Yu Peng

Meta‐analysis has been increasingly applied to synthesize existing evidence in agricultural research; however, its application is often challenged by agroecological heterogeneity, diverse management practices, and inconsistent reporting standards. Although previous studies have examined aspects of meta‐analysis development in agriculture, there is a lack of a comprehensive global‐scale assessment of its application patterns, methodological characteristics, and research evolution. Using a global dataset of 2224 published agricultural meta‐analysis studies, this study provides a bibliometric and methodological review of agricultural meta‐analysis research. Publication output and citations increased rapidly after 2015, with Asia contributing the largest share of publications (61.0%). Keyword analyses identified crop yield, soil organic carbon, nitrogen, and fertilizer management, greenhouse gas emissions, and climate change as core research themes, while more recent studies increasingly emphasized water productivity, resource‐use efficiency, soil health, and sustainable agricultural management. Among Web of Science “Highly Cited Papers” in agricultural meta‐analysis ( n = 125), agricultural management practices, soil carbon and soil quality, crop production and food security, and nutrient management were the most represented themes, and log response ratio was the dominant effect‐size metric (80.8%). Overall, these findings provide descriptive evidence of the rapid expansion, thematic concentration, and methodological diversification of agricultural meta‐analysis research. By synthesizing publication trends, thematic evolution, and methodological characteristics, this study provides a comprehensive overview of the current state and future priorities of agricultural meta‐analysis research.

Cover crop adoption offers multiple benefits and climate mitigation potential for agroecosystems, but is still an underutilized conservation practice. Recently, the combined use of cover cropping plus no‐tillage (CCNT) has been increasingly promoted to achieve its synergistic effectiveness. Yet, how this combined practice affects soil greenhouse gas (GHG) emission remains a topic of debate. Existing studies are predominantly based on research‐managed settings and often fail to assess all three major GHGs of carbon dioxide (CO ₂ ), nitrous oxide (N ₂ O), and methane (CH ₄ ). To address these knowledge gaps, this study conducted a 30‐month monitoring from producer‐managed fields to quantify the soil greenhouse gas responses to CCNT compared to no‐tillage (NT) alone. The findings showed that CCNT increased the soil global warming potential (GWP) by 15.2% relative to NT. CO ₂ is the main contributor, accounting for over 91.7% of the total GWP. On average, the daily fluxes of CO ₂ , N ₂ O, and CH ₄ were increased by 16.2%, 32.3%, and 55.6% under CCNT, respectively. Meteorological variables explained 85.3% of the CO ₂ increase and 46.1% of the N ₂ O increase associated with CCNT. Furthermore, two types of CCNT practices differed in GHG emission responses, though both strategies significantly reduced nitrogen losses. These quantitative results, derived from actual production systems, provide informed decision‐making among local producers regarding the adoption of cover crops. Moreover, this field‐based evidence offers a robust empirical foundation for future modeling efforts aimed at assessing the ecological benefits of cover crops under varying climatic and soil conditions.

Given the impact of COVID-19 and the desert locust plague, the Ethiopian food security issue has once again received widespread attention. Its food crisis requires comprehensive and systematic research to achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal of zero hunger. This review discusses the current situation and the causes of food security in Ethiopia. We focus on the challenges in the food security assessment field. The article lists seven typical causes of food insecurity and three roots of food security in Ethiopia. Long-term food security assessment and a comprehensive understanding and manageability for food security causes are considered as the main existing research challenges. Climate-resilient management, water management, and long-term ecosystem network monitoring and data mining are suggested as potential roadmap for future research.

Water is the key limiting factor in socioeconomic and ecological development, but it is adversely affected by climate change. The novel virtual water (VW) concept and water, energy, food, biodiversity, and human health (WEFBH) nexus approach are powerful tools to assess the sustainability of a region through the lens of climate change. Climate change-related challenges and water are complex and intertwined. This paper analyzed the significant WEFBH sectors using the multicriteria decision-making (MCDM) and analytic hierarchy process (AHP) model. The AHP model demonstrated quantitative relationships among WEFBH nexus sustainability indicators in the Greater Horn of Africa countries. Besides, the net VW imports and water footprints of major staple crops were assessed. The composite WEFBH nexus indices varied from 0.10 to 0.14. The water footprint of crops is increasing period by period. The results also revealed that most countries in the study area are facing WEFBH domains unsustainability due to weak planning or improper management strategies. The strong policy constancy among the WEFBH sector is vital for dissociating the high-water consumption from crop production, energy, environmental, and human health system. Thus, this study enhances insights into the interdependencies, interconnectedness, and interactions of sectors thereby strengthening the coordination, complementarities, and synergies among them. To attain sustainable development, we urgently call all public and private entities to value the amount of VW used in their daily activities and design better policies on the complex WEFBH nexus and future climate change.

Arid areas are widespread globally and support a third of the world's population's livelihoods. The increasing population, urbanization, land-use changes, and the climate significantly affect coupled natural and human systems and threaten environments and socio-ecological land systems. The degradation of drylands poses a severe and widespread threat to the lives of millions of people, especially in developing countries and in the global environment. This review assesses published literature on dryland socio-ecological systems to reveal current research trends and changes in research themes over time and introduces basic theories and advances in dryland socio-ecological system frameworks, resilience measurement, and regime shifts. Developing a more general but adaptable framework and a more practical strategy for long-term coordination and partnership and attaining specific insights into ecological services should receive more attention and be strengthened in future studies on drylands sustainability.

To understand the groundwater environmental quality and the impact of trace elements in the construction of urban agglomeration in China, this study collected 58 groundwater samples from the core area of the Chang-Zhu-Tan urban agglomeration (Changsha, Zhuzhou, Xiangtan) and quantitatively analyzed the content of 13 dissolved trace element and their spatial distribution characteristics. The health risk assessment model was further used to evaluate the human health risk caused by trace element pollution in groundwater. It was observed that Ba had the highest average concentration (0.28 mg·L⁻¹), whereas Cd had the lowest (2.1 × 10⁻⁵ mg·L⁻¹). Compared with China’s groundwater environmental quality standard, the exceeding rates of Se, Mn, Zn, and Ni concentrations were 37.93%, 17.24%, 1.72% and 1.72%, respectively. Ba, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mo, and Pb did not exceed the corresponding standards. The 13 trace elements were distributed in a scattered pattern in space and the trace elements in both banks of the Xiang River, Zhuzhou, Weishui River and surrounding areas were relatively high. Health risk assessments showed that the carcinogenic risk values of Cd, Cr, and Pb and the health risk values of 10 non-carcinogenic elements were less than the corresponding maximum acceptable risk level. The health risks associated with non-carcinogenic substances through ingestion were higher than those associated with dermal absorption. Among the non-carcinogenic substances, Ba and Mn posed the greatest health risks. With respect to drinking water exposure, Cr had the highest carcinogenic risk, followed by Pb. Furthermore, Cd had the lowest carcinogenic risk. This study recommended that continuous monitoring of Ba, Mn, and Cr in groundwater should be practiced by assessing the risk of these elements in the Chang-Zhu-Tan urban agglomeration.