Controversial topics in agroecology: A European perspective

Migliorini, Paola; Bàrberi, Paolo; Bellon, Stéphane; Gaifami, Tommaso; Gkisakis, Vassilis D.; Peeters, Alain; Wezel, Alexander

doi:10.7764/ijanr.v47i3.2265

Cited by 7 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 25 publications

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“…The authors provide examples using case studies from Chile, Colombia, other Latin American countries, and the Philippines. Migliorini et al (2020) report on a participatory open discussion process that Agroecology Europe (AEEU) has engaged in over the last three years with their members on current topics in agroecology such as: use of agrochemicals; small-scale and peasant farming versus larger farms; technological innovations in agriculture, including digitalisation, information and com-munication technologies (ICT), and precision farming; biotechnology and genetic engineering in agriculture; local and short food supply chains; social justice; and gender. The authors note that the participatory process in AEEU was not easy but served to clarify some unsettled aspects within agroecology in Europe.…”

Section: Agroecology Development In Oecd Countries: Local Experiences and International Collaborationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Challenges for agroecology development for the building of sustainable agri-food systems

Salazar

Rojas

Baginsky

et al. 2020

IJANR

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Environmental and social crises in agriculture have led to growing recognition that more ecologically sustainable and socially just food and agricultural systems are needed. This thematic number of the International Journal of Agriculture and Natural Resources gathers the papers submitted to the workshop “Challenges for agroecology development for the building of sustainable agri-food systems,” an OECD Co-operative Research Programme-sponsored conference. The aim of the workshop was to promote the transition from conventional agriculture towards agroecology as a science, practice and social movement through sharing the experiences of different OECD countries: Australia, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Hungary, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden and the United States. The main topics discussed at the workshop included i) agroecology development in OECD countries: local experiences and international collaboration; ii) agroecology as a social movement and related public policies; iii) agroecology education to promote sustainable agri-food systems; and iv) science, innovation and technologies in agroecological systems. While not a comprehensive assessment of the state of agroecology in OECD countries, this thematic number integrates diverse perspectives on some main research and policy advances and uncovers some existing gaps in agroecology practice as an approach for transitioning towards ecologically sustainable and socially just agricultural systems

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Section: Agroecology Development In Oecd Countries: Local Experiences and International Collaborationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Challenges for agroecology development for the building of sustainable agri-food systems

Salazar

Rojas

Baginsky

et al. 2020

IJANR

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“…Le numérique peut être un levier pour la transition agroécologique, mais rappelons qu'il n'a pas d'orientation a priori (Migliorini et al, 2020), qu'il est à l'origine de nouvelles vulnérabilités (Schia, 2018) et qu'il soulève de nombreuses critiques. L'utilisation de technologies numériques en soutien à l'agriculture de précision (Ncube et al, 2018) ou en support aux chaînes de valeur est régulièrement dénoncé comme étant une continuité du paradigme conventionnel ne permettant pas un changement de paradigme de production ou de commercialisation en profondeur (Altieri et al, 2017;Prause et al, 2020).…”

Section: Introductionunclassified

Traque des innovations numériques au service de la transition agroécologique au Bénin

et al. 2022

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Face au défi alimentaire et aux instabilités climatiques, l’agriculture du Bénin doit accroître ses performances économiques, sociales et environnementales, en particulier par le développement de l’agroécologie. Le numérique est souvent cité comme un levier majeur de la transition agroécologique, mais les innovations numériques en agriculture au Bénin restent peu visibles. En mobilisant et en adaptant au numérique la méthodologie de la traque aux innovations des systèmes de culture hors normes, cet article explore certaines innovations numériques dans le secteur agricole au Bénin et s’interroge sur leur capacité à jouer un rôle dans la transition agroécologique. Nos travaux apportent deux contributions principales : la première est méthodologique et montre qu’il est possible de tirer des enseignements de l’application de la traque aux innovations à un autre objet et d’élargir le domaine d’application de la méthode. La seconde est analytique. Partant de la définition d’une situation de référence, nous avons repéré, décrit, analysé et évalué 21 solutions numériques utilisées en agriculture au Bénin, ainsi que les contraintes auxquelles les porteurs sont confrontés. Ces solutions ont été regroupées en deux types : les solutions de collecte de données pour l’aide à la décision et le pilotage, et les plateformes d’échanges et de partage d’informations et de connaissances. Les innovations les plus originales dans le contexte béninois consistent en la combinaison de solutions d’échange d’information et d’utilisation de moteurs d’intelligence artificielle. Les principales contraintes au développement de ces innovations sont relatives au manque de matériel, d’infrastructures et de compétences.

