Major land use changes such as deforestation and restoration influence water resources in agriculture–forest landscapes. Changes are observed in water flows, groundwater infiltration, water quality and rainfall. Interdisciplinary water–forest research has unravelled biophysical parts of the interplay that influences forest and water resources. In this Perspective paper, we propose an expanded interdisciplinary research approach to study water and policies in agriculture–forest frontiers. The approach differs in four important aspects from previous ones: (i) a conceptual ‘frontier’ understanding; an analytical focus on (ii) agriculture and (iii) policy–water linkages; (iv) empirical attention to northern and southern countries. The approach is put into practice with the “Pendulum” framework, with interventions and the agriculture–forest frontier oscillating over time between exploitation and restoration. Through the approach, a better understanding will be provided on the dynamic interplay of water and policies in oscillating agriculture–forest frontiers, with changing outcomes for people and environment.

森林砍伐和恢复等主要土地利用变化会影响农林景观中的水资源。观察到水流量、地下水入渗、水质和降雨量的变化。跨学科的水-森林研究揭示了影响森林和水资源的相互作用的生物物理部分。在这篇 Perspective 论文中，我们提出了一种扩展的跨学科研究方法来研究农业 - 森林前沿的水和政策。该方法与以前的方法在四个重要方面有所不同：(i) 概念上的“前沿”理解；分析重点是 (ii) 农业和 (iii) 政策与水的联系；(iv) 对北方和南方国家的实证关注。该方法通过“钟摆”框架付诸实践，随着干预措施和农业 - 森林边界随着时间的推移在开发和恢复之间摇摆不定。通过该方法，将更好地了解水和政策在农业 - 森林边界摇摆不定的动态相互作用，以及对人类和环境的不断变化的结果。