Integrated agricultural systems: The 21st century nature-based solution for resolving the global FEEES challenges

The crucial need to adopt integrated agricultural systems (IAS) as to resolve the challenges threatening human and planetary health at all levels has created strong paradigm in the world farming systems. This review aimed at developing an overview of IAS by discussing and closing the gap in knowledge about the classes adopted globally, the potential, and challenges as a nature-based solution to FEEES (food, fodder, economic, energy and environmental sustainability). The study observed that many classes of IAS are practiced in different countries with majority found in the tropical and subtropical regions. It was also found that some countries such as USA, China, and Brazil were top on the list of countries where IAS were well practiced and studied. Further, this study discovered that the benefits of IAS are overwhelming with the provisions of sustainable environment, increase in food production as well as improvement in economic returns and livelihood. The study also demonstrated that IAS provide more REST (resilient, economic values, sustainable turnover) than the non-IAS due to the synergies in space and time between crops, pastures, livestock, and forestry. Although IAS like any other systems have their pros and cons, yet these challenges can be overcome with proper policies and dedicated careful management approaches. Conclusively, IAS are no doubt the 21st century nature-based solution (NBS) for addressing the global challenges on FEEES. This work will not only serve to highlight the benefits of IAS but will promote its incorporation in the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) climate change mitigation pledges of different countries as well as form the most components of the climate-smart agriculture (CSA) policies of various institutions.