Whilst Alternative Livelihood Programme is frequently the name given to strategies developed to replace the illicit cultivation of crops, such as opium or coca, with alternative, legal crops for income generation, in this edition of New Agriculturist we focus on a range of activities, which provide more sustainable livelihood options to rural people. Economic alternatives to opium in Afghanistan, coca in Peru, tobacco in Bangladesh, cotton in Mali and logging in Indonesia and the Amazon, are featured along with cultivating mushrooms in drought-afflicted areas in Tanzania and promoting environmental conservation by raising silk worms in Kenya. 22/05/07