Swidden farming, also known as shifting cultivation or milpa in Latin America, is conventionally defined as an agricultural system in which temporary clearings are cropped for fewer years than they are allowed to remain fallow.

See Shifting cultivation.

Any system that is designed to produce high yields but with careful management and selection of inputs to reduce harm to the environment. It includes development and use of crop and animal varieties better suited to their environment, use of new technology for pest and disease control and for input management.

Sustainable use is defined by the Convention on Biological Diversity since 1992 as “the use of components of biological diversity in a way and at a rate that does not lead to the long-term decline of biological diversity, thereby maintaining its potential to meet the needs and aspirations of present and future generations.” This assessment notes that sustainable use is also an outcome of social-ecological systems that aim to maintain biodiversity and ecosystem functions in the long term, while contributing to human well-being.

The use of components of biological diversity in a way and at a rate that does not lead to the long-term decline of biological diversity, thereby maintaining its potential to meet the needs and aspirations of present and future generations (CBD, 1992).

Sets of activities that maintain or enhance the supporting, provisioning, regulating and cultural services provided by soils without significantly impairing either the soil functions that enable those services or biodiversity.

Sustainable livelihoods is defined as the ability of the users to cope with and respond to the stresses and shocks related to fluctuations in the Nature’s contribution to people that adversely impact their material, relational and subjective dimensions of life and create vulnerabilities, develop their capabilities to strengthen access and entitlements to the variety of livelihood resources, without unnecessarily undermining the natural resource base (the wild species and its natural environment), so as to achieve a desirable standard of living that befits them as humans and also approved by

The land use that serves the needs (for food, energy, housing, recreation etc.) of all human beings living on Earth today and in the future, respecting the boundaries and the resilience of ecological systems.

The use of land resources, including soils, water, animals and plants for the production of goods to meet changing human needs while ensuring the long- term productive potential of these resources and the maintenance of their environmental functions.

Process or system where agricultural yields are increased without adverse environmental impact and without the conversion of additional non-agricultural land.