Bridging systems thinking mindsets and farm management: The role of agricultural conservation planning in farmers’ adoption of conservation practices

Increasing the level of conservation efforts is crucial to achieving the goals of improving water quality and climate change adaptation. This study aims to investigate the influence of systems thinking and conservation planning on the adoption of agricultural conservation practices using farmers' survey data (N = 1008) in three watersheds in Indiana, U.S. We found that farmers who were systems thinkers were more likely to adopt multiple conservation practices than non-systems thinkers. Nevertheless, it is important to acknowledge that not all farmers exhibit systems thinking tendencies; for both systems thinkers and non-systems thinkers, our findings underscore the pivotal role of conservation planning facilitated by the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) in promoting farmers' conservation behaviors. Specifically, farmers who had a conservation plan demonstrated a higher likelihood of adopting cover crops, conservation tillage (marginal evidence), a nutrient management plan, filter strips/other buffers, and most notably, adopting multiple conservation practices than farmers without a conservation plan. This study also reveals the process of how systems thinking, seeking and/or using information, and conservation plan adoption influence the adoption of multiple conservation practices using structural equation modeling. Further, we contend that the nine-step conservation planning process with the support of a well-trained professional conservationist represents a more advanced and science-based form of systems thinking process beyond farmers' typical thinking in farm management. This process can offer farmers guidance for continued maintenance of conservation systems in the field and promote a system-based farming approach by integrating multiple practices, regardless of whether the farmers were systems thinkers or not. This study provides valuable insights and practical implications for outreach and educators in using the conservation planning process to engage deeply with farmers, nurture farmers’ systems-thinking mindset, and facilitate a system-based farming approach.