Development and application of indicators for the agroecological transition of dairy farming systems.

The increasing trends of world population is linked to higher food requirements, which could lead to an excessive intensification of agriculture and livestock sector, contributing to put them in a bad light, due to their impacts on several domains, such as environment, climate, and animal welfare. However, when sustainable practices are adopted, agriculture and livestock productions are also linked to the provisioning of several positive contributions. The aim of this PhD thesis is to develop and apply indicators to support the agroecological transition of dairy farming systems. A special focus is placed on mountain areas, where traditional livestock systems relying on grasslands for forage production and animal grazing are associated with several positive contributions, encompassed within the ecosystem services framework. To meet this objective, different approaches are adopted: 1) an analysis of the dairy value chain in mountain areas, and its contribution to inclusive sustainable development through the provisioning of ecosystem services and the support given to local economy and local development; 2) an assessment of agroecological grassland-based dairy farms in mountain areas, focusing on animal health; 3) an evaluation of the multifunctionality of grassland-based dairy farms in mountain areas, focusing on the positive contribution of farming activity in terms of ecosystem services. The outcomes of the research highlight the role of traditional grassland-based dairy farms in mountain areas for the provisioning of ecosystem services and support to local economy. Several indicators are selected and applied to cover different domains of the agroecological transition of dairy farming systems, such as animal health and the importance to maintain multifunctional dairy farms. The adoption of traditional practices could be accompanied with a reasonable modernization of the activity, maintaining the link with the territory, the provisioning of ecosystem services and avoiding land abandonment. Final remarks underscore the need to raise the awareness of farmers, stakeholders and the general public about the ecosystem services framework. Thusly, specific policies could be put in place to sustain the most suitable farming practices able to provide several positive contributions, to benefit from the related provisioning and non-provisioning services.