Resilient, Low-Carbon, and Integrated Farming Systems: Advancing Agriculture and Allied Sciences for Future Agri-Food and Nutritional Security

Agriculture is at a critical crossroads as climate change, resource degradation, and rising food demand challenge the sustainability of global agri-food systems. Increasing greenhouse gas emissions, declining soil health, nutrient imbalances, and water scarcity threaten both productivity and ecological stability. At the same time, emerging innovations in low-carbon agricultural practices and mitigation technologies are offering promising pathways to enhance resilience while directly reducing net greenhouse gas footprints. These approaches not only improve resource-use efficiency and carbon sequestration but also support measurable progress toward national and sectoral decarbonization targets. As nations commit to carbon neutrality and SDG targets, the need for evidence-based, scalable, and farmer-centric solutions is more urgent than ever.Despite significant advances, critical gaps remain in understanding how low-carbon practices and technologies perform and scale across diverse agro-ecologies. There is limited clarity on system-level interactions, trade-offs, long-term soil carbon dynamics, nutrient–water synergies, and the socio-economic viability of these innovations. Integration of digital agriculture, carbon accounting tools, and MRV frameworks into smallholder contexts remains inconsistent. Furthermore, while specific low-carbon interventions (e.g., improved nutrient and residue management, reduced/zero tillage/cover cropping systems, methane and nitrous oxide mitigation options, and soil carbon enhancement strategies) show high potential, their adoption is constrained by policy barriers, high transition costs, and limited local evidence. Addressing these gaps requires interdisciplinary research bridging soil science, crop science, livestock management, climatology, economics, and social sciences, with an explicit focus on quantifying and verifying greenhouse gas outcomes.This Research Topic aims to compile cutting-edge research, innovations, methodologies, and case studies that advance low-carbon agricultural practices and technologies for climate-resilient and productive farming. Submissions may include experimental findings, sustainability assessments, modelling studies, GHG quantification and mitigation performance evaluations, carbon sequestration analyses, farm- and system-level decarbonization strategies, socio-economic assessments, MRV tools, and digital innovations. Focus areas include but are not limited to: carbon-smart cropping systems; conservation agriculture; fertilizer and nutrient-use efficiency technologies and strategies; low-carbon crop–livestock integration and manure management innovations; validated mitigation technologies and management packages that reduce emissions intensity; methane and nitrous oxide mitigation strategies; soil carbon enhancement technologies; and implementation pathways and enabling conditions for adoption at scale. Contributions highlighting gender inclusion, smallholder perspectives, and pathways for policy integration are strongly encouraged.This Research Topic seeks to bring together high-quality research, reviews, and case studies that advance scientific understanding and practical innovations in low-carbon agricultural practices and mitigation technologies. The collection encourages interdisciplinary contributions addressing biophysical, technological, ecological, and socio-economic perspectives that support decarbonization of agri-food systems and climate-resilient agri-food and nutritional security. Authors may submit manuscripts related, but not limited to, the following subthemes:• Low-carbon cropping practices (e.g., optimized fertilizer strategies, enhanced-efficiency fertilizers/inhibitors, precision nutrient management, reduced/zero tillage systems, cover crops) and conservation agriculture• Soil organic carbon dynamics, sequestration pathways, and GHG mitigation with robust baselines, additionality considerations, and durability/persistence where relevant• Low-carbon livestock and mixed farming technologies and practices (e.g., enteric methane mitigation, manure management, feed and grazing strategies; emissions intensity reduction)• Water–nutrient–carbon interactions under climate variability as they affect GHG outcomes and mitigation performance• Digital agriculture, precision tools, and carbon accounting/MRV systems for quantifying, verifying, and scaling low-carbon outcomes (including smallholder-appropriate MRV)• Systems comparisons and trade-off analyses (yield, profitability, labor, risk, and emissions; mitigation vs. adaptation co-benefits)• Socio-economic assessments, adoption barriers, gender perspectives, and policy innovations that enable uptake of low-carbon practices and technologies• Methodological advances for emissions measurement, modelling, and life cycle assessment of low-carbon interventions• Case studies demonstrating scalable and farmer-centric low-carbon models with transparent evidence of GHG reductions and implementation feasibility Topic editors: Vijay Singh Meena, Prakash Kumar Jha, Dinesh Jinger, Surendra Singh Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/76742/resilient-low-carbon-and-integrated-farming-systems-advancing-agriculture-and-allied-sciences-for-future-agri-food-and-nutritional-security