International audienceIn Argentina, the recent expansion of agriculture has turned into an extreme process almost completely dominated by soybean. The magnitude and speed of soybean expansion are believed to be the main drivers behind social, organizational and economic changes, including the displacement of small-scale producers out of agriculture. Under these transformations, land leasing is a critical management practice and constitutes a link among agricultural actors. This study analyzes changes in land tenancy patterns considering the recent agriculturization process but also older drivers of change. Our results indicate that the expansion of agriculture affects small-and large-scale farms differently, as land renting practices and productive orientation show clear differences by size. In the land leasing market, local producers are the main tenants while sowing pools rent about one quarter of the leased land. The competition for leasing farmland appears to operate within farm sizes. Small-and medium-scale producers compete among them for land, while large-scale local producers compete with sowing pools for the larger plots. Sowing pools do not appear to be the main drivers of land tenancy changes as they are no more relevant than local actors in the land leasing market. However, results suggest that small-scale landowners renting out their land for several years are the ones with higher probabilities of selling their lands. This segment of producers appears to be the one most negatively affected by soybeanization

This paper is an interpretation by researchers of oral and written accounts of ten development agents who have participated in various seminars and discussions since 2001, organized by researchers of INRA and of the University of Toulouse. According to the transcripts of lectures, discussions and articles written by development agents, it seems that the ten development agents analysed dealt with three major themes, all of which concern the new skills required by rural development actors. The first of these concerns social learning in general and, in particular, the complex interactions between public policies, as they are applied through decrees, and new local initiatives. The second theme concerns learning processes at work in rural development professions and new skills required by development agents. Finally, the third theme deals with the sensitive relationship between learning by development agents and learning by local communities or by organizations with which, or for whom, these agents work.

Dans les dispositifs de « Recherche-Formation-Action », la formation est conçue comme un processus de médiation entre chercheurs et acteurs du développement territorial et un moteur de leurs interactions. A travers la diversité des mises en oeuvre de tels dispositifs, au sein du département INRA-SAD (Sciences pour l'action et le développement) nous montrons les différentes facettes théoriques et méthodologiques de cette approche. Notre analyse permet de caractériser et formaliser les implications des chercheurs dans la formation, qu'elle soit initiale, continue, ou dans l'accompagnement d'acteurs de terrain. La typologie des pratiques de recherche-formation-action proposée ici spécifie les nouvelles compétences à développer par les praticiens de la recherche pour intervenir dans le développement agricole et territorial.

Sciences pour l'action et le développement (SAD), Unité de recherches « Sociétés, Changements techniques et connaissances dans les mondes ruraux » (Sicomor),

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