Abstract In the mountainous areas of South-East Asia, family farms have shifted from subsistence to input-intensified and market-oriented maize-based farming systems, resulting in a substantial increase in farm income, but also in new environmental threats: deforestation, biodiversity loss, soil erosion, herbicide leaching and soil fertility degradation. In this typical case study of cash-strapped farms, where the balance between socio-economic and environmental dimensions of sustainability is complex, we used participatory methods (serious games and Q-methodology), combined with agronomic field monitoring, to identify relevant farm and field-level criteria for sustainability assessment. Serious games at farm level showed that short-term socio-economic dimensions prevailed over environmental dimensions in farmers' objectives. However, farmers also greatly valued their capacity to transfer a viable farm to the next generation and avoid herbicide use. Serious games at field level showed that some farmers were willing to preserve soil fertility for future generations. The agronomic field monitoring showed that maize yield deviations from potential water-limited yield were primarily due to weed infestation favoured by low sowing density, due to uncontrolled moto-mechanized crop establishment. This technical failure at the beginning of the maize cycle led to herbicide overuse, poor returns on investment for fertilizer, and increased exposure to soil erosion. Combining the perspectives of scientists and farmers led to the following set of locally-relevant criteria: i) at farm level: farm income, diversity of activities, farmer autonomy, farmer health, workload peaks, soil fertility transfer between agroecological zones in the landscape, rice and forage self-sufficiency; ii) at field level: resource use efficiency, soil fertility, erosion and herbicide risks, susceptibility to pests, weeds and climate variability, biodiversity, land productivity, economic performance, labour productivity and work drudgery. Our approach helped to identify key relevant sustainability criteria and could be useful for designing alternatives to current maize-based cropping systems, and contributed to informing priority-setting for institutional development and agricultural policies in the region.

中文翻译：

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背景很重要：农艺田间监测和参与性研究，以确定东南亚农业系统可持续性的标准。

摘要 在东南亚山区，家庭农场已从自给自足转向投入集约化和以市场为导向的玉米耕作系统，导致农民收入大幅增加，但也带来了新的环境威胁：森林砍伐、生物多样性损失、土壤侵蚀、除草剂浸出和土壤肥力退化。在这个现金短缺农场的典型案例研究中，可持续性的社会经济和环境维度之间的平衡很复杂，我们使用参与式方法（严肃游戏和 Q 方法），结合农艺田间监测，确定相关农场和可持续性评估的实地标准。农场层面的严肃游戏表明，短期社会经济维度在农民目标中胜过环境维度。然而，农民也非常重视他们将可行农场转移给下一代并避免使用除草剂的能力。田间的严肃游戏表明，一些农民愿意为子孙后代保留土壤肥力。农艺田间监测表明，玉米产量与潜在水分限制产量的偏差主要是由于不受控制的摩托车机械化作物种植导致的低播种密度有利于杂草侵染。玉米周期开始时的这种技术故障导致了除草剂的过度使用、化肥投资回报不佳以及土壤侵蚀风险的增加。结合科学家和农民的观点，得出了以下一套与当地相关的标准：i) 在农场层面：农场收入、活动的多样性、农民自治、农民健康、工作量高峰、景观中农业生态区之间的土壤肥力转移，水稻和草料自给自足；ii) 在田间层面：资源利用效率、土壤肥力、侵蚀和除草剂风险、对害虫、杂草和气候变异的敏感性、生物多样性、土地生产力、经济表现、劳动生产力和苦差事。我们的方法有助于确定关键的相关可持续性标准，可用于设计当前以玉米为基础的种植系统的替代方案，并有助于为该地区的机构发展和农业政策确定优先事项提供信息。生物多样性、土地生产力、经济表现、劳动生产力和苦工。我们的方法有助于确定关键的相关可持续性标准，可用于设计当前以玉米为基础的种植系统的替代方案，并有助于为该地区的机构发展和农业政策确定优先事项提供信息。生物多样性、土地生产力、经济表现、劳动生产力和苦工。我们的方法有助于确定关键的相关可持续性标准，可用于设计当前以玉米为基础的种植系统的替代方案，并有助于为该地区的机构发展和农业政策确定优先事项提供信息。