulawesi's cacao production landscapes

Indonesia’s cacao production landscapes are increasingly important sites for supporting social and ecological sustainability. To inform these efforts, this study presents information on the history of cacao cultivation, current management practices, factor s influencing these practices, and ongoing developments related to land in Southeast Sulawesi. Three findings are highlighted. First, despite the commonality of a full -sun growing strategy, a diversity of management practices persists, some of which challe nge common renderings of socio- ecological trade- offs. Second, current levels of production loss suggest the potential transience of cacao as a livelihood strategy and source of wildlife habitat in Indonesia, highlighting the need to study socio- ecological trade -offs over a long time period and in relation to other cropping systems. Third, while many efforts to boost social or ecological sustainability assume that farmers make decisions on the basis of economic risk and return, management practices appear to be more often informed by the quality and orientation of institutional support farmers receive.

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