Rising beef demand in Indonesia, driven by population growth and urbanisation, presents an opportunity for local cattle producers to increase their domestic market presence. To create sustainable and inclusive agrifood systems, investments in innovation and capacity-building are essential. Using a case study, this research examined the influence of gender dynamics on the adoption of cattle farming innovations in Indonesia. Despite substantial research on gender and innovation in developing countries, limited attention has been paid to this issue in the Indonesian context. To address this gap, we conducted focus group discussions and key informant interviews with female farmers and extension officers to identify the challenges that rural Indonesian women face in accessing cattle farming innovations. Our findings reveal that women’s inclusion in innovation is constrained by multiple issues, such as the invisibility of their contributions, their limited influence in decisionmaking processes, and complex sociocultural and institutional factors that perpetuate the concept of gender harmony, which contributes to the subjugation of women. To promote gender equality and enhance rural wellbeing in Indonesia, we recommend for a comprehensive transformation of policy and institutional approaches to women’s empowerment and the implementation of gender-transformative policies in the agricultural sector.

Conservation agriculture management practices (e.g., cover crops and residue retention) have been widely promoted to improve soil quality and environmental sustainability. However, little is known about the long-term interactive effects of cover crops and residue retention on yield of the cash crops and environmental outcomes in dryland cropping systems under climate change. We used the pre-validated APSIM model, driven by statistically downscaled daily climate data from 27 Global Climate Models (GCMs) under two Shared Socioeconomic Pathways (SSP245 and SSP585), to assess the combined influences of cowpea cover crops and three residue retention levels on soil water balance, soil organic carbon (SOC), nitrogen (N) dynamics, crop yield and gross margin across six crop rotation systems during the historical period (1985–2020), near future (2021–2056), and far future (2057–2092) in southeast Australia. Our results showed that, on average, cover crops decreased soil moisture on the day of sowing the succeeding cash crop (by 22%), but led to greater SOC stock (21%), reduced N loss through leaching (71%), and enhanced N uptake and yield of cereals, but decreased N uptake and yield of field pea. The effects of cover crops on yield and gross margin became more positive in the far future under both SSPs, which may be attributed to the SOC increase and greater N availability in the long term. These benefits were more evident under residue removal due to the partly compensatory effects from cover crop residues. Furthermore, cover crops were profitable in the wetter parts of the study region (east), but reduced gross margin in the drier west due to depletion of soil water reserves for the next cash crop. We conclude that particularly where residues are removed, the long-term adoption of cowpea cover crops could be a potential practice to sustain crop productivity with environmental co-benefits under climate change in the wetter parts of the dryland cropping region of southeast Australia.

CONTEXT: The growing demand for beef in Indonesia, driven by population growth, urbanisation, and an emerging middle class, provides a significant opportunity for Indonesian smallholder cattle farmers. Effective innovation in the cattle sector is required to meet this demand and improve the livelihoods of local farmers.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to understand whether and how Research for Development (R4D) projects can act as innovation intermediaries that enhance the performance of Agricultural Innovation Systems (AIS) in the Indonesian beef sector. As a case study, we used an R4D project conducted in Nusa Tenggara Barat (NTB), Indonesia to explore the best practices and opportunities for improvement.

METHODS: We qualitatively analysed data from the R4D project using six innovation intermediary functions.

RESULTS: This case study partially succeeded in performing intermediary innovation functions. Strengths were noted in capacity building, provision of problem-solving information, and facilitation of collaborative knowledge generation. However, shortcomings were apparent in stakeholder engagement and in effectively addressing farmers' needs. R4D projects play a complex role as innovation intermediaries. A greater focus on participatory approaches, stakeholder engagement, and tailoring strategies to specific local conditions is required to achieve a significant impact.