Abstract
Sustaining agricultural systems in tropical regions with complex topography is essential for enhancing productivity, resilience, and biodiversity conservation. This study applies the Healthy Farm Index (HFI) to evaluate farm-level sustainability across four dimensions production, biodiversity, ecosystem services, and quality of life in moderate-altitude agricultural landscapes of Penebel Sub-district, Tabanan District, Bali, Indonesia. Two villages with contrasting topographic conditions, Babahan and Senganan, were selected for comparative analysis. A total of 60 farming households and their associated farmlands were purposively sampled. Data collection included soil properties (pH and moisture), hardscape conditions, crop and livestock diversity, and farmer socio-economic characteristics. Biodiversity was assessed using the Shannon-Wiener Index, while relationships between HFI and other key indicators were analysed using linear regression and Pearson correlations in R. The results reveal that Babahan Village exhibited a higher median HFI (0.63) compared to Senganan Village (0.39), indicating more favorable agro-ecosystem conditions in relatively flatter terrain. A strong negative correlation was observed between soil pH and soil moisture (r = -0.98, p <0.001). Furthermore, species diversity (H′) showed a significant inverse relationship with HFI (R² = 0.76, p<0.001), suggesting a tradeoff whereby higher agricultural health scores are associated with the dominance of specific functional species rather than greater overall species richness. These findings highlight the influence of topography on farm-scale sustainability and underscore the critical role of land management practices. The study emphasises the need for site-specific strategies, including agroforestry and integrated water management, to optimise agricultural health in heterogeneous tropical landscapes.