@article {JRN55327,
	title = {Mobile phone use and agricultural productivity among female smallholder farmers in Tanzania},
	journal = {Agri-gender},
	volume = {6},
	year = {2021},
	month = {9/15/2021},
	pages = { 43-54},
	abstract = {Evidence shows that mobile phones can improve agricultural productivity in Sub-Saharan Africa, yet few studies examine gender disparities in mobile phone ownership and use, and how they relate to the gender gap in agricultural productivity. This research gathers survey data on 279 male and female household heads in four villages in Iringa, Tanzania, and investigates the associations between gender, agricultural productivity, and phone ownership and use. Our study finds that many farmers use phones to conduct agricultural activities, with virtually all male respondents using their privately-owned phones compared to only two-thirds of female respondents. Moreover, many women have positive perceptions and trust in the benefits of using phones for agricultural activities. Lastly, phone owners have higher self-reported maize yields compared to non{\textendash}phone owners. Our results suggest that mobile phones may be a valuable tool in bridging the agricultural gender gap.},
	keywords = {Africa, agriculture, Gender, mobile phones, Tanzania, Women},
	doi = {10.19268/JGAFS.612021.4},
	url = {files/bibliography/21-037.pdf},
	author = {Amy Quandt and Jonathan Salerno and Timothy D. Baird and J. Terrence McCabe and Emilie Xu and Jeffrey E. Herrick and Joel Hartter}
}
@article {JRN55294,
	title = {Mobile phone use is associated with higher smallholder agricultural productivity in Tanzania, East Africa},
	journal = {PLoS ONE},
	volume = {15},
	year = {2020},
	month = {August 6, 2020},
	pages = {e0237337},
	abstract = {Mobile phone use is increasing in Sub-Saharan Africa, spurring a growing focus on mobile phones as tools to increase agricultural yields and incomes on smallholder farms. However, the research to date on this topic is mixed, with studies finding both positive and neutral associations between phones and yields. In this paper we examine perceptions about the impacts of mobile phones on agricultural productivity, and the relationships between mobile phone use and agricultural yield. We do so by fitting multilevel statistical models to data from farmer-phone owners (n = 179) in 4 rural communities in Tanzania, controlling for site and demographic factors. Results show a positive association between mobile phone use for agricultural activities and reported maize yields. Further, many farmers report that mobile phone use increases agricultural profits (67\% of respondents) and decreases the costs (50\%) and time investments (47\%) of farming. Our findings suggest that there are opportunities to target policy interventions at increasing phone use for agricultural activities in ways that facilitate access to timely, actionable information to support farmer decision making.},
	keywords = {agricultural workers, agriculture, cell phones, cereal crops, farms, maize, surveys, Tanzania},
	doi = {10.1371/journal.pone.0237337},
	url = {files/bibliography/20-036.pdf},
	author = {Amy Quandt and Jonathan Salerno and J. Neff and Timothy D. Baird and Jeffrey E. Herrick and J. Terrence McCabe and Emilie Xu and Joel Hartter}
}
@article {JRN55218,
	title = {A standardized land capability classification system for land evaluation using mobile phone technology},
	journal = {Soil and Water Conservation},
	year = {2020},
	month = {06/2020},
	abstract = {One of the major causes of poverty globally is land degradation and poor natural resource conservation, leading to reduced agricultural productivity. This degradation is often caused by a mismatch between land use and land potential, specifically using marginal lands for agriculture. For over 50 years the Land Capability Classification (LCC) system has been used globally for land evaluation to support soil and natural resource conservation. The LCC system classifies the land into eight classes; however, its use is currently limited by two factors: the lack of digital platforms for data input, storage, and management, and an insufficient technical capacity in many regions necessary to generate the required inputs. This paper describes the development of a system to facilitate rapid, flexible, and transparent determinations of LCC by non-soil scientists using a newly developed function of the Land-Potential Knowledge System (LandPKS) mobile app. Inputs include soil texture and rock fragment volume by depth, slope, and site observations of soil limiting factors. A standardized system for evaluating inputs and calculated indicators was developed based on US and international implementations of LCC. The system was evaluated using USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service soil survey data in eight US counties. Results show that the standardized system predictions were within one class for 73.8\% of the 1,312 soils tested, despite a high level of variability in how LCC was determined within the US database. The LandPKS LCC system was further tested in Tanzania and Ethiopia to examine site-specific applications, usability, and usefulness of the system for national land use planning efforts. It was concluded that the LandPKS app automates a globally applied system (LCC) for supporting natural resource conservation and sustainable land management and can serve as a foundation for crop-specific land suitability evaluations. More generally, improved land evaluation efforts can contribute to better soil and natural resource conservation, more sustainable agricultural systems, and increased food security.},
	keywords = {Ethiopia, land capability classification, land evaluation, LandPKS, natural resource conservation, Tanzania},
	doi = {https://doi:10.2489/jswc.2020.00023},
	url = {files/bibliography/20-027.pdf},
	author = {Amy Quandt and Jeffrey E. Herrick and G. Peacock and J. Neff and S. W. Salley and Mkalawa,C. and Buni, Adane}
}
@article {JRN55159,
	title = {Grazing reduces the temporal stability of temperate grasslands in northern China},
	journal = {FLORA},
	volume = {259},
	year = {2019},
	month = {09/17/2019},
	abstract = {<p>Grazing activity can profoundly influence grassland plant community structure and ecosystem functions. However, our understanding of the effects of livestock grazing on ecological stability across different grassland types remains limited. Based on a 5-year investigation along a precipitation gradient (180mm in desert steppe, 282mm in typical steppe and 375mm in meadow steppe) in temperate grasslands of Inner Mongolia, we examined the responses of the temporal stability of plant community aboveground biomass to grazing intensity at three levels (light grazing, moderate grazing and heavy grazing). We found that grazing intensity at all levels reduced biomass temporal stability across all types of grasslands. Heavy grazing intensity reduced community biomass, species richness and species asynchrony. Structural equation modeling further revealed that grazing decreased community stability mainly by decreasing species asynchrony. In addition, community-level stability was driven by grass species stability in the meadow steppe, but it was affected by the stability of forb species in the desert steppe. These findings suggest that grazing practices may alter the stability properties of grassland plant communities, highlighting the importance of understanding changes in different plant functional groups for predicting community dynamics under grazing management.</p>
},
	keywords = {Community stability, Grazing intensity, Species asynchrony, species richness, Steppe},
	doi = {10.1016/j.flora.2019.151450},
	url = {files/bibliography/19-022.pdf},
	author = {Qin, J. and Ren, H. and G. Han and J. Zhang and Dawn M. Browning and Walter Willms and Yang, D.}
}