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“…This has meant that there is a paucity of approaches detailing how to engage as ICT4D researchers with sustainable and agroecological agricultural development (Grunfeld & Houghton, 2013). As the role of technology in agroecology is contested (Agroecology Europe, 2019;Bellon Maurel & Huyghe, 2017) and at times controversial (Migliorini et al, 2020), it is necessary to develop conscious means by which to approach this intersection (Bellon Maurel & Huyghe, 2017;Carolan, 2017).…”

Section: Developing Critical Technology Stewardshipmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In addition to the contributions towards technology stewardship approaches, this thesis thus contributes theoretically to illustrate that agricultural ICT interventions that engage with sustainable agricultural development need to more fundamentally address the ontological and epistemological positions embedded within an ecological knowledge system. In doing so, I add to a limited, but growing body of work that addresses the call (Agroecology Europe, 2019) to identify how technology and agroecology can be combined rather than opposed to each other (Bellon Maurel & Huyghe, 2017;Carolan, 2017;Grunfeld & Houghton, 2013;Migliorini et al, 2020;Raghavan et al, 2016). This body of work, which includes this thesis, engages not only with questions of "which … technologies are acceptable in agroecology" (Migliorini et al, 2020) but also "what … sociotechnical forms [technologies] engender … in terms of the thoughts and feelings they enact, the relationships they make possible, the forms of governance they encourage, and the ways of life valued " (Carolan, 2017).…”

Section: Linking Icts With Sustainable Agriculturementioning

confidence: 99%

“…In doing so, I add to a limited, but growing body of work that addresses the call (Agroecology Europe, 2019) to identify how technology and agroecology can be combined rather than opposed to each other (Bellon Maurel & Huyghe, 2017;Carolan, 2017;Grunfeld & Houghton, 2013;Migliorini et al, 2020;Raghavan et al, 2016). This body of work, which includes this thesis, engages not only with questions of "which … technologies are acceptable in agroecology" (Migliorini et al, 2020) but also "what … sociotechnical forms [technologies] engender … in terms of the thoughts and feelings they enact, the relationships they make possible, the forms of governance they encourage, and the ways of life valued " (Carolan, 2017). As such, the goals of the critical technology stewardship approach discussed here, is "not looking for alternatives to technology but rather [looking for] technologies that engender specific effects" (Carolan, 2017).…”

Section: Linking Icts With Sustainable Agriculturementioning

confidence: 99%

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Critically stewarding ICTs for sustainable agricultural development

Kendall¹

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This thesis explores how information and communication technologies (ICTs) can contribute to sustainable agricultural development. ICTs have for a long time been seen as important tools to support agriculture, in particular supporting the resource-constrained agricultural extension services of the Global South. However, previous research has largely failed to consider how ICTs can play a role in sustainable, agroecological farming. Not only that, existing approaches to agricultural ICTs have by and large failed to ensure that the interventions themselves are sustainable. Sustainable farming demands a holistic approach to agriculture, which extends to the way technologies such as ICTs are employed. The question of sustainability is critical for a sector that employs nearly a third of all workers worldwide, and a majority of those who are classified as poor. This has become especially acute considering the effects of the global climate crisis. Deploying technological interventions that cannot be sustainably maintained and do not take into account whether the agriculture they are promoting is sustainable, can only serve to exacerbate the issues at hand. Through action research conducted together with a non-profit organisation, Development Research Communication and Services Centre (DRCSC), in West Bengal in India, I have explored how to address ICTs in sustainable agriculture. In our work, we have developed an approach to ICTs that is both sustainable and also contributes to the long-term resilience and sustainability of the agroecosystem within which DRCSC operates. This required recognising the specific nature of the knowledge ecosystem of sustainable agriculture and understanding the way in which technology interventions can operate within the same. Understanding development as an expansion in capabilities, the emphasis of this process has been on DRCSC developing collective capabilities of technology stewardship, i.e. individual and organisational capacities to critically assess and constructively approach technology in ways that they (DRCSC) have reason to value. As a result of the project, we have developed two interventions that are currently sustainably adopted within the organisation, helping them in their work to support resource-poor, smallholder farmers. These interventions have been built incorporating values of self-reliance, autonomy and low resource use that are central to DRCSC in particular and to agroecology in general. The interventions, as well as the way that DRCSC and I developed them, illustrates how ICTs can be approached in the space of sustainable agricultural development. Drawing on a critical understanding of sustainability and technology, this thesis, however, not only informs approaches to ICTs in agriculture but ICT in development in general. Critical technology stewardship is an approach that can help researchers in ICT4D to engage in ways that are sustainable and lead to sustainable outcomes. Stewarding provides a means by which to incorporate situated understandings of the role that ICTs can play in any given context. It frames how ICT designers and researchers can participate ethically in supporting long-term development outcomes. It serves as a practical example of approaching ICT in development in a way that combines concerns for sustainability and resilience with a capabilities perspective on development.

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Controversial topics in agroecology: A European perspective

Cited by 7 publications

References 25 publications

Challenges for agroecology development for the building of sustainable agri-food systems

Challenges for agroecology development for the building of sustainable agri-food systems

Traque des innovations numériques au service de la transition agroécologique au Bénin

Critically stewarding ICTs for sustainable agricultural development

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