Pastoralism Making variability work

This document is based on an extensive review of literature and policies. Two main points are made. First, pastoral systems are emblematic of farming systems that work with nature: they have evolved to function with the natural environment and therefore with variability. Second, pastoral systems have been looked at through the wrong “lens”: conventional modelling and economic analysis of livestock production are locked into a view of the animal in isolation from the natural environment, and of variability as a constraint. This has contributed to the misreading of pastoralism and its potential.