The long-term association between nature and human in agroecosystems gives rise to traditional ecological knowledge and the corresponding sustainable agricultural practices, which often favours non-crop biodiversity more than the conventional practices. The terraced rice paddy system in Gongliao, New Taipei City, Taiwan has been maintained through such traditional practices for centuries, providing stable, patchy habitats for many endemic aquatic species.

In order to conserve habitats, an NGO collaborates with local communities to alter farmers’ agricultural practices and social network structures, thereby facilitating their willingness to maintain active paddies. Our study developed a dynamic social-ecological network model parameterized by empirical social data to explore potential consequences of diverse NGO engagements to sustainable practices and biodiversity in terraced rice paddy system. A network framework addressed the complex interactions among farmers and among paddies, while a dynamic model enables network structure, practices and habitat conditions to change over time.

Our results suggested that, as the NGO allocates differently in ways promoting sustainable practices, various social structures could emerge, leading to different social processes. This in turn influences farmers’ agricultural practices chosen and ensuing biodiversity status. In terms of biodiversity management, our model can inform policymaking by providing predictive evaluations of the effectiveness of various NGO engagements. Moreover, it serves as a valuable tool for investigating the evolving relationships among entities within agroecosystems.