San Pablo and Rizal are among the municipalities in Laguna that have a large tract of land devoted to agricultural production. However, these two municipalities are facing problems in the agricultural sector, particularly in upland farming areas, due to the impact of climate change and various anthropogenic activities. Soil erosion, extreme weather conditions, and pests and diseases are among the serious concerns in the areas that severely affect the food production, and economic welfare of the upland farmers. In light with the current environmental conditions, the upland farmers’ traditional farming methods may no longer be effective. Therefore, there is a need for strategies to enhance the farming systems in the upland for sustainability.
One of the known strategies that addresses the problems of environmental stability and crop production is agroforestry. It is considered as a sustainable farming system that combines the production of agricultural crops and perennials on the same piece of land. Assessing the capability of land to support agroforestry can be done through the use of Agroforestry land capability assessment and mapping schemes (ALCAMS). It is a low-cost and easy-to-learn tool that determines the capability of land to support agroforestry. With this tool, it can dictate the kind of agroforestry system suitable for a certain land.
The training was designed to allow upland farmers and field technicians to enhance their knowledge and attitude toward agroforestry as a sustainable farming system. This training will focus on lectures and discussions about the basic concept of agroforestry, different soil and water conservation measures, and the use of ALCAMS as a tool for assessing land capability for agroforestry.