Farmers in Bule, Ethiopia, are practicing agroforestry, a diverse cropping method that mimics natural ecosystems. A survey found a stunning average of 16 crop species, including 21 species of tree, on farms. The benefits of the practice are myriad: food security, improved soil health, carbon sequestration, diversified revenue streams, and new wildlife habitat, to name several. While the incentive to grow valuable monocultures can be high, many growers stick with agroforestry regardless.

For years, farmers in Nairobi were at the mercy of weeds and then armyworms that both destroyed large amounts of cropland that was dedicated to growing maize. Researchers from the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology, however, became adamant about finding a solution and eventually found very specific types of grasses that when planted intercropped, not only kept the worm away, but also helped improve the viability of the soil.

With a global food crisis, farmers look for how to get long-term high yields out of difficult farmland. In Oaxaca, Mexico, farmers farm like a forest, eat low on the food chain, restore damaged land, and have reverence for the planet.

Across Papua New Guinea, growers are turning to agroforestry, pairing crops like cocoa and nuts to closely mimic forest ecosystems. The benefits are numerous--diverse income streams for growers, new habitat for wildlife, combatting crop diseases, and carbon sequestration, among others. But success hinges, in part, on growers' ability to balance long-term and short-term goals.

Communities across Uganda have been realizing the benefits of agroforestry, an old farming system that mimics natural ecosystems. Apart from creating a diverse, stable local food supply, the practice promotes soil health, bolsters biodiversity, creates wildlife habitat, and sequesters carbon. An NGO is working with communities to spread the practice across the region, with marked effect.