Land use systems and livelihoods in demographically heterogeneous frontier stages in the Amazon

This research paper analyzes a 25-year panel dataset from Machadinho, Brazil, to examine how smallholders' land use systems and livelihood strategies evolve across different stages of Amazonian frontier development.

• The study identifies a transition from land use systems centered on subsistence agriculture toward diversified systems that integrate both on-farm and off-farm activities as the colonization frontier integrates into markets.
• Livelihood diversification is critical for preventing households from entering long-term deprivation trajectories, particularly as frontiers become more urban and market-oriented. Consequently, in advanced stages of frontier development, land use becomes progressively independent of household demographic dynamics.
• Among original settlers, the most successful were those who diversified their livelihood strategies and portfolio of capitals in response to changing regional and local market conditions.

APA

Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (2025). Land use systems and livelihoods in demographically heterogeneous frontier stages in the Amazon. https://iai.int/es/pub_acad/land-use-systems-and-livelihoods-in-demographically-heterogeneous-frontier-stages-in-the-amazon/

Chicago

Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research. Land use systems and livelihoods in demographically heterogeneous frontier stages in the Amazon. 2025. https://iai.int/es/pub_acad/land-use-systems-and-livelihoods-in-demographically-heterogeneous-frontier-stages-in-the-amazon/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research |title=Land use systems and livelihoods in demographically heterogeneous frontier stages in the Amazon |date=8 January 2025 |url=https://iai.int/es/pub_acad/land-use-systems-and-livelihoods-in-demographically-heterogeneous-frontier-stages-in-the-amazon/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{interamericaninstituteforglobalchangeresearch2025land, author = {{Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research}}, title = {{Land use systems and livelihoods in demographically heterogeneous frontier stages in the Amazon}}, institution = {Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research}, year = {2025}, month = jan, url = {https://iai.int/es/pub_acad/land-use-systems-and-livelihoods-in-demographically-heterogeneous-frontier-stages-in-the-amazon/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }