Can climate-smart macadamia agroforestry systems safeguard smallholder farmers against climate shocks in Malawi?

Smallholder farmer resilience to climate change is commonly assessed through discrete adaptation measures, overlooking the potential of integrated land use systems. Our study explores Climate-Smart Macadamia Agroforestry (CSMA) as a climate adaptation strategy in central Malawi. We examine farmer perceptions, existing climate challenges, and the feasibility of scaling up CSMA systems to enhance adaptive capacity. Moving beyond approaches that treat adaptation as isolated interventions, we identify two distinct pathways: system-integrated resilience among CSMA farmers, where multiple adaptive benefits are embedded within the land use system itself; and discrete strategy adoption among non-CSMA farmers, which typically requires costly, separate interventions. Moreover, our study reveals that CSMA inherently bundles ecosystem services, including temporal flexibility, income diversification, and carbon sequestration, that collectively strengthen adaptive capacity without additional investment, while monoculture systems remain comparatively vulnerable. By quantifying performance differences in yield stability and income resilience between the two groups, we identify strategic opportunities for mainstreaming agroforestry into climate adaptation and land use planning frameworks. Practically, the study also highlights targeted interventions including drought-tolerant varieties, integrated pest management, and post-harvest technologies that can enhance smallholder resilience not only in Malawi but across comparable farming systems in sub-Saharan Africa SSA) and globally.