AgroTutor: A Mobile Phone Application Supporting Sustainable Agricultural Intensification

Juan Carlos Laso Bayas, Andrea Gardeazabal, Mathias Karner, Christian Folberth, Luis Vargas, Rastislav Skalský, Juraj Balkovič, Anto Subash, Moemen Saad, Sylvain Delerce, Jesus Crespo Cuaresma, Jaroslava Hlouskova, Janet Molina-Maturano, Linda See, Steffen Fritz, Michael Obersteiner and Bram Govaerts
Additional contact information
Juan Carlos Laso Bayas: Ecosystems Services and Management Program, International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), 2361 Laxenburg, Austria
Andrea Gardeazabal: International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), 56237 Texcoco, Mexico
Mathias Karner: Ecosystems Services and Management Program, International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), 2361 Laxenburg, Austria
Christian Folberth: Ecosystems Services and Management Program, International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), 2361 Laxenburg, Austria
Luis Vargas: International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), 56237 Texcoco, Mexico
Rastislav Skalský: Ecosystems Services and Management Program, International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), 2361 Laxenburg, Austria
Juraj Balkovič: Ecosystems Services and Management Program, International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), 2361 Laxenburg, Austria
Anto Subash: Ecosystems Services and Management Program, International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), 2361 Laxenburg, Austria
Moemen Saad: Ecosystems Services and Management Program, International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), 2361 Laxenburg, Austria
Sylvain Delerce: Decision and Policy Analysis (DAPA), International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT), Cali, 763537 Palmira, Colombia
Janet Molina-Maturano: Ecosystems Services and Management Program, International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), 2361 Laxenburg, Austria
Linda See: Ecosystems Services and Management Program, International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), 2361 Laxenburg, Austria
Steffen Fritz: Ecosystems Services and Management Program, International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), 2361 Laxenburg, Austria
Michael Obersteiner: Ecosystems Services and Management Program, International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), 2361 Laxenburg, Austria
Bram Govaerts: International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), 56237 Texcoco, Mexico

Sustainability, 2020, vol. 12, issue 22, 1-10

Abstract: Traditional agricultural extension services rely on extension workers, especially in countries with large agricultural areas. In order to increase adoption of sustainable agriculture, the recommendations given by such services must be adapted to local conditions and be provided in a timely manner. The AgroTutor mobile application was built to provide highly specific and timely agricultural recommendations to farmers across Mexico and complement the work of extension agents. At the same time, AgroTutor provides direct contributions to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, either by advancing their implementation or providing local data systems to measure and monitor specific indicators such as the proportion of agricultural area under productive and sustainable agriculture. The application is freely available and allows farmers to geo-locate and register plots and the crops grown there, using the phone’s built-in GPS, or alternatively, on top of very high-resolution imagery. Once a crop and some basic data such as planting date and cultivar type have been registered, the application provides targeted information such as weather, potential and historical yield, financial benchmarking information, data-driven recommendations, and commodity price forecasts. Farmers are also encouraged to contribute in-situ information, e.g., soils, management, and yield data. The information can then be used by crop models, which, in turn, send tailored results back to the farmers. Initial feedback from farmers and extension agents has already improved some of the application’s characteristics. More enhancements are planned for inclusion in the future to increase the application’s function as a decision support tool.

Keywords: volunteered geographic information; agricultural intensification; sustainability; smart farming; citizen science; SDGs; decision support tool (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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