Agroecology: A discipline leading towards transdiscipline

Agroecology has long been considered as a science or discipline, having the agroecosystem as the unit of study. Theoretical or methodological components of agroecology are derived from available scientific tools or they are complemented by other disciplines. This discipline mixture or interaction makes agroecology something more than a pure discipline. Agroecology strengthens itself by systems thinking and systems approach, becoming more vigorous by using the advances and methods derived from the discipline, the multidiscipline and the interdiscipline, and takes into account local knowledge where ecological, social and economic concepts and principles are applied in a reasonable manner; consequently agroecology becomes a transdiscipline. Depending on the social production relationships, farmer production. systems of food and other agricultural products enhance or deteriorate the natural resources base; furthermore, they are conditioned by market prices and public demands. Agroecology considers the ecological, social or economic principles making them available to modern agriculture. Agriculture requires harmonic functioning with the environment and natural resources offering innocuous food and healthy agricultural products to society. Agroecology as a transdiscipline has the opportunity or may have the responsibility of focusing on the analysis, design, development and evaluation of high and low external input agricultural systems, considering them as "systems" that work at different hierarchical levels. For this reason, there is no doubt that considering agroecology as a transdiscipline can contribute to the long term sustainability of agroecosystems and its natural resources base.