RT Journal Article
T1 Bibliometric analysis of global research on sugarcane production and its effects on biodiversity: trends, critical points and knowledge gaps
A1 dos Santos, Eduardo Rodrigues
A1 Carvalho, William Douglas
A1 Mustin Carvalho, Karen
AB The rising global demand for renewable energy and the urgency of mitigating climate change have positioned biofuels, particularly sugarcane ethanol, at the forefront of sustainability and conservation debates. Although promoted as a renewable alternative, sugarcane cultivation can cause habitat loss, biodiversity decline, soil degradation, and water contamination. This study presents a bibliometric assessment of 217 publications addressing the biodiversity impacts of sugarcane production, based on searches in the Web of Science Core Collection for papers published between 1998 and 2023. Using the bibliometrix package in R, we identified key publication trends, collaboration networks, and thematic structures. Between 1998 and 2006, no studies were returned by our searches, after which research activity increased substantially, peaking in 2021. Brazil, the world’s largest sugarcane producer, was the most frequent contributor to scientific output, while other major sugarcane producers, such as Thailand and India, showed limited engagement. Thematic mapping of the studies returned by our searches revealed three clusters: (1) cross-cutting themes linking sugarcane, biodiversity, and sustainability; (2) niche themes on pest and soil dynamics; and (3) emerging themes on the ecological role of bats in sugarcane landscapes. Overall, the findings highlight the growing academic engagement in reconciling bioenergy development with biodiversity conservation.
PB MDPI
SN 2673-7159
YR 2025
FD 2025-11
LK https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/133704
UL https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/133704
LA eng
NO dos Santos, E.R.; Carvalho, W.D.; Mustin, K. Bibliometric Analysis of Global Research on Sugarcane Production and Its Effects on Biodiversity: Trends, Critical Points, and Knowledge Gaps. Conservation 2025, 5, 67. https://doi.org/10.3390/conservation5040067
NO Funding:This research was funded by the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior—Brasil (CAPES), Finance Code 001 (Grant: 88887.905506/2023-00 and PROCAD-AMAZONIA (88881.987653/2024-01). K.M. was supported by an Ayuda Beatriz Galindo (BG22/00121), funded by the Spanish Ministry of Universities and the Complutense University of Madrid. W.D.C. was supported by Ayudas Maria Zambrano (CA3/RSUE/2021-00197), funded by the Spanish Ministry of Universities, and is currently supported by Ayudas para contratos Ramón y Cajal (RYC2023-045231-I), funded by MICIU/AEI (10.13039/501100011033) and FSE+.
NO European Commission
NO Ministerio de Universidades (España)
NO Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (Brasil)
NO Ministerio de Ciencia y Universidades (España)
NO Agencia Estal de Investigación (España)
NO Universidad Complutense de Madrid
DS Docta Complutense
RD 3 mar 2026